Georgian Bay

At the north end of its watershed, the Beaver River flows straight into Georgian Bay, so the shoreline marks the end of the Beaver Valley.  We headed there a week ago now to search for fossils with the kids and grandson.  (We found lots, but that's another story).  Not only was the water at its most brilliant blue, but the sky was pretty spectacular that day as well.

This part of the bay shoreline is east of the main Beaver Valley, at Craigleith, where flat shelving limestone rock dips very gently into the bay.  Water levels have been low this year, leading many to complain about their docks being stranded high and dry, and leaving a wide beach to walk on.

Looking west you can see the slopes that mark the west side of the Beaver Valley, ending in the clay banks east of Meaford.  The main highway follows the shoreline fairly closely.

Stone groins are common along the shore, though this year most are partly above the water line.  This day the strong north wind was blowing the waves onshore, and washing a thin layer of water over the rocks - just enough for a grandchild to get wet in!  All the multi-coloured boulders you see here are glacial erratics, brought here from the Canadian Shield during the last ice age.

You look straight out into the bay over the flat limestone, and here is where the fossils are found, some in flakes of stone that have broken off, and some still embedded in the solid bedrock beneath your feet.  Another time I'll share some fossil pictures.

And of course the are the ubiquitous gulls, always a feature of the Great Lakes.  Their raucous cries immediately bring to mind the harbours of towns around the bay.

With the spectacular sky on this day, of course I'm linking to: