St. Clair National Wildlife Area

     Remember that snow we were supposed to get that I mentioned in the last post? Well, we got it and we got it good. Between the temperature dropping to -40C, the snow and the ice, going outside was not an option. By yesterday, the boys (and myself) were starting to get a bit stir-crazy so we decided to ignore the slight drizzle outside, dress in some warm rain gear and go out for a hike anyways. The destination? The St. Clair National Wildlife Area.

     Now this is a spot that I have only heard about recently, but it has been on my 'must-do' list ever since. It just amazed me that it was only a short drive away from us and that I have never been. It also sounded like it should be pretty decent.

    As we drove up the dirt road to the entrance and towards the parking I realized that this was going to be a lot more better than just 'pretty decent'. All along us on the left side was just water and marsh areas. You could just imagine how full they would be of geese and ducks in any other season except, the one we were visiting it in. I was already blown away by the size of this wildlife area and we didn't even get out of the car yet!

     When we got out of the car the almost 4 year old basically jumped out before we got his seat belt taken off. I handed him his fire truck umbrella as promised (even after a discussion that the rain was gone for the day) and he was ready to go!

       The 2 year old..not as much. He was fast asleep.  Learning from our lesson from the last experience, we knew not to try to hike with a sleepy kid. We carefully put him in his winter coat and plopped him in the umbrella stroller, covered him with a blanket, then threw another blanket over top of the stroller to block him from the very cold wind.

     Oh that wind! I wasn't sure if we were going to be able to even start the walk, it was so cold! Each gust of wind just burned your face and any other skin that was exposed. Even our oldest was saying he was ready to go home after only a few minutes. As I was telling the hubby that we could turn around as he was pushing the stroller on rather rough terrain of mud and snow we noticed a little landmark up ahead. Well, our little guy didn't take long to forget about this chill in the air and ran to see what it was. Someone big and someone small (judging the footprints around the area) made a snowman. It was such an exciting trail find and it brought a smile to all of our faces. So to whoever made that snowman, thank you!


     We 'asked' the snowman which way we were to go and kept along the trail. Now, I know winter hiking isn't the most popular type of outing, especially with young kids that you have to bundle up and try to keep warm and dry, but please, try to go out at least once! It is such a great lesson on how animals and plants change with the weather.  We saw quite a few different animal tracks, and some led onto the ice, others from one side of the trail to another. There were also little burrow holes in so many places. We were able to talk about the many possibilities of what they could be from, the size of them, and what they were doing. It is just a great way to talk about wildlife around us even when we can't physically see them anywhere.

     As we kept going we came across a little bridge where we spent a few moments looking down at the ice below us and the bit of it that was melting. I was pretty surprised that our oldest did not even ask about throwing rocks or sticks into the water, but he seemed pretty preoccupied in wondering where the fish were.

    The sun kept peeking in and out of the clouds throughout the hike which made it a very interesting hike in itself. One moment the sky would be gray and reflecting its dark colour back onto us and our surroundings with that bitter cold breeze, and the next, the sun would warm us up a bit, shining all around us making the blue waterways such a bright blue, and highlight the reeds in a bright golden colour, it was just so beautiful.

There was an observation tower that we saw on the map about half way through the 5km trail. We made this tower our goal. As we walked down the trail we had the tall reeds blowing on both sides of us, and then the water on both sides of them. The trail itself is very well maintained. The fact that a little umbrella stroller could make it through (though not suggested) is proof of that. I also really liked the idea of having the reeds on both sides as it acted as a natural boundary from the water which made it more relaxing with two little guys that run around like crazy on most trails...and at home.


Now, I can't forget to mention the soundtrack that came with this hike. The (almost) 4 year old is in pure crazy Star Wars addiction right now. So our soundtrack was him singing the Star Wars theme in between doing Boba Fett things (sometimes he is Boba Fett) like protecting us from stormtroopers and hidden Sarlacc holes. Luckily for us, we made it to the observation tower as that is where he could [Boba Fett]  get more fuel for his jet pack. So please remember that if you happen to have a jet pack!

The two of us went up to the top and the view was spectacular. Again, I can only imagine how much more amazing it would be during Spring, Summer, and Autumn, but it was sure worth this cold hike to see it. Water and marsh was all around us and just kept going on. The timber from the tower made it's own little wooden frames built for this natural picture. As we went down the stairs to check on the other two, the 2 year old ran up to me, happy to be up from his nap and free!

    The boys played around for a bit at the tower, sliding down the ramp, climbing stairs, and playing in the snow. We did finally get to see some wildlife as a huge amount of ducks started flying overhead in small intervals but eventually the cold started to seep into us all and we headed back to the car. And, with one more wave to the little snowman, we left feeling happy and fulfilled from this beautiful trail.

I highly recommend this trail and can hardly wait to visit it again come spring!

I will leave you now with the last piece of very important winter trail advice. Please, no matter where you go, always, always, always, put something in the crock-pot before you leave the house so when you get back all cold and tired, you can come home to a nice hot meal all ready to be consumed by you and your family who worked up a good appetite on the trails.

O'Neill Nature Preserve: Winter Addition

     It is hard to look outside and think that only a couple of weeks ago I was worried about another green Christmas. We got our dusting of snow on Christmas day and we have been having our fair share of it ever since, with more warnings about more for tonight. While we had a lovely Christmas full of excitement and driving to our family celebrations we were still starting to feel that cabin fever kick in. There was no cure for it except to go outside.

     We bundled the boys up in a new record (about 20 minutes- go team!) and then ourselves and we escaped to the great wilderness of our front yard. Yes, that is when we realized how lame that was. Mind you, the [now] 2 yr old and 3.5 yr old boys don't care where they are. The oldest is happy as long as there is snow to eat, so no fear there (as long as we remind him the importance of no yellow snow and no snow from the cars) and the youngest really can't do too much as he is usually weighed down by his giant snowsuit. We figured we would go on an adventure and visit an old favourite to see what it was like in the winter time, the O'Neill Nature Preserve that is in Chatham.

    We tried to sound convincing to the boys that this will be a fun trip however the youngest will have none of this as he stopped his naps (definitely by his choice, not ours) and the afternoon is usually pretty uncertain in terms of moods.

We got to the nature preserve and took out the sled and the shovels (shovels in winter hikes are like throwing rocks in the summer hikes as in it is essential). Away we went with the little guy happy in the sled and the bigger one digging and flinging snow everywhere he went.

    This trail is one I visit a lot with the boys and have been able to see it's beauty transform throughout the summer, fall, and now winter. I must say seeing it in the winter has been my favourite transformation so far. As we entered the trails we stopped to see a couple of dogs being walked and a cross country skier pass us by. It was so peaceful and active at the same time. It made me wish we had cross country skies to try out, then flash backs of our first (and last time) cross country skiing while we lived in Thunder Bay quickly dismissed that thought.

    There are lots of new things since the summer on this trail, many more benches and green sign posts to direct people. This little green post as innocent as it might be was the catalyst of our little family perfect adventure turning into trying to negotiate with a kid who was about to lose it.

The oldest who got there first, as he had to be sure to 'dig' his way quickly, enjoyed reading the sign and telling us what was allowed on the trail and what was not, and which way the arrow was pointing. It was all done in pure innocence and amazement of this little green post. However, the little guy in the sled now realized why he was in the sled, it was to contain him. He saw his older brother with the green post loving it, enjoying it, touching it, and now he saw his own position of not the mighty child riding his own transportation, but that he was in a tiny red railed prison on skies. He would have none of this and vocalized his wants of getting out to also inspect this post, which we let him do hoping it would allow us a few more minutes of the pre-I'm-going-to-lose-it-if-I-don't-get-my-way  no nap mindset. The boys inspected this little green post for quite a while with happy little faces and tales of what it beholds.

We were about 15-20 feet in to the trail and already 10 minutes has been spent on it. Luckily the hubby the quick intelligent thinker that he is had a great plan- "Look guys! I see another green post ahead! Lets go see that one!" Brilliant, I thought! "And look guys, there is a bench too!" was my added input. They were sold!

     It seemed as though we were back on the trail, I was able to take a few pictures, the oldest was back to digging and smacking anything he could with the shovel and the youngest was happily dragging his own shovel. We got to the new little green post that was also inspected by the oldest as our youngest climbed on the bench. As we tried to entice the 2 yr old to keep walking, the 3.5 yr old decided he wanted to ride in the sled. Him and his dad started along the trail while I tried even harder to convince the 2 year old we should keep going on our super fun awesome hike. That didn't work at all.

     However, seeing his older brother in his sled was enough to convince him to chase them down, as best he could while wearing an extra 5 pounds of winter clothes, while calling them out. By that little dash he was pooped and also wanted to sit back in his throne. We got them all settled again and started to go.

     Little guy once again realized this was not throne with a daddy chauffeur but a red railed prison, and now one that had his brother taking up most of the room. He vocalized his unhappiness about this also and got back out to freedom. But he was also not happy about this. We tried pointing to another green post up along the way but it meant nothing to him now. It was at that moment we realized the no-nap blues won that day and we were not to go any further on the hike. We turned the sled around and told him we would go home. "Snack?" "Ya, we'll get you a snack buddy" "Drink?" "Ya one of those too..." and he sat back in the sled with his older brother (who now wanted nothing to do with the sled of course, but he was a trooper). 


       So that was our hike. Not much of one, but a beauty of it, and if anything, it did leave me wanting more. It might not have been the best for the boys in terms of the day and time we went, and I probably should have brought timbits or something to win them over so we at least had a chance. But no matter what, I will still count it as a win. It is a beautiful trail and their additions of benches and those lovely little green posts just make it seem like more of an adventure and a legitimate place to go for a walk in any season. It is a great place to go in the winter for a taste of nature, to hear the winter birds, to see how many nests are in the trees that are now uncovered, and to even go cross country skiing if that's your thing.


     And most importantly, I will never forget the image of my two little guys that I love so much, sitting together in that little wooden sled with one red shovel and one blue shovel dragging beside it as my husband pulls them along. That is exactly the reason why I love hiking,for the memories.