Sun, Apr 26 2009 - Slowpoke hike: Rattlesnake Point to Crawford Lake and back (View Original Event Details)
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The wonderful weather that we had been promised for Sunday did not appear, and we set off in overcast conditions for Rattlesnake Point. Once there, it was misty but not raining, and we enjoyed a nice hike, stopping at the lookout points to muse on what might actually be there to see.
On the way to Crawford Lake, with Jo assuring the group that there was "no way we could get lost on this hike", we kept up a fine TOC tradition by actually taking a wrong turn that added about 20 minutes to the hike. However, back on track we navigated some muddy areas and some rocky uphills to arrive at Crawford Lake where we had lunch. The buildings in the Iroquoian village weren't open due to the weather but we wandered around and checked out the visitor centre, then did a loop on the boardwalk around Crawford Lake. This lake is interesting geologically and archaeologically. It's a meromictic lake (no oxygen/life in the bottom) which means that pollens are preserved in the sediments, showing that corn was farmed nearby 600-700 years ago.
On the return trip the mist had cleared and we were able to see what we had missed earlier. We saw quite a few turkey vultures as they nest on the canyon's cliffs. Especially exciting were the budding trilliums and other flowers appearing in the forest. The sun finally came out as we got close to the parking lot (of course!). It seemed that the parking lot kept moving farther and farther away as we approached it, with Rich using his GPS to tell us it was "just beyond that turn" but we finally got to our cars, and the tired but satisfied group departed for home.
It was a great group of hikers on this trip - thanks to everyone for coming out! Special thanks to Misiek, Pawel's German Shepherd, who kept us together with his herding expertise. Misiek is welcome on any of my hikes in future; he's a great hiking dog! And special thanks to Rich for his GPS and photo expertise, which he shared with the group.
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