CHARNWOOD CIRCULAR HIKE

Leicestershire, like most counties in the UK has some wonderful countryside. My hike started in the main car park at Bradgate Park in Newtown Linford. I took the path leading up to the north west corner of the park past the folly, Old John. A short walk along Benscliffe Road where I found the Leicestershire Round Path which crossed over the Lingdale golf course. Eventually I came to a road leading to Woodhouse Eaves. This is where I messed up. Instead of continuing further along the road I took the earlier path which took me on a circular route around Broombriggs Farm. I failed to find the path leading to Beacon Hill which was my original plan. My only option now was to retrace my steps back to the starting point. What should have transpired had I found the correct path to Beacon Hill was to continue to Ulverscroft Priory following a different path into Newtown Linford. I did enjoy the 12.3 km walk despite buggering up and being somewhat disappointed loosing my way.

RUTLAND WATER PENINSULA WALK

Rutland, the smallest county in England has a huge man made reservoir . The area was deliberately flooded in the 1970's and it's used for drinking water and recreational purposes such as fishing and boating etc. From the village of Hambleton there is 9.3 km trail around the peninsula which forms  part of the lake. It took me 2 hours including stops to take photographs to complete the walk. While the path was compacted gravel it required vigilance to avoid stepping in to sheep droppings. Afterwards a well earned pint of Old Speckled Hen in The Finch's Arms went down a treat.

NORTH YORK

On a nice day 62 Senior members met at Starbucks in the North York Centre. We walked through the York Cemetery and the woods of the Hinder Property. We lunched at the Earl Bales Community Centre after fuelling our appetites from clambering up the steep hill to the Centre. Lunch over we continued walking through the Hearthstone Valley Greenbelt and the West Don Parkland. Eventually we finished up at Mr. Greek at Finch and Dufferin. A total distance of 12 km. The service at Mr. Greek was excellent and the Heineken tasted like more! Note. The straight line seen on the map is due to my pausing the tracking and then re-starting after noticing my error.

FOREST HILL & ENVIRONS

Tom Fiore's walk started from Starbucks in Forest Hill. The 12 km walk on a gorgeous day was spectacular. Walking through Cedarvale Park, Kay Gardiner Belt Line, Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, David Balfour Ravine to St. Clair and back to Starbucks. Good old Tom had arranged with Starbucks to give the group free cold drinks and pieces of cake!

ROUGE & PETTICOAT CREEK

Jim Mallon's hike commences on the outer eastern limits of Toronto at the Rouge Beach Park. For Barry & I the best mode of transport was the Go Train. We walked the 2 km distance from the Rouge Hill Station to to the starting point. The hike including the walk back to the station was 16.5 km. 47 members trekked through Petticoat Creek and along the lakeshore to lunch in view of the Pickering Nuclear Power Station. After lunch we walked around the west side of Frenchman's Bay and then traced our way back to the starting point. Alas, we had to miss going to the pub due to a lack of transport.

HIGH PARK

Barry & I joined Tom Fiore's Toronto Trail Festival Hikes around High Park. Starting at the Grenadier Restaurant we proceeded to wander through mostly wooded trails within the park. At one point we did Yoga Exercises with an Instructor which I actually enjoyed. Today was also a Ukrainian Festival and we passed by the parade on our hike. We finished up back at the restaurant curtailing the hike due to heavy rain. Mary Moore, Barry and I headed to the Mackenzie Pub for a pint and a bite. The walk was only 6km long!

HUMBER ARBORETUM

Today's Senior Hike of 32 participants commenced at Ester Lorrie Park along the West Humber Trail. The 11 km walk took us to the Humber Arboretum. Monica Feran, our hike leader, guided us through some enjoyable trails and gardens within the Arboretum. We finished up at the Humber College Student Pub! I thought it was ironic. The pub offered a myriad of beers and spirits but only two choices of food to eat!