Watching kites flying high over a beach in Toronto

Warm weekend weather brings out the sun worshipers to the beautiful stretches of sandy beaches in Toronto. On the most recent weekend on Woodbine Beach the volleyball players were out in force, some even in bikinis, while a parade of kites high in the sky caught a lot of interest from those walking or relaxing on the beach.

Some of the same kiters participate in the annual Windfest celebrations where you can see some amazing kites in all sizes and shapes including whales, squids, fish, hello kitty and many more.

See more beach fun after the break.

Luminosity in the Beaches

It's like a mini-Nuit Blanche in the Beach as the Leslieville area comes alive at night with Luminosity 2021. Eight illuminating art exhibits are along 3km of Queen Street East from Neville Park Boulevard to Coxwell Avenue from March 13 till April 11, 2021. The installations will be on until midnight.

The easterly end is at the streetcar loop at Nursewood Road while the west end is at Kingston Road. The artists and the installations are; Kristyn Watterworth and Edward Platero - "88 Keys of Light", Jungle Ling - "Chee-Win", Collective Memory - "Headlights", Opus Art Projects - "Light Tree", Rhonda Weppler & Trevor Mahovsky - "Sugar Mountain", Chris Foster - "Beacon Silo", Bryan Faubert - "Out From Under the Shadows" and Thelia Sanders Shelton - "Share the Love"

See more of Luminosity 2021 after the jump.

Joe's Photos - blast from the past continue

Fresh Joe and I used to cover a lot of territory around Ontario and especially around the City of Toronto. Some of our favourite things to photograph were racing, airshows, the Toronto Roller Derby and atmosphere.

You can see the atmosphere after the jump.

Lets Go Blue Jays, Lets Go

Spring training 2021 is going good for our home town MLB team as the Blue Jays are currently tied for 3rd in the AL division. They will have to work hard this season as the reduced 2020 season had only 60 games while the 2021 season will have 162 games. Blue Jays logo at top.

A blast from the past in the Rogers Centre

The Grapefruit League started at the end of February where the Blue Jays played a game against the New York Yankees and will continue until March 29 against the Phillies. The regular season starts for the Jays (AL East) on April 1st, coincidently with the Yankees.

Blue Jays are currently based out of Dunedin, Florida and hope to return to Rogers Centre later in the year. Current Covid restrictions regarding major events are restricted until July 1st at the minimum although they could probably return to Toronto if they didn't allow fans into the centre - that is if the border is open to allow visiting teams to play in Canada.

I try to buy tickets to at least one game and always look for a promotion as I love the hoodies and baseball shirts so I am definitely hoping that they come back.

They will be streaming GL home games without audio (for games not broadcast by SNET).

The white dome of the Rogers Centre beside the CN Tower

International Women's Day 2021 in Toronto

There was plenty of purple and pink colours in the city today as people celebrated the annual day for women which happens on March 8. And a given is that women should be paid the same as men when they have the same job. So help raise awareness for women's equality and gender parity.

The arch of Princes' Gates is purple

On March 8, 2021 the CN Tower was illuminated in pink and in Exhibition Place both the Enercare Centre and the Princes' Gates were lit in purple in recognition of the important International Women's Day. From the Exhibition Place website "The towers of Enercare Centre will be lit purple today in recognition of International Women's Day, a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. "

The pink CN Tower on International Women's Day

From the International Women's Day website "International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. Significant activity is witnessed worldwide as groups come together to celebrate women's achievements or rally for women's equality."

The colour purple in International Women's Day stands for justice and dignity. Other Women's Day colours include green for hope and white for purity (which they admit is controversial).

There was also a great sunset on March 8th 

Eugenia Falls in winter

After visiting Dundas Peak recently we wanted to take another day trip to another waterfall - one that we have not visited yet, so we decided to head north to Eugenia Falls. The waterfall is in a conservation area that is closed for the season, however the Bruce trail passes through the area so if you can find legal parking nearby you can walk into the park and check out the falls.

The Bruce side trail runs along the edge of the escarpment, next to a stone fence

The view from the trail adjacent to the waterfall

Located near Flesherton, east of Highway 10 in the village of Eugenia and just under two hours north of Toronto city hall. Beaver River flows from Eugenia Lake and crashes down the Niagara Escarpment just west of Beaver Valley Road. The flow is severely reduced in winter and you can really see that the water level in the lake is also very low. Even in summer the flows are controlled to allow the nearby hydro generating facility to produce electricity using the 30m drop from the top of the escarpment through two large pipes.

Hogg's powerhouse ruins

The park's address is 150 Pellisier Street, Eugenia in the Grey Highlands. In the conservation area is the shell of an old abandoned Hogg's Powerhouse building and across the creek is the remains of an a tunnel entrance that was to divert the creek into a tunnel to produce electricity. When that plan changed they filled in the tunnel but left the entrance structure.

Map of Eugenia Falls Conservation Area. Parking is $6 in the park (when open)

The Eugenia Lake dam that controls flows into the Beaver River and over Eugenia Falls

Eugenia Lake was dammed up in 1915 for production of hydro electric power. The average depth is apparently less than 5 feet and the water level is reduced in winter to allow for capture of the spring runoff. Driving across Concession Road 8 which passes through the southern section of the lake you can see a lot of tree stumps and the course of the original Beaver River. There is a set of steel stairs that take you to the top of the dam and the dam control structure has a walkway bypass so you can explore on both sides of the creek. High water levels in the lake are from Victoria Day weekend in May to mid-September.

New Fence at Dundas Peak

In 2020 the Hamilton Conservation Area decided to put up a fence around the Dundas Peak lookout to improve safety. I worried that the views would really be restricted, however the fencing still allows great views into the adjacent river valley and over the city of Hamilton. The old wall near the edge of the Peak was taken down but the opportunity for death by misadventure has been reduced.

The Peak's viewing area

Views looking down towards the city of Hamilton

And while fall is the best time to visit the scenic lookout and Tew Falls right now is probably the logical time to drop by. The crowds are miniscule, the parking lot is available to park in ($15.50 parking fee that you pay by machine at the entrance) - no going to another park, paying a bunch of fees, waiting for a bus, then taking the bus to the conservation area.

There used to be a double row of parking but it looks like only half the parking remains

From the HAC Spencer Gorge Conservation Area website, "Reservations have now closed for the season. Parking lots at Webster Falls and Tew Falls are now open on a first-come, first serve basis. There is an auto gate at Tew Falls, and a pay and display machine at Webster Falls. Passholders now receive admission as usual to the areas."

There is a small section of wood fence where they detoured the old trail

The trails to the peak are a mix of hard slush covered snow and parts that are just muddy but with warming temperatures the hike will soon be all mud. It can be a little slippery so be careful - the trail leads right along the edge of the escarpment and there is no fence to stop you, just the trees you might grab on the way down.

Tew Falls

See more photos after the jump.