The Tiny Township Trials

NOTE: I originally wrote this back in August but never posted it. It's a neat story so I thought now's as good as any time to post. 

Life in Social Distancing was cool for a while, but as the summer months hit, the glorious weather became consistent, and the lure of the many amazing shores of water around Simcoe County increased, we decided to venture out. Call it a mini "stay-cation" if you will.

I am somewhat embarrassed to admit that I have lived the bulk of my years in this area and there are still portions of the county that I have never seen, other than in photos. I convinced Joyce that I would like to go to the northern end of the county to see Lafontaine Beach because I had heard that it was a nice place. 

Since it was a stay-cation and we had no particular schedule to meet, the "senile" route was chosen as the path to follow. We packed a most delicious picnic, threw the bikes in the back of the pickup, and pointed north up Crossland Road. We have taken Crossland on a number of occasions ... some to visit my brother who lives on it and some to visit Allenwood Beach where a friend has a cottage ... but we had never gone beyond the Flos #11 turn for Allenwood. The countryside was resplendent with Canadian agricultural efforts, the seas of various colours spreading out as far as the eye could see. When we reached the fork in the road at what appeared to be the end, we decided on the part less travelled and meandered our way through the communities of cottages along Tiny Beaches Road. This circumvented route took us through a variety of little villages ... the beaches that are all named on the maps of the western shores along Georgian Bay like Balm, Ardmore, Cawaja, Wahnekewaning, Belle-eau-Claire, and Georgian Sands Beaches before finally entering Lafontaine. I have to admit that I was surprised to find a fairly substantial community in Lafontaine. I had never occurred to me that it would be a destination for so many. 

My wonderment soon turned to frowns as the signs posted every few metres warned of parking fines for anyone that was not displaying a Tiny Township Resident Permit. Undaunted, I was content to head to the beach area and fork over the cash required to purchase a parking pass. I was shocked to find out that out of area visitors could not even pay for parking, prompting more than one head-scratching moment. Not to be defeated, and bolstered by years of searching for parking at Wasaga, we scoped out the subdivisions surrounding the beach, surmising that a short walk to the beach was doable. That too, was a no-go. We both agreed that, pandemic or not, there should be some allowance for visitors. Crap on a cracker!

We finally relented and brainstormed what the course of action would be. We could head up further north to Awenda Provincial Park? That would mean a parking fee of course. Or we could head east across to Penetang? We knew from previous trips that the bike path that goes along the north shore was a great way to enjoy ourselves. The lure of a pleasant evening bike ride was too much so Penetang it was. 

We encountered more splendid scenery on the drive across, then were quite pleased to encounter Rotary Park as an easy access point to the bike path ... and loads of free parking! Our ride took us east, following past the Martyr's Memorial toward the King's Wharf Theatre Area. That area is really attractive with loads of water views, a wide variety of architecture, and some quiet little parks with beach areas. Circling back toward the truck, we decided to continue west past Rotary Park, encountering quite a unique section of the Tiny Trail. I had heard from biking friends about the "roller coaster" but I wasn't prepared for the true nature of the path. Carved right out of the forest, the path rises and falls significantly literally creating a rollercoaster ride and its resulting thrills. I'm not sure how one would navigate that section if there was a lot of bike traffic, what with it's blind corners and narrow bridges, but we were thankfully the only ones on the path at the time. We stole all of the fun!

After making our way back to the truck, it was decided that we would drive east over to one of the beautiful parks we had seen on our ride over toward the King's Wharf Theatre. Upon arriving, we discovered it was called Huronia Park, and were treated to a wonderful twilight breeze. Being later in the day, the picnic took on even more desirable qualities as we thoroughly enjoyed our cooler's wares. We stayed and enjoyed the beauty of a Georgian Bay sunset until the breezes died and the mosquitoes came looking for a donation. 

Almost as a reward for a great day, on the route home out of Penetang we encountered a "mom 'n pop" gas station that was selling for a significantly lower price than back in Barrie. Score! Great company, great scenery, great ride, great meal, and now a cheap fill up! Smiles all around!

The frustrations of Tiny Township were left far behind. 

Lemonade people ... no lemons here!