Distance hiked: 6km
Location: Lynde Shores Conservation Area, Ontario
Date: October 3, 2020
Lynde Shores Conservation Area is located along the shores of Lake Ontario near Whitby. It is in an environmentally sensitive wetland and a popular spot for birdwatching. It also offers three viewing platforms of the marshes and over 7km of hiking trails.
This fall has been particularly wet and cold, but the fall foliage has been outstanding. The forecast for today looked promising, so we decided to go for a hike at the Lynde Shores Conservation Area, which is about a 30 minute drive from Toronto.
We arrived at the conservation area just after 9:30a.m and the parking lot was already over half full. We might as well get to it. We briefly hiked along the Waterfront Trail to get to the trailhead for LaVay’s Lane Trail (1.8km). The path leads through the forest to a large open meadow, showcasing all the beautiful fall colours in the area.
Mid-way through the trail, the path reaches a junction at a private road. From here we took a short detour to hike along the Lake Ontario Trail (600m), which leads down to the water.
We hiked back the way we came toward LaVay’s Lane Trail and stopped at the lookout for Cranberry Marsh. Back in the late 1990s, Cranberry Marsh was in very poor health. To bring the marsh back into a healthy state, the Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority started de-watering the marsh and regulating the water levels. This allowed the vegetation to rejuvenate, which provided a better aquatic habitat that could sustain more plants and wildlife.
From the lookout, we hiked back to LaVay’s Lane Trail. The path weaves through the open meadow and eventually loops back to the Waterfront Trail.
On the way back to the parking lot, we turned off to hike along the Chickadee Trail (500m). While we didn’t see many chickadees on this trail, we did see a large amount of ducks and geese. The part of the path along the water is an extremely popular area to feed the ducks. And from the looks of them, they are very well fed.
From here, it’s a short walk back to the main parking lot. We hopped in the car and drove to the south western part of the conservation area to check out the remaining lookouts and hiking trail.
We parked at the first side parking lot and checked out the two other lookouts of Cranberry Marsh. It’s a short walk to the viewing platforms, which are extremely popular places for birdwatching. We saw a number of people with fancy cameras and binoculars. One of the birdwatchers kindly gave us some bird seed to attract the chickadees. Suddenly I had a lot of friends.
The second viewing platform is a raptor viewing facility. In 1993, the Greater Toronto Raptor Watch was organized to count the number of raptors (which are birds of prey and should not be confused with velociraptors, which is immediately what came to my mind) during the fall migration from August to December. This provided an opportunity to standardize monitoring procedures and exchange annual data collected at Cranberry Marsh and High Park in Toronto.
We continued walking south towards Lake Ontario to the trailhead for the Bobolink Trail (600m). The first stretch follows along a paved path on the Waterfront Trail before meeting up with the Bobolink Trail, which then connects with the Waterfront Trail again to form a loop. The path meanders through an open meadow. It was particularly scenic in the fall with all the fall flowers and colours.
Once we looped back to the trailhead, we walked back to our car and headed home. Overall it took us just under two hours to explore the Lynde Shores Conservation Area.
L
My progress on the 52 Hike Challenge can be found here
That Lake Ontario photo is wonderful! Almost as if it’s a submerged track 😉
Thanks for your kind words. And agreed, the way the sunlight hits the water resembles some sort of submerged path.
You are most welcome!!! 🙂
Lovely trails L and that Lake Ontario capture is a stunner❣️
It was a lovely day to go for a hike and enjoy all the fall colours. The trails are all relatively short and interconnected, so it’s really easy to choose your own adventure depending on how long you want to hike for. And agreed, the picture of how the sun is reflecting on Lake Ontario was easily my favourite. Thanks for reading and commenting.
This is a wonderful spot so close to Toronto and how awesome you got to get some bird friends too!
We’ve driven by Lynde Shores countless times over the years and it was nice to finally explore it. I was a bit skeptical given how close it was to the highway, but you couldn’t really hear the traffic from the trails. It was neat feeding the birds. I felt a bit like the pigeon lady from Home Alone 2.
Too funny re: Home Alone 2 lady.
Ha, it was top of mind because we recently watched that movie.
Great lake shot, even with the contrails. I suppose there would have even been more in a normal year. So nice to see the chickadees. Thanks for sharing. Stay well. Allan
Thanks Allan. It can be hit or miss taking pictures when you’re directly facing the sun. But all the wispy clouds provided a nice barrier and warm glow. And yes, it was fun to see and feed the chickadees. I can easily see why this place is a popular spot for birdwatching. Thanks for reading. Take care.
Such a great entertainers, these cute chickadees!
Yes, chickadees are easily some of the cutest birds! It was neat to hold out my hand and feed them.
The photo of the sun sparkling on the water is stunning!
Thanks! Taking pictures directly facing the sun doesn’t usually work out well for me, but in this case it did. Thanks for reading and commenting.
I love photo 4 that shows the sun shining on the water – so beautiful. And chickadees – they are so pretty, especially the way that they “float” as they fly.
Thanks, and agreed, the way the sunlight reflects off the water is always so magical. And those chickadees were something else. It was really fun feeding them. As a kid I was terrified of birds, but they’ve certainly grown on me over the years.
That sounds like a diverse habitat to explore! Glad you made a lot of chickadee friends too 🙂
I just love hiking through and around wetlands. The fall is really the best time of year to explore those areas as there are no pesky mosquitoes or deer flies around. And yes, the chickadees were clearly the star of the show. Makes me want to buy a bird feeder (except I live in an apartment, so that wouldn’t work out well at all).
I am happy for you that the birds have recognised a nature lover, you have been very successful with them 🙂
For sure, I was in my element. I used to be terrified of birds when I was a kid. So needless to say, I’ve come a long way considering I let them eat bird seed straight from the palm of my hand.
It is a great achievement to overcome childhood fears. Well done.
Haha yes. It’s the same with food. For the longest time I never ate avocado because I didn’t like it as a kid. I tried it a few years ago and now it’s one of my favourite foods!
I’d have to try to get rid of some bad habits/disgust from childhood too 🙂
Great post and I love the pics !
Thanks for your kind words. Lynde Shores was a great place to spend the morning and explore. It was especially beautiful in the fall when all the leaves are changing colour. Thanks for reading and commenting.
The photo of the shoreside is so amazing. What a beautiful place!
It was such a beautiful day and area to go for a hike. The temperature was perfect, the sun was shining, and the leaves were changing colour. Thanks for reading and commenting.