a breezy picnic spot
Although I’ve been cross country skiing many times through the trails at Shirley’s Bay, I’ve never explored them in summer. And what a treat! We enjoyed the diversity of the landscape. Meadows of wildflowers greeted us and provided a lesson in ‘succession’ too – these meadows are old farm fields which are now full of berry bushes and thickets, which provide much needed food and shelter for birds. Eventually, the thickets will evolve into forest. The recent rain has brought out some new blooms, especially the Queen Anne’s Lace. Fortunately, we didn’t spot any of the Giant Hogweed that’s been making news headlines – it is a poisonous flower that looks a bit like Queen Anne’s Lace, but has large, wide leaves and grows quite tall. If you touch it, apparently it causes severe rashes/burns.
We heard many unusual bird calls, and I’m sure birders would have ‘a field day’ there! We saw a gorgeous black butterfly with blue spots, which I haven’t been able to identify yet.
(Let me know if you have any ideas!)
can anyone identify this butterfly?
After a 20 minute walk through the meadows on the wider, flatter trail – which, by the way is suitable for strollers – we came to the shore of the Ottawa River. It is a rare treat to come across a wild patch of shoreline area so close to the city, and the water was low, so it was a bit like the ocean at low tide. The kids loved running around on the mud flats, (which are more solid than they look) and finding snail shells.We found fresh deer prints in the mud too, so the kids were following them all over the place and they figured out that the deer were coming from the woods out to the edge of the water, probably to have a drink.
the search for snail
We enjoyed a shady picnic and the cool breezes off the water were a welcome treat after the heat of the meadow. Cicadas were singing and all in all a really lovely adventure. There is a loop trail there, which we didn’t do, because it would be a bit long for my 2 year old. We walked about 20 minutes on the widest trail which went straight to the river, spent about 30 minutes there having a picnic and exploring at the water’s edge, then walked 20 minutes back. My 2 year old was sleeping in the stroller on the way back, having run full speed all the way there!
The Ottawa River at Shirley's Bay
