From hiking up mountains and exploring valleys to feeding cows and riding horses, we've had a whirlwind of adventures on our road trip to Alberta. With Canada's landscape ranging in such beauty, we focused most of our time exploring the outdoors and caught a few glimpses of wildlife. We visited incredibly blue lakes, relaxed in a hot spring and watched cows block the road we were driving on.
It's that time of year again when the Sakura trees at High Park in Toronto are in peak bloom. This makes it the perfect place for a photo-op. Spend the day walking under a canopy of beautiful flowers, having a picnic lunch or hiking the discovery trails.
The cherry blossoms only last for about two weeks, so head out to High Park before the petals fall!
Devil's Punch Bowl Falls is a unique waterfall located on the Niagara Escarpment in Stoney Creek, Ontario. Known for its distinctive horseshoe multi-coloured cliff, it offers an absolutely breathtaking view.
Before you start the hike, you can explore the area to see the view of the falls from the top. You'll also see a 10-metre high cross that overlooks the community.
When you're ready, head towards the bench where you'll see a side trail marker. The trail will take you down a zig-zag path down a steep incline until you reach the bottom of the escarpment. Turn left and continue following the trail. Along the way, you'll find wooden stairs that take you down towards the river.
From here, the goal is to take the main trail upstream until you reach the Lower Falls. There's a bunch of side trails that will take you on more difficult paths that I probably wouldn't try again. Climb up past the Lower Falls and keep following the trail. When you get closer to Devil's Punch Bowl Falls, follow the trails that are closer to the river because I noticed that some trails head uphill and away from the falls.
You'll reach a point where the trail leads you down to the river. Use the tree roots to climb down onto the riverbed. Now head upstream towards Devil's Punch Bowl Falls and you'll be rewarded with an amazing view of the falls.
A last-minute decision led us to head up North to Collingwood. From treetop canopy walks and ziplining, to caves and caverns, Scenic Caves offers a variety of activities for the adventurous soul. Since we have treetop trekked and ziplined before, we opted for the self-guided tour of the caves, caverns and suspension bridge.
As Southern Ontario's longest suspension bridge, I thought it was rather underwhelming. When you walk to the other side of the bridge, you reach a dead end with a few picnic tables and boards of information about the suspension bridge. You need to head back if you want to participate in other activities. However, the view was lovely since it overlooks the Georgian Bay.
Hiking through the caves and caverns was much more exciting. There's an easy trail to follow to visit the caves and caverns. They made it very safe by installing platforms and bars to hold onto for the rocky areas. You get spectacular lookouts from the edge of the limestone cliffs, a shady hike beneath the canopy of sugar maples and red oak as well as a chance to explore a labyrinth of caves and crevices.
