Lower Valley Road - Crowds!

We left Lake Eugenia and headed over to the Lower Valley Road, one of our favourite roads through the valley.  It's forested on both sides for a distance of about 7 miles, with steep slopes coming down each side, and the river is close beside you among the trees.  It crisscrosses the road under you twice.  The Bruce Trail runs along the top of those slopes and much of the first half  of this area public land, an undeveloped provincial park.

We headed down the first short straight stretch over a couple of the small feeder streams.

Around a couple of bends and then past Hogg's Falls.  You can't see it from the road, and the picture below required walking down a short steep slope and then climbing down a 20 foot short cliff, luckily with spots you can rest your feet.

We were both shocked to discover cars parked along the road (unsafely) and the small parking lot jammed full!  I've never before seen more than half a dozen cars here and there were at least 25!  I can't imagine how busy the falls must be; there's only one place where a person can stand to get a good view without climbing down that short cliff.  If this is a reflection of day trippers trying to get out in the country I shudder to think what crowds we're going to have around all the beauty spots along the trail this summer!

I was so surprised I failed to get a picture of the parked cars, but we did enjoy our drive down the rest of Lower Valley Road.  This is the river curving under the road on one of those crisscrosses.

And this is the river crossing back to the other side.  I've climbed up the slope along here to find the trail and another small waterfall up there.

There are a few more bends and a few isolated homes or chalets as you drive north.

Then there's a long straight stretch where two sideroads cross - both come down the slope at a long slant with a sharp dog's-leg and leave even me feeling nervous!

Around the final bend and you can see the powerhouse where most of the water in the Beaver River has been diverted to generate hydro.  There used to be 8 small houses along in the woods on the right, and my cousin lived there as a very young child while her dad was an engineer at the power plant.  Now it's all run by distant computers and the houses have been moved, mostly to Flesherton.

This is the end of the Lower Valley Road, which we've driven many times, just for the enjoyment of it!

At the end of the road we join Grey Road 30, just where a nice house with a large pond sits on the corner.  The small decorative water wheel on the right actually does turn for 2 or 3 days each spring when the tiny tributary it sits on is running full.  The white object on the water, behind the post is a resident Mute Swan.