Length of stay: 1 day
Visited: August 2021
Clear Creek Forest is a protected nature reserve that is located outside of Chatham. It is under the administration of the nearby Rondeau Provincial Park and contains a deciduous forest. The forest here is home to many species-at-risk and features a 300-year-old beech tree that is believed to be Ontario’s oldest. Clear Creek Forest also contains evidence of native inhabitants and an archaeological site.
To access Clear Creek Forest, there is a small parking lot along Cochrane Line and Duart Road that can accomodate a handful of cars. There are two short trails on either side of the road. We first explored the trail on the northern side of the road where we parked.
After walking around the red gate, we had two choices: there was a wide path to the left and to the right. We first followed the path to the left, which starts off promising as it looks like it follows along an old road, but this essentially leads to nowhere. So we turned around and walked the other way. We had better luck on this path and after a few hundred metres, it leads to a decommissioned quarry.
Afterwards we walked back to the road. We crossed to the other side and found the other trail a few hundred feet up the road. The path loops through the forest and is relatively flat and wide.
Along the path we passed a Nature Conservancy monument. The Nature Conservancy of Canada, along with Ontario Parks, worked together to secure Clear Creek Forest and turned it into a provincial nature reserve.
After walking through some tall grass, the trail comes out to the road where there’s another sign to indicate that this is the Clear Creek Forest. We walked a few hundred metres along the road to get back to the parking lot. We definitely had to do a tick patrol afterwards.
We hopped back in the car and headed towards Port Burwell to continue our road trip around Lake Erie.
L
My progress on the Ontario Parks Challenge can be found here
Looks like a lovely visit to Clear Creek, another park I haven’t heard of.
So cool about the 300 year old beech tree. It really puts into perspective we’re only here for a blip of time on this planet compared to nature!
I miss summer but doing tick patrol is definitely one thing I do not miss. It seems the situation gets worse every year!
Look forward to reading more about your Lake Erie adventures!
I never really know what to expect with these non-operating provincial parks. We were pleasantly surprised to find actual trails though, even if they weren’t well marked. Ontario’s tick season seem to be getting worse every year. I guess that’s another negative side effect of climate change. It’s always something that we’re mindful of when hiking. I only have a few parks left to post about on our Lake Erie road trip before I get started on our two-week Northern Ontario adventure. I have no shortage of material to keep me busy during the winter!! Enjoy the rest of your week. Linda
Can’t wait for the Northern Ontario recaps!
I love Northern Ontario. It’s crazy to think that if it weren’t for the pandemic, I probably would have never travelled there.
I saw this and thought about you and K. I’m sure you can do your own version at a fraction of the cost.
https://www.torontoecoadventures.com/?fbclid=IwAR3qfHPzF9vVVM-Z9vRbqOdjY3KX_T1F8CilCGlkKJ_tTLhx-SmCnNIAOe0_aem_ATqdquwGVEIjARGFSOjwjsmkSn_1pDKRjOFSTF8_yLlfIQFdnUWHSfnuuUXkFNrKut-6r5V-t8HVoWh0TIJrwPJsHf8twc-mKQX5IpBxGBvOMtWEGxxXWjs-1thaA_I-W0g56gLwLuo8maLKR8qt9MiT
These look like some great ideas of places to visit in the winter!! Thanks for sharing.
The NCC does good work. They also secured our Bunchberry and I made sure they were on my Christmas donation list. Clear Creek looks like a great forest to walk in. I like the paths that tend to become overgrown as the year progresses. Thanks for sharing and have a great week. Allan
It’s amazing how much land across Canada the NCC has been able to acquire and help conserve. The NCC has been helped create most (if not all) new provincial parks over the past couple of decades in Ontario. We donate to them every year as well. Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your week. Linda
I don’t remember seeing this park on our Lake Erie tour! Looks interesting. I like the NCC tracts of lands as there is always something of interest to see or find out. I hope there were no ticks on you!
Clear Creek Forest is considered a nature reserve and is a non-operating park. It’s not well marked and my guess is that it doesn’t get too many visitors. It was still nice to visit, learn about its history, and explore the trails. Thankfully we didn’t find any ticks!
shhhh this is chatham-kent’s secret spot.
I can see why. Clear Creek Forest is a lovely area that’s off the beaten path. I didn’t know what to expect since it was a non-operating park, which can be hit or miss when it comes to hiking, but I was pleasantly surprised to find a well defined path through the shaded forest. Happy hiking and thanks for stopping by. Linda
Mostly, Nature comes out more colorfully in your shots. Liked the Woods and sky, there.
Thanks for your kind words. It’s funny how having blue skies and sun really makes the landscape appear more vivid and colourful. It’s always refreshing to spend time in nature.
Enjoy. Wish you have more such moments, in times to come.
Thanks!! Now that it’s winter we haven’t spent nearly as much time outside. But with the holidays coming up, hopefully we have some free time to enjoy all the snow and get some fresh air.
Beautiful park ! Excellent photos thanks for sharing 🎉💕👍😊
Thanks for your kind words and for commenting. While the park didn’t offer many activities besides hiking, it’s great that it’s main focus is on preservation and conservation.
It’s my pleasure 🎉😊stay happy and blessed .
You as well. Enjoy the rest of your week.
Feeling happy 😊🎉
Lovely photos. I’d think I would like to take a road trip around Lake Eerie someday, it looks so orange evil and scenic.
It’s neat to see how the landscape and terrain in Ontario is so different in the south (where Lake Erie is located) compared to the north. There are lots of sandy beaches and wetlands along Lake Erie, which make it the perfect place to visit during the summer.
This is a wonderful looking place! Now that winter is coming it’s a real treat looking at all the greenery and interesting paths… 🙂
For sure. It’s amazing how green and lush everything looks in the summer. It’s been fun to reminisce about our camping trips and gives me something to look forward to during these cold winter days. Take care.
What a beautiful area! NCC is a great organisation. Do you find many ticks after a walk like this? We do a lot of tick checks as well.
I was surprised to learn that the NCC has helped create most (if not all) new provincial parks in Ontario over the past couple of decades. They do great work. So far we’ve never had any issues with ticks, but we’ve heard they’ve been getting worse every year in Ontario due to climate change. So we usually try to do a tick check whenever we hike.
Another scenic stop, looks like a pleasant hike. I live near another Clear Creek (in Colorado) and we also have to check for ticks in the mountain forests.
Clear Creek seems to be a popular name choice. Ticks and the risk of Lyme disease have been a growing problem here in Ontario. Our winters aren’t what they used to be. Thankfully we’ve never had any issues yet and hopefully it stays that way. Either way, it’s still good to check ourselves for ticks after hiking. You just never know.
When I had dogs, tick-checking became a regular thing after a hike. They liked the attention anyway!
Haha, I’m sure they did!!
Mother Nature has blessed us with some truly marvellous creations and given that trees are one of the oldest living organisms on Earth you have to admire their tenacity and strength in overcoming the adverse elements of wind, rain, snow, and extreme heat. Thanks for sharing and have a nice day 🙂 Aiva
Trees are pretty amazing. It’s incredible how long they can live when us humans don’t interfere too much. It’s great that we have a few nature reserves in Ontario where their main focus is on conservation. Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your week. Linda
Lovely – the weather looks incredible! 🙂
We were lucky and had such lovely weather that weekend, which is perfect for spending time outdoors. We might have skipped over the park entirely if it were raining. I guess it all worked out for the best 🙂
I love your pictures showing the blue sky ‘covered’ with green leaves – the colours are so vibrant! We also check for ticks after our hikes … never had a problem, but rather be save than sorry.
Thanks for your kind words. It was such a beautiful day to spend outdoors hiking and it’s always great to have some shade coverage from the trees. We’ve never had any issues with ticks either, but we hear that they are getting worse every year. So yes, better to be safe than sorry.
love the nature🌿🍃
Spending time in nature is my happy place. I find it helps soothe the soul. Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.