Some of the most interesting looking birds out there, peacocks are famous for their big, colourful feathers that are typically green and blue.
The encompassing term for them is peafowl, with peahens being the brown, dull coloured females and peacocks being the impressive colourful males.
The males display their feathers out in a fan to help attract females. This guy was displaying his feathers towards a female at a park in Sri Lanka. There were many peacocks around Sri Lanka, as the Indian Peafowl are common here. Two other subspecies exist, the Congo Peafowl and the Green Peafowl in Burma, which is an endangered species.
On the drive to Cotopaxi National Park in Ecuador, I was reading up on some of the wildlife in this part of the Andes. It seemed spectacled bears and jaguars are in the park, but are extremely rare to spot. So I was happy to settle for some birds, and maybe some llamas.
One thing I wasn’t aware of before arriving was that there are wild horses in Cotopaxi National Park. I liked the white one most in the group above, but there were also black and brown ones and varied colours.
As with wild horses in other destinations, they’re a little rougher and shaggier than your typical riding horses. There were actually many groups of wild horses in Cotopaxi, if you scan across the rolling hills chances are you’ll find many herds grazing away.
A wild horse grazing in Cotopaxi
I definitely saw more horses than llamas or foxes or condors at Cotopaxi – not what I expected, but it still made for a fun day of exploring and wildlife watching.
These horses are pretty much care-free, as any herds near the gravel roads that run through the park won’t give your vehicle a second look, so you can get some very close photos like the black horse above.
Living in Toronto, my provincial park aspirations are generally geared to parks further north, often a 6-12 hour drive away. But some weekends you don’t make grand plans, or just want to stick closer to home.
Darlington Provincial Park, located along the shores of Lake Ontario, about 85km east from Toronto is one such park that is fun to visit for a day trip and only takes about 1.5 hours to get to.
Burk Trail Sign at Darlington Provincial Park near Toronto
You’re not going to get extreme or challenging hiking, as the four trails here total no more than 7.5km in length combined, with most being rated as “easy”. It’s more of a family-friendly, social gathering and low impact type of hiking destination at Darlington Provincial Park. Many people come here to toss a frisbee around, go for a swim, and just get an escape from the cities.
Hmm, which way to go?
For the most part, the park is pretty wide-open, but there are some parts you can hike to that will make you feel like you have the entire place all to yourselves.
Hiking, or walking, along the Burk Trail, if your bet option for getting a bit of this escapism. The sign at the start of the trail mentions Cooper’s Hawks, songbirds and insects as the wildlife highlights. Hey – we’re not in northern Ontario here, so I’ll take what I can get!
Insects in the heat of summer can be a bit annoying, so if the mosquitos are around you may need some bug spray. It’s open fields at the start, so insects and scorching summer sun are prominent, then you get into some mix of shade and sun.
Part of the trail stops out in a big field near the lake, if you need to relax on a bench or go cool down in the water. Lots of greenery and plenty of small birds zipping about between the trees on this trail.
The lookout is probably the biggest highlight. Worth stopping for a break and quietly listening to the sounds of the insects and forest, while hoping to maybe spot one of those hawks that the trail sign mentioned.
Hiking along the mostly open field Burk Trail
It is a bit of a climb to get to the lookout, but nothing strenuous. The trail in total is only just over 2km in length so you’ll barely crack into your bottle of water by the time the trail ends. Well, not quite – it is a pretty open hike so a sunny summer day will keep you hot and sweaty and needing some hydration.
The lookout was a nice spot, but the pioneer cemetery wasn’t quite what I expected. A plaque tells the story of the Burk family who settled here, dating back to John Burk 1794. Perhaps they were the first people to live on this land, although it is likely that different Native American peoples passed through the area before then.
Clearing near the lake on the Burk Trail
The trail is named after the Burk family, as Darlington Provincial Park comprises part of the land that they owned back in the early 1800s.
As for the cemetery itself, it’s a fenced off grid, with very little in the way of eye candy or interesting headstones. Looking at it, being maintained by the park, you can’t help but wonder how many other, similar pioneer family cemeteries might be hidden away by vegetation across Ontario.
The Burk Trail Lookout, didn’t spot any Cooper’s Hawks on this day
The cemetery is towards the end of the trail, with a fairly flat and easy walk from here. Depending how much history and how many insect noises you want to stop and enjoy along the way, this is a quick 30 minute hike or leisurely hour long nature and bird walk.
The Burk Trail Pioneer Cemetery at Darlington Provincial Park
One of North America’s common canids, the Coyote is considered a pest by some, as they can raid farms and attack pets.
Usually shy, some coyotes can be aggressive and have been blamed for attacks and even deaths on humans in the US and Canada. Many of these cases may have been coyote-wolf hybrids however. Most cases of coyote contact occur because of loss of habitat. New developments built on former fields and forests take away the home, and hunting areas, of the coyotes.
Cute Coyote Pup waking up from his nap
Even so, coyotes are not listed as vulnerable or threatened species, as they have become adept at living in different habitats out of necessity. They commonly eat small mammals like mice and rabbit, but can kill larger animals such as deer and elk if hunting in packs. Not strictly meat eaters, they are omnivores that also eat a variety of vegetables and fruits.
This particular baby coyote (pup) was photographed in Quebec, as he was waking up from an afternoon nap.
Getting up early always seems easier while camping. Perhaps it’s the relaxed mind and peaceful sleep out in the fresh air that helps you feel so rejuvenated in the mornings?
Grundy Lake Provincial Park had been on my camping hit list for a number of years. I had heard good things from a number of people about the trails, activities and general vibe of the park. It sounded fun, although a bit more accessible, and perhaps crowded, than most Ontario Parks I visit.
First dawn, waiting for the sun to appear over Gurd Lake
I decided to check it out one July after the long weekend, around the time of my birthday. I booked a site many months earlier and had been lucky to get a spot near Gurd Lake.
As I was setting up the camp site the first afternoon, I was greeted by some butterflies and birds in the forest behind the site. All was good. A small black bear walked by, looking for food from careless campers. He rambled on, the birds remained.
The orange glow and brightening sky…
Afternoon turned to evening, we enjoyed cooking some campfire sausages and had a couple of beers before it was time to sleep.
Waking early, I was full of energy and it wasn’t even light outside yet. My girlfriend at the time wasn’t quite the early riser, so I got up and let her sleep. The darkness was just lifting, so I grabbed my camera and walked over to the lake to watch the sun rise.
Misty Gurd Lake as the first rays of light stretch out across the lake at sunrise
A nearly perfect, cloudless morning. The dark sky slowly emerged. An orange glow and increasingly bright blue sky opened up above Gurd Lake.
Parts of the lake started to mist, as the temperatures were changing. Birds (and some flies) were buzzing around.
The glowing orange sunrise and first glimpse of the sun over Gurd Lake at Grundy Lake Provincial Park
Then the sun peaked up from behind the distant tree line. The golden glow stretched out across the lake. It was a perfect start to a fine Canadian summer day in July.
This was my first morning at Grundy Lake Provincial Park, later that day I’d be canoeing on this lake with loons, fish and snapping turtles nearby. It was a fairly busy park, with campsites all packed, but I never felt crowded, so I’d happily return to Grundy Lake PP one day…just many other Ontario Parks to visit first!
A new day begins, a sunrise in July, while camping in Ontario
