Monday, June 2, 2025

Pilgrimage to Lilac Lane

On Sunday we made our annual pilgrimage to a stretch of trail we know as 'Lilac Lane'.  It's a 200 yard stretch of the Georgian Trail at Craigleith, right beside the old railway station which was a point of departure for skiers coming from Toronto to Blue Mountain years ago.  It's about half an hour east of here.

The lilacs ranged in colour from white to a pale purple, as if they've faded over the decades, but the scent is wonderful.


The bushes are along both side of the trail, the former bed of the Northern Railway.  You can see the bushes are large and about 10 feet back from the trail, so photography with a phone is a bit of a challenge.

It's now the Georgian Trail, heavily used by both pedestrians and cyclists.  

This is the kind of view you get of the lilacs, and the trail drops off quickly into a ditch on each side, so I couldn't go any closer in my chair.

We were a week late for the freshest blooms, so some of them were looking a bit brown.

Never-the-less I did my best.

This was my favourite, a deeper purple than any other I saw.



15 comments:

  1. A profusion of colour and I am sure that perfume too. What a height those bushes grow to, left to nature maybe to show all that beauty.

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  2. Beautiful! I can almost smell them:)

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  3. Always love the scent of Lilacs.
    Stay Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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  4. Oh my they are beautiful and I bet it smelled sooo good there. All the colors are pretty but I like the purple best.

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  5. Great photos. The scent of lilacs is the beginning of summer for me.

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  6. That line of lilacs in different colours but all with the wonderful lilac scent must be so lovely. I'm always sad when lilac season is done because it seems far too short.

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  7. Ours are done, and with the weather being what it was, I didn’t get to the good local spot.

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  8. Love those very dark purple ones.

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  9. gorgeous, lilacs, my favorite since childhood!!

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  10. You've shown some wonderful blooms, thanks you.

    All the best Jan

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  11. The deep purple is my favourite and the scent of all lilacs is incredible! My air bnb gal asked me to stop and pick some of hers last Friday to take to Williamsford but they were already turning brown. I'm so happy I bought one for our little garden.

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  12. I always thought Lilacs were ... lilac, light lavender. I love the white, and I LOVE the deep purple. I learn something again. :-)

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  13. Our lilacs are nearly done! There is a festival in Franktown, near us. I totally forgot. Too late now!

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  14. Oh my! I miss lilacs. When I was growing up we had both purple and white ones and the aroma was heavenly. Here, I struggle with my one bush to keep a killing fungus at bay. No bloom at all this year.
    That trail would be heaven to me.

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