The World Through Our Lens
It is with fond memories that Bob and I recall skating on the woodland skating rink called Cedarena. Nestled into a valley along Little Rouge Creek in what is now Rouge National Urban Park, this skating rink provided the most whimsical experience when visited on a Tuesday evening. Read more
Pandemic birding and nature hikes have kept us close to home since March of 2020, and one of our favorite places to get outdoors is in Rouge National Urban Park. On an early June day, we were very fortunate to see an Eastern Milksnake in Bob Hunter Memorial Conservation Area. Read more
Pandemic Birding had been a whole new experience for Bob and me. Since the pandemic was officially declared in March 2020, we had made outdoor activities a priority but always kept within a 30-minute radius from our home. On one such occasion in late May 2020, we happened upon this newly fledged Eastern Screech Owlet. Read more
When I suggested a walk in Rouge National Urban Park one day, I jokingly said that maybe we would see an owl. About an hour later, that prediction came true when I almost walked up to a beautiful Barred Owl sitting low in a small deciduous tree. Read more
Bob and I had not entertained our youngest son and his wife for quite some time, so in early August, we got together to catch up on all the news. Not being ones to sit around and visit ad infinitum, after passing a couple of hours on our backyard deck, I suggested a bit of a walk to work up an appetite for dinner. Cedar Trail at Rouge National Urban Park is close by, and we promised that we would not stand around for hours photographing birds, but the chance sighting of a Question Mark Butterfly did hold us up for several minutes with no complaints from our company. Read more
After a spate of hot, humid weather, Bob and I seized the first day of below-seasonal temperatures to go cycling in Toronto. While cruising along the Lake Ontario shoreline at the bottom of Rouge National Urban Park, we spotted a Mink loping along the rocky shore with a floppy fish dangling from its mouth. Read more
On Father’s Day, my family teamed up for a hike in Rouge Park, in Toronto, Ontario. For a change of scenery, my brother-in-law suggested a section of trail new to us, beginning just off of Meadowvale Road at the Rouge Valley Conservation Centre. It was towards the end of our day’s explorations that we came upon a female Wood Duck and several ducklings at the ponds along the Cedar Trail. Read more
Late one fall, Bob and I hiked a new trail at Rouge National Urban Park, here in Toronto, Ontario. We were amazed at how remote it felt on the edge of a big city, and the Bufflehead ducks that are from the Arctic seemed right at home. Read more