Toronto Islands

 Toronto is the biggest city in Canada, and now has the tallest residential building in the country which is surrounded by other towering condos, apartments and office towers. The CN Tower dominates the view from all over the city. So as you wander the city, you can’t help but look up at some of these massive structures. 

But, a fifteen minute ferry ride and you can escape the ‘Concrete Jungle’ for Toronto Islands where the few buildings there are only no more than a few stories high. 

On the ferry

The islands are ‘relatively’ car-free. There is one car ferry bringing deliveries and essential services, but the only ‘community’ is basically connected by walking/biking trails. This community is really a collection of little cottages that have been turned into houses and sometimes they have been referred to as “squatters” because they lease the land their houses sit on from the Government for minimal rent. 

There are actually three ferries servicing the island, one going to Ward Island, one to Centre Island and one to Hanlan’s point (the car ferry). In the summer these ferries are packed with people going over to enjoy a day away from the city. 

The CN Tower is never is far away

There is a school and a fire station. There is an artist’s retreat, one church, and an old lighthouse as well as a water treatment plant. The only real busy section of the island is the central section where there is an amusement park, bike rentals, restaurants, and a yacht club. 

The island is very flat, and completely walkable, but the best way to get around is by bike. Tangerine Bike Rentals has locations all over the island and there are places that rent regular bikes, or tandem or quad bikes for family outings. The nice thing about exploring the island is the lack of cars and you can walk or bike without worrying about cars which is the exact opposite of Toronto downtown which is a traffic nightmare. 

Nice walking trails

At one end of the island is Billy Bishop Airport and it is always interesting to watch the tourists on the ferries suddenly realize that the airplane just over their head is landing on the island airport bringing more people to the biggest city in Canada. 

The side of the island facing away from the city features many beaches which are popular during the heat of the summer and the ferries are usually full of people pulling wagons and carts of essentials for a day at the beach. You can visit Ward Island Beach at one end, Centre Island Beach and Gibraltar Point beach on the central part of the island or if you are adventurous you can go the Hanlan’s Point beach which is one of only two “officially sanctioned” Clothing Optional beaches in Canada.

A beach far away from that distant city

When you Iive in a city like Toronto it is nice to have a place like Toronto Island where you can get away from the traffic, the congestion, and the high-rises and enjoy green open spaces, no traffic and time to just chill on the beach. However on one of my trips to the island I had a chat with a couple who, having lived in Toronto for over 20  years were making their first visit to this wonderful park like retreat minutes from the city. Don’t make their mistake, if you visit Toronto, take time to go explore Toronto Island.

Winter Stations

A nice February Day at the beach

A sunny February day . . . . a perfect day to spend the day at the beach!

No bikinis, or speedos though, but at least all the Lifeguard stations were occupied and busy. You might think that a February beach day would not be a good idea, but that is exactly what we did today, took a streetcar and a bus down to Woodbine Beach and spent the day there. We were there to explore the annual Toronto “Winter Stations” event. 

Walking the boardwalk

Winter Stations is an International competition where the Arts and Design community is challenged to reimagine the lifeguard stations along Toronto’s East end beaches. The event has been running for 14 years and has seen entries from over 90 countries. The object is to use one of the unused leftguard Stations to create and build an art installation on the beach. I read about it on the internet and decided to go and see what it was all about. A 27 minute, 25 stop  streetcar ride and then a seven stop, seven minute bus ride took us to Woodbine Beach in Toronto’s East end, which runs for almost three kilometres along Lake Ontario. 

The beach was not crowded as it would have been in the summer, but I would call it well used, especially by Toronto’s dog community and as we walked down the beach we met many friendly canine beach goers. Scattered down the beach were the actual Winter Station installations. There was . . . .

We Caught a UFO by Xavier Madden & Katja Banovic from Croatia and Australia

A Kaleidoscopic Odyssey by Adam Brander, Nilesh P, Ingrid Garcia & Mayam Emadzadeh from Canada

Nimbus by David Stein from Canada

Bobbin’ by University of Waterloo School of Architecture

Winteraction by Department of Landscape Architecture & Ashari Architects for Canada & Iran

Nova by Toronto Metropolitan University of Architectural Science from Canada  

Each of these installations was designed and built around one of the beach’s lifeguard stations and the public was encouraged to explore and get involved in the displays. As we walked down the beach, we tried each one, climbing into the UFO, Walking through the Kaleidoscopic Odyssey, and titter-tottering in the Bobber. The rain falling from Nimbus’ cloud did not get us wet, and the fallen star Nova sheltered us from the wind and provided a view along the beach. Unfortunately the Labyrinth in Winteraction required an app that did not want to install on my phone so we could not do it, but the rest were imaginative and interesting. 

Not having visited this beach previously, we continued on down the boardwalk along the lakes edge visiting other beaches and enjoying a pleasant afternoon walk before taking a different streetcar and bus route back to the condo. 

Caution . . . Construction

Beautiful new bridges

Today was a cold day, but a sunny one, so we decided to continue our waterfront walk. My goal was to go down to the western end of the downtown Toronto waterfront and try to see the new bridges that had been built in Nova Scotia to be installed here to provide better, more attractive access to the Toronto Port Lands. The area itself is actually a bit of a mess with empty lots, heavy industrial, aging grain elevators and piles of “stuff”, mixed with a yacht club and a nice beach park at the end of the road. There is an actual marine port with access for seaway freighters as well as cruise ships, but coming from Halifax with one of the best harbours on the east coast, Toronto’s Port Lands do not look that impressive. 

Walking the new bridge

There are four of the new bridges being installed but only one is actually installed and being used, while the other three are seriously under construction. Once done, these new bridges will take this rough Industrial area much more attractive, and I assume encourage some more attractive development of the underused areas of the Port Lands. These bridges are elegant attractive structures, providing a vehicle roadway, a two lane bikeway, and a nice wide pedestrian walkway. The bridges are painted white on the exterior and each is a different colour on the inside. They will be a big improvement over the narrow temporary bridge and the old rusty lift bridge. But Really . . . what do you expect from a Nova Scotia product? 

Oh, and there was lots of construction . . . . 

One of many detours

Our walk to explore this section of Toronto’s waterfront was not easy. Once finished the new bridges with provide a nice direct route, but we had to walk around a large parking lot, across a thin rubber track across a narrow bridge which we had to share with vehicle traffic, then back and forth via construction detours, closed sidewalks and roadblocks. The rusty lift bridge only supports one lane of traffic and the pedestrian walkway is a temporary wooden one that replaced a rusted metal lane. Information on Wikipedia says that the lift bridge is historically significant and is being restored and rebuilt, but it looks pretty bad right now. 

Caution

Fortunately we survived our walk through the construction zones and continued our walk to Cherry Beach where the road ends at an attractive city park. On the way I can provide an update on an earlier post about the “sea can” market. We walked by a business that promises to provide a converted shipping container for any purpose - perhaps that is where all the ones used for the market came from. I think I recognize the shipping container washrooms . . .

And then we had retrace the route and do it all over again to get home.

Toronto Beach Sand - construction debris

Need a shipping container?

"Sea Can" Washrooms ready to go

Toronto . . . not a skyscraper in sight

The lifeguard is not on duty

The CN Tower hiding behind a pile of mud

High Beach

Finding High Beach

Kejick Bay is actually an island. It used to be a Bay until the lake was flooded. As I walk around the community It seems to be mostly sand. I have yet so see any solid rock anywhere. I think I discovered the entire island is composed of sand.

There are two nice sand beaches the community use. Yes, in tropical Northern Ontario it seems that although they have a brutal winter, they also have a nice hot summer and people are already swimming in the lake here. The main beach is called “low Beach”, and it is a regular sort of beach, with sand and driftwood. You get to it down a short road/path off the road into the community.

The other beach, as you might have guessed, is called “High Beach”. I had heard about this spot, and Alisha had insisted that I had to go see High Beach; it was pretty amazing. So, on a morning with no chores to do – the boat was in the water, and Derek was doing drywall (Not my best skill), Alisha dropped me off at a path leading into the forest, pointing up a hill. Her only instruction was “Don't go

down to the lake, or you won't get back up.”. Confusing instructions since I thought I was supposed to go see this beach.

The path was a well worn but twisting route through a forest of mature red pine trees. After a couple of minutes, I came out into a clearing in the forest with tall pine trees and a sandy beach. Walking to the edge of the clearing, I peered down at Lac Seul. I was standing on a beautiful sandy beach 100 feet above the lake. A steeply sloping incline led down to the shore of the lake. I now knew why she warned me not to go down to the lake. Climbing up a 100 foot sand dune would have been a difficult task.

As you walk around the community there is sand everywhere, but the community is on a lake so you do not think so much about it, but standing on sand 100 feet high you cannot help but be awed by how this island was formed. This area must have been part of an ocean or a desert at one time and all this sand was deposited here over eons many many years ago.

Alisha was right, High Beach really was amazing. As I stood in the sand overlooking the spectacular views out over the lake, I had to agree that this is definitely a “Must see” location in Kejick Bay. Later the same day I got to see the same sight from a boat out on the lake as we searched out a good fishing spot, and it was as spectacular from that viewpoint.

Kejick Bay

Welcome to Kejick (By Road)

In 1929, Ontario Hydro built a Dam and raised the level of Lac Seul to create a reservoir to generate hydro power. This flooded Kekick Bay and created an island. There was a Native community on this piece of land, and this cut them off from the mainland. In the last few years a causeway has been built connecting Kejick to the mainland once again. According to Wikipedia, there is a population of 400 living in Kejick Bay now. This is where Alisha lives and works as Principal of the school in the community, and it where I am now visiting. The people living here are of the Lac Seul first nation group and consist of three separate communities, Kejick Bay, Whitefish Bay and Frenchman's Head. The Lac Seul First Nation is part of the Ojibwa First Nation, and has an area of just over 100 square miles.

The community of Kejick itself is on an island in the middle of Lac Seul, so it is a beautiful setting with a lake surrounding it. I was surprised with the weather, I know they have harsh winters and Alisha has complained about the amount of snow and the freezing temperatures in the long brutal winter, but right now when I am visiting it is down-right tropical with temperatures warmer than at home. Yesterday it was 33º C, and even today in the rain it is still 23º C.

When you reach the causeway, the road road changes to gravel, and the soil is sandy, so it is

Or By Boat.

impossible to keep things clean. I was reminded of Cairo, where the dust and sand gets into everything; it is like that here. Alisha had her car detailed on one of her trips to Winnipeg and was appalled at how quickly it reverted to a dusty dirty mess once she was back here.

The town itself has one convenience store that also sells gas. When Alisha first arrived the store sold chips and pop, but she is pleased that they now carry many more healthy groceries. There is Alisha's K-9 school, a community centre, an outdoor rink, one church a band office and a health centre. There are two well used beaches and boat docks everywhere. The community is patrolled by the Lac Seul Police force, and has fire hydrants, but no fire department. In fact the second night we were here Derek was called to help fight a house fire. They had a good 2” fire hose but someone had left the actual nozzle in Frenchman's Head even though they tried they could not save the house.

That is a little about the community of Kejick Bay. Although somewhat isolated, they are an open and friendly community and I have been made to feel at home. Most community members know Alisha, so when I am introduced to anyone they smile and welcome me to their community, and as I walk around the streets, the people wave with a friendly greeting and the dogs all wag their tails as they stop for a pat or a scritch.

The Ferry

The Complex (Community Centre)

The Health Ctntre

Alisha's House (The Teachery)

Bushwalking

Ready to go Bushwalking

Our first full day in Australia and we had to do something “Australian”. Since it is spring here and the temperature was expected to go up to 25°, our first choice was to go to the beach, and have lunch of Chicken-salt French Fries on the beach for lunch, but Steph, Regis’s niece came home and changed the plans, suggesting we go Bushwalking and then go to the beach.

Great Views

Here in Australia you do not go to the “woods”, you go to the “bush”, and you don’t hike, you “Go for a Bushwalk”. Now they do use the same term for the trails as in New Zealand, and we headed for the Wyrrabalong (Pronounce that “Where I Belong”) National Park Track. This is an interesting park, situated between a residential neighborhood and the steep ocean cliffs, so although a beautiful natural site, it is conveniently close to the city so people can use it easily. There was a nice parking lot at either end, and the track itself was well maintained and easy to walk on with sand underfoot and stairs on the climbs. As you “Walk” the track you come out onto beautiful look-offs with spectacular views all the way to Sydney from cliffs that are shared with para-gliders and hang-gliders launching out over the ocean. Fortunately no one was taking advantage of the updrafts and we had the cliff to ourselves.

Time for Chicken-salt French Fries

Hiking through the woods, or “Bushwalking” in Australia is so different than in Canada, because the vegetation you walk through is so completely different from what we are used to. No maple trees, no oak, and no pine or spruce. There were Banksia, Gum trees, and paperbark trees. It is really weird, It was like walking through a completely different landscape. Even in Asia or Europe there are trees I recognized, but here on a continent not connected to anything else, a completely alien world has developed. The trees are different, the flowers are foreign, everything is new. As I walked along I was constantly stopping to photograph plants and trees I had never seen before.

We still got to go to the beach only it was even nicer after a long bushwalk and those chicken-salt French fries were even tastier.

Termite Nest