A Drive Around Southern Ontario…

Since neither of us has ever been to this part of Canada before we wanted to get out and about to explore what was to found here in case we ever return. One day we drove to the area north of our RV park and the next day we headed south to explore the city of Toronto.

But first a bit about the RV park here – Toronto North/Cookstown KOA. We are about 40 minutes north of Toronto and about the same distance south of what they call the Cottage Country which starts around the towns of Innisfil and Barrie. The terrain here is rolling hills that are mostly developed with little native woodlands left. There seems to be lots of dairy farms in this region. The park itself is nice but a bit pricey, after all it is a KOA. The only real negative is all the road are gravel/dirt so it is quite dusty here with all the traffic. This park is completely full because (lucky us) we got a site during the 2013 AAC Western Ontario Regional Championships for Dog Agility. This also explained why there were so many dogs in our park as well…

We had never heard of such an event so we walked over to find out what it was all about. People obviously spent a great deal of time training dogs of all breeds to be able to go through a labyrinth of obstacles such as jumps, hoops, tunnels and they even weave through a maze. While we enjoyed watching this event held just outside the entrance to our park we took note that for many this was indeed serious business because when one of the doggie contestants stopped during her trial and jumped right up on a judge's lap the judge was stoic with no reaction. It was obvious the owner was quite peeved.  It was then we noticed we were the only ones laughing so we thought it best for us to head on to one of our drives.

Our drive north took us west on 89 out into the farmland through some neat little towns and one we really liked called New Tecumseth. It looked like a neat town and an area we could enjoy spending some time at. But we continued north on 18 where we encountered much hillier land that was more heavily wooded and it was quite beautiful through this area. Before we knew it we had reentered civilization and were nearing Wasaga Beach, a town on Lake Huron. This area is also home to Wasaga Beach Provincial Park which has a 14 kilometer sandy beach located on Georgian Bay and said to be the Longest Freshwater Beach in the World!!!

After checking out the “well manicured” beach we also drove on to the town of Barrie which we stopped to walk along the shorefront of Lake Simcoe and the harbor of Barrie. This looked like a fun town and a place where we would enjoy ourselves for a short stay as the there seems to a lot to do with many quaint bars and inviting bistros to visit.

The next day we took a day trip over to our tour guides' house since Jeff and Martine offered to show us Toronto. Jeff drove us all over the city and we saw every sight imaginable in a city of nearly 3 million. Highlights? The CN Tower for sure, but the waterfront was gorgeous especially since there were many tall ships in commemorating the war of 1812 at the waterfront festival. It was there that Martine suggested we stop at a Poutine Vendor to have fresh cut french fries.  Poutine is fries with gravy and cheese, but we opted to share jumbo regular fries...yum!  Next we drove all around the city enjoying beautiful towering new and old buildings then into many of the cultural areas such as little Italy and Chinatown.  Meandering through neighborhoods we were treated to what it must be like to be a resident in one of the many unique districts within Toronto… ohhh and to add to the festive energy that day, the Blue Jays won the 11th game in a row while we were there.

The whirlwind tour gave us lots of ideas for where we want to visit a bit longer the next time we pass through this neck of the woods in Canada. We were very impressed by the cleanliness, the green countryside and the celebration of summer seen in the floral displays in the towns and yards everywhere we traveled.

Oh and the best part was that Jeff and Martine took us back to their lovely home north of the city and treated to some fine micro brewed Canadian beverages and a great homemade Italian dinner complete with wine and dessert… magnifico!!!

Today we head down the road and not sure where we will spend tonight… looking at a stay near Lucan Ontario if they have a spot…