Late summer, early fall is a perfect time for touring Ontario. As the trees are slowly starting to change colours, the beauty of the Ontarios landscapes and waterways starts to really shine.
A gorgeous day greeted me on September 5, 2009 as I linked up with one of my friends to do a driving tour of eastern Georgian Bay. After heading north on Highway 404 and a scenic drive on Yonge Street, we went north on Highway 400 and made our first stop in Port Severn.
This town is located on the Trent-Severn Waterway, a 386 km long canal and waterway system that connects Lake Ontario with Georgian Bay which is part of Lake Huron. The entire system consists of 44 locks, 39 swing bridges and 160 dams. Port Severn also features a swing bridge, which has, however, been taking out of commission because of its deteriorated and rusty state. The Trent-Severn Waterway has actually included by National Geographic as one of the 500 most interesting Journeys of a Lifetime.
Construction started in 1833 but it would take until 1920 until a boat could actually travel the whole route. While originally used as a transportation route for a variety goods, today the Trent-Severn Waterway is operated by Parks Canada and dedicated to recreational use only.
Honey Harbour, not far away from Port Severn is a small waterfront community that features many vacation homes and marinas. The Delawan Resort is a well-known waterfront spa and resort in Honey Harbour and attracts many Torontonians for weekend getaways. As we were enjoying our picknick, we were watching the many boaters and seadoo riders that were plying the waters in Honey Harbour.
From here we drove south to Midland, a town of about 16,000 residents on the southeastern shores of Georgian Bay. Originally founded in 1871 as the terminus of the Midland Railway of Canada, the town started to grow in the late 1800s as the shipping, lumber and grain industries brought prosperity to this town.
One of the towns main attractions are its dozens of murals, painted by local artist Fred Lenz. The largest one including the huge Millenium Mural that is painted on the huge grain silos in Midland Harbour. The main street with its many small shops has been nicely beautified in the last few years and is now enhanded by historically inspired street lighting and numerous large planters with flowers. Nearby is the Jesuit mission of Sainte-Marie among the Hurons, which is today a living museum that illustrates missionary life in the 17th century. The Martyrs Shrine commemorates five missionaries that were martyred during the Huron-Iroquois Wars.
Less than 15 minutes away is Penetanguishene, a small town of about 9,500 people . Settled as early 800 AD by the Huron natives, it was first visited in the early 1600s by European explorers. In 1793, John Graves Simcoe visited the area and designated it for development as a naval base. A road connecting it with Barrie and Toronto was started in 1814 and in the 1840s, a large number of families migrated to Penetanguishene from Quebec, attracted by the cheap and fertile land.
Georgian Bay is a great destination for a getaway from Toronto, and I thoroughly enjoyed this Saturday in the countryside.
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Ontario Travel: Harbour of Penetanguisheneby travelandtransitions4,134 views
haha i see my boat
crazycougar23 1 year ago