Culham Trail Fall Colours Credit River Mississauaga Ontario Canada - Great Drive, Great Walk, Cyclepath

The Fall Colours along Mississauga Road from Port Credit to Streetville are close to peak colour today, with leaves shades of gold, red, orange almost fully covering the trees. The change is more complete in the Streetsville area. Here are a few pictures I took this afternoon along the Culham Trail as it passes near Eglinton Avenue.

Highway 403 Mississauga Road Overpass

On my drive up Mississauga Road from Port Credit, I pulled onto the shoulder of the Hwy 403 overpass to take this picture of the changing leaves in the Credit River Valley. The Culham Trail (walking, cycling) runs along the river from Dundas to the Brampton border (map at bottom).

Hewitt Meadows Park Mississauga Ontario

As Mississauga Road approaches Eglinton Av, stay in the right hand lane, and turn east onto the bridge. If you are coming south down Mississauga Road, turn left at the Eglinton lights and get into the right hand lane as soon as possible. As you cross the Eglinton Avenue bridge over the Credit River, keep to the right hand lane, and be prepared to turn right at the first street, which is signed Hewitt Lane.

Hewitt Lane into Hewitt Meadows Park at Eglinton Avenue

 Hewitt Lane is dirt, fairly rough and narrow, so go slowly or drive a big truck. There is a small parking lot at the bottom of the lane, which ends at the Credit River. 

 

 Culham Trail Sign - Credit River at Eglinton

The trail is marked with signs near the parking lot, and is easy to follow. Under the Eglinton Avenue bridge, which is directly overhead at the parking lot, there is another footpath that leads up the hill on the northeast side of the bridge. I did climb the hill here, and crossed Eglinton to get back to Hewlett Lane.

Culham Trail Along Credit River

Before walking down Hewlett Lane, I walked to the middle of the Eglinton Av bridge to take this photo of the south Credit River Valley. As you can see, power lines mar the view. The lane in the picture is the Culham Trail.

Credit River South of Eglinton Bridge

From the parking lot, another footpath leads due west to the banks of the Credit River. This year, perhaps due to the lateness in the season, there were no salmon in the river.

Credit River  Fall Colours

The rough path (not the Culham Trail; that's paved and to the east of here) runs along the water line, and following rains, can be quite slippery.

Oak Trees Mississauga Fall Colours

On the top of the Eglinton bridge embankment, there is a line of young oak trees, seen here with fall colours of yellow. I wish I'd had more time to walk the trail, but these pictures, and the short walk I did have were an impromptu stop on my way to the bank.

Port Credit River At Memorial Park Mississauga

As I drove back down Mississauga Road to Port Credit, I took a detour on Queen Street to park along the Credit River across from Memorial Park.

Yesterday, I posted some pictures of fall colours on Lakeshore Road just west of here.
See also Streetsville Ontario page for more pics.

Do try to take a drive or bike along Mississauga Road while the weather is cooperating! The drive is perfectly lovely, the speed limit 50 kph, and the colours are gorgeous! There are  few places to pull over, and virtually no places to park. You might try pulling into a side street and walking back to take a picture. But most of all, just enjoy this beautiful show! The leaves will be gone before we know it.

Googlemap Mississauga Road. Zoom out to see route.


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Fall Colours Mississauga - Port Credit, PetroCanada lot, BRG Rhododendron Gardens, Mallards

Such a sunny Sunday in Mississauga! Maybe the last chance to take in the Fall colours this year. I took my camera with me when I walked up to the grocery store near the Imperial Oil lands  on Lakeshore Road West in Port Credit. But first, I took a quick walk through Brueckner Rhododendron Gardens and happened upon a mallard couple in Tecumseh Creek.

Maple Trees on Maple Street at Lakeshore Road West

Walking on the north side of Lakeshore Road, I could see south down Maple Street. Good name - the maple trees were absolutely stunning!

Fall Colours PetroCanada Lakeshore

The land at the Imperial Oil Lands still contaminated, I understand, though the site has been mothballed for many years.  [Update 2016: Lands tested and up is for sale. See City Mississsauga.]

What to do with such a pretty location, bounded by Mississauga Road, Pine Street, Lakeshore Road West and Lake Ontario (Waterfront Trail)? Has to be non-residential, concrete slab construction. See googlemap.

Maple Tree PetroCan Port Credit

Closer look at one of the stunning trees in its fall colours. We are lucky to be in Mississauga - don't have far to go to see these gorgeous colours!

Close Up Golden Foliage Lakeshore Road West

A closer look at the foliage: Colours show up best on sunny days, though this wonderful yellow-orange brightens even a cloudy day.

Brueckner Rhododendron Gardens

I walked through the gardens (BRG) to see if the wind and rain storm on Friday had caused any damage. A few branches were down, and some of the leaves, but the colours are just starting to get pretty in Port Credit.

BRG Fall Colours 

And one more picture of a picture-perfect scene. Sorry, can't resist! Now on to the mallards!

Mallards Tecumseh Creek BRG

I was crosssing the middle bridge at the BRG when I happened to see this mallard couple floating between creek and reflection. I'd already put my camera away, but I couldn't resist this pretty shot.

Close Up Mallard - Tecumseh Creek Port Credit

I zoomed in a bit closer, and IMHO, the mallards hardly look real, they are so still, the creek barely ripples, and the foliage is reflected in the water, like a tabletop.

As long as the weather stays nice and sunny, the foliage will keep changing down here in Port Credit. This has been one of the best falls for great colours. The past two or three years, storms kept skies dark and gloomy, and high winds knocked the leaves off the trees before they could change. This year, everyone is getting a chance to walk through the parks. And even if you don't, you can see wonderful fall foliage colours on a walk to the grocery store.

More Fall Colors at 16 MIle Creek Oakville, and at Bradley Museum, Mississauga
More Mallards at Mallards, condo views

For Brueckner Rhodo Gardens, see BRG Blog.

Streetsville Fall Colours Mississauga Road

Fall Colors Bradley House Museums Mississauga

I stopped by the Bradley Museum in Mississauga to check for changing Fall colors on the maple trees, and happened upon an Art Walk as a bonus! Here are a few pictures of this historic property, with links at the bottom of the page for more information. Tip: Click on image to enlarge, then click Back button to return to this page.

Bradley Museum Sign Post

Bradley Museum and Bradley House are at 1620 Orr Road, in the south Clarkson area of  Mississauga. During the early spring maple syrup season, the museum parking lots are full, and parking is allowed on one side of Orr Road (map at bottom of post).

Maple Trees in Red, Bradley House in Yellow

A few of the maples had begun to sport lovely red foliage, like this one, beside the lane that leads to the original Bradley House and its old style kitchen and antique filled rooms.

Museum Staff in Period Costumes - Bradley Museum

Two ladies in period costume headed past the barn to start the kitchen fire in Bradley House. Couldn't resist - how cute is this? I'm looking for pretty leaves and trees, and I get a double bonus: Cue the actors and Art Walk!

Old Time Kitchen Chores ~ Light the Fire

Though this day was fairly warm, the inside of the farm house was chilly, so the staff lit the fire in the fireplace. The table was set with utensils and mixing bowls, and the hearth held the cooking pots. I didn't linger to watch the cooking demo, but I have on previous visits. Well worth the trip!

Bradley House Interior - Museum Artefacts

This photo shows another area of the Bradley house, including the old wood stove and various barrels, churns and pots.

Inside The Anchorage - Bradley Museum Visitor Centre

The Anchorage is a grander home moved from its original location to its current home on the museum grounds, and it is used as the Visitors Centre (with public washrooms).

The Log Cabin - Bradley Museum Historic Newbie

The Log Cabin is the most recent addition to the grounds of the Bradley Museum, relocating here only a few years ago from Port Credit. Thanks to the efforts of concerned Mississauga residents, the Log Cabin was not demolished, but preserved for the museum.

Decorated Lawn Chair @ Bradley

Just outside The Anchorage, this gaily painted lawn chair seems to invite visitors to set a spell. See the links below for more information, directions and hours of operation for Bradley Mueum, and do try to drop by to check the Fall foliage colours before rain and wind take them away for another year!

Bradley Museum and buildings

Museums Hours, Maps, Bus info

Fall Colors Oakville Ontario

My Bradley Maple Syrup Festival pictures

Googlemap

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Fall Foliage Colors of Oakville 16 Mile Creek - Take the GO, Kayak, Drive, Walk, Cycle - But GO!

Update October 3, 2012: Just back from a drive through this area, then along the QEW to Niagara, and fall colors starting to get gorgeous. If the weather is clear for the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend, then the fall leaves should put on an even better show.

 Earlier in the week, on a drive north on Mississauga Road through Caledon towards Belfountain, the leaves were showing lots of gorgeous colors. As the land rises from Lake Ontario to the north, the leaves furthest north change colour earliest.

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Update September 20, 2011: Just back from this area and I noticed that the colors are starting to turn now -- a blush of orange, rust and yellows stipple the summertime green. Best guess is that full color within two weeks.

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I took these pictures -- and bear in mind I hold the copyright :-) --  of fall foliage colours in Oakville (Ontario, Canada) this afternoon, and will post them here as fast as I can for those of you heading out this weekend to take in the fall colors.

I'll post a googlemap at the bottom to show you my vantage point, as there is a place to park. You can also take the GO train to Oakville station and walk down the Speers Road hill to get closer to 16 Mile Creek and some gorgeous colors! Click on an image to enlarge, then click the Back button to return to this page.

Overpass Speers Road and Queen Mary Drive Oakville

Coming from the east on Speers (Oakville GO station south side), I turned right at Kerr Street at the lights at the top of the hill, and then right again at the first street (light) on Shepherd, which naturally curves into Queen Mary Drive. There is parking on the south side on the streets and wide sidewalks on the overpass.

16 MIle Creek Ablaze with Fall Colours

This picture shows the long shot view of the 16 Mile Creek Valley where Cross Street (exit Oakville Go Station north side) curves down the hill and ends at Speers. If you are walking from the GO station, cross Speers Road at the light and you'll find an opening in the fence to get an even closer view of the creek and valley.

16 Mile Creek Valley - Oakville Ontario

The above picture is in closer view. Such a pretty view, and the only way to get closer is to park on Queen Mary Drive, as I did, or park at the GO , or take the GO and walk down Speers Road.

Kayak 16 Mile Creek Oakville

Into this perfect scene came a kayaker! Such a warm and sunny, perfect day to show off the colors, reflected so beautifully in the creek!

Railway Overpass Cross Avenue and 16 Mile Creek

I love the drive down Cross Avenue from Trafalgar, as the road curves down the hill, and passes under the railway bridge. The old stone bridge supports are beautiful in themselves; the fall colors only add to the picture.

Close Up Fall Foliage Oakville Ontario

For the colors to really POP, they need sunshine, and today was a perfect day for this. I took these photos just after noon; the day before, I'd been driving this same road and noticed the wonderful colors, but had no time to look for a parking spot (there's no parking on Speers at Cross).

Red Maple Leaves - Fall Colors Canada

I had promised myself that if Saturday was sunny, I'd drive out from Port Credit and find my way onto that overpass on Speers. I suppose I could have parked at the Oakville GO, as there's not as much traffic on a weekend, or I could also park at the shopping mall at Speers and Kerr. There is three-hour parking on Queen Mary Drive, though, so any of those options would give you enough time to walk down Speers and get onto the trail close to the creek.

Fallen Fall Colors - Mississauga Ontario

Heading back to Mississauga, I stopped at Bradley Museum to see if any of the sugar maples had turned red yet. Being much closer to the lake (Ontario), they were mostly green. A few had turned, and fallen.

And as much as I love to look at fall colors, that's conversely as much as I like to rake fallen leaves!

If you have some time this weekend, or the early part of next week, try to make your way to this area of Oakville.  To best see the colors, you need to get to a higher point of land. I had thought of going out to Rattlesnake Point, but I don't recall that many trees, especially maples, in the valley below.

Here the googlemap of where I took these pictures. Scroll down to see Queen Mary Drive and Kerr Street to see how to drive to the overpass.

Related Streetsville Mississauga Fall Colours
and Port Credit Fall foliage.


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RV Road Trip Maritimes NB PEI Canada ~ Cavendish Moncton Dieppe Saint John Hopewell Rocks St George St Andrews

I'm back from my RV Maritimes Canada road trip to New Brunswick (NB) and Prince Edward Island (PEI). Here are some of my pictures from Cavendish, Moncton, Dieppe, Hopewell Rocks, Saint John, St George and St Andrews. (Note -- see comments at bottom for 2010 BC Winter Olympics RV park Vancouver)

Holiday Inn Express Airport Dieppe NB

Loved my room at the HIE at Dieppe. Close to the airport, free shuttle, friendly people! But best of all, I booked the reservations via Twitter.com @Airport_Dieppe. Twitter-booking was a first for both of us! If you follow me on Twitter (@karenzabawa) then you already know I got a good hot breakfast, free fast internet and enjoyed my night. (Hi April!)

RV Fifth Wheel and Truck ~ Moncton NB

Friends with the RV and big honking Ford truck left Truro NS early the next day and drove through pouring rain to Dieppe NB to fetch me at the HIE hotel before heading into west Moncton to Camper's City to park the RV. Still raining. Friends and Maggie the super dog helped set up RV. I watched and learned :-)

Hopewell Rocks Bay of Fundy New Brunswick

By mid afternoon, the torrents of rain had abated to a steady drizzle, so we decided to drive to Hopewell Rocks, to walk on the ocean floor of the Bay of Fundy before high tide. Was it ever windy! And chilly! Gotta love NB weather - fabulous or foul. Great seafood chowder at the on-site restaurant, though, to warm us up. Recall the entry fee was about $8.50 CAD.

Confederation Bridge New Brunswick to Prince Edward Island

Sunny the next day, so we left the RV in Moncton and headed to PEI for the day. Follow the signs to the Confederation Bridge that links NB to PEI . It's about an hour's drive from Moncton to the bridge. You can take the bridge to PEI then return by ferry, if you like.

The toll / fare is paid upon leaving PEI, and is the same for either. We bridged it both directions. Driving in the big Ford truck was a treat -- it's high enough so you can see over the sides of the bridge. NB and PEI have a lot of very good tourism info offices, so grab some brochures and maps.

Cavendish Beach North Coast PEI

By the time we got to Cavendish (had to see Anne of Green Gables setting), it was about 3 p.m. It had been so long since my last visit to Cavendish, I hardly recognized it! The enormous sand dunes are covered in sea grasses and shrubs, and the red sandstone that is the hallmark of PEI has been eroded and is still losing large chunks of itself to the Atlantic Gulf of St Lawrence.

Shadows Taking Photos Cavendish PEI National Park

Couldn't resist - we still had a long drive ahead of us south an hour to Charlottetown, then west an hour to the Confederation Bridge and an hours' drive back to Moncton and the RV. Keith is a fabulous driver - highly recommend his services :-)

Saint John NB ~ City Motto: Learn to Love Fog

I'm kidding -- that's not really the city of Saint John motto. On the plus side, though, the foggy dampness styled my hair into curls and waves. The two-hour drive as we moved the RV from Moncton to Rockwood Park in Saint John left enough time to go see my old house in Rothesay.

Highland Avenue Rothesay New Brunswick

Interesting to see the years have been kind to our old home in Rothesay, NB, though wow! have the trees ever grown! They totally shade the area where I had an enormous vegetable garden.

St Andrews By The Sea NB

A St Andrew's Remax agent has a sense of humour (click on the image to enlarge then click Back button to return to this page). We'd left the RV in Saint John and taken a day trip to St Andrews, about an hour's drive south of Saint John .

St George NB Mill and Fishways

St George is close to St Andrews on the Saint John (northeast) side. Great place to pull off the highway and pick up some lobster cooked to order. Many attractions and services in the Maritimes are open seasonally. Rockwood Park in Saint John was planning to close the third week of October as was the Four Cs Market (seafood) in St George.

I'll scan and post more pictures of my Maritime road trip on my website. Many thanks to my Rving friends for hospitality and a great road trip!

Sunset Full Moon Raindrops Pictures ~ Love My New Canon SX20IS Camera ~ Makes Me Look Good!

I simply LOVE my new camera! It's a , with the lenses I need to take great pictures on the fly! Here are the first photos I took in the Port Credit area of Mississauga -- a sunset, the full moon of the Mid Autumn Festival, and the raindrops on my window. NOTE Click on image to enlarge, then hit Back Button to return to this page.

Full Moon ~ First Picture

The first night the camera moved into my house, I was on my way up to bed when I noticed the moonlight shining through the transom window. I brought the camera downstairs, opened the front door, and shot these pictures. In this picture I zoomed in as much as it would zoom: 20X - 560mm! The following full moon photos were taken the second night.

Full Moon Second Photo

Shooting in the dark means one cannot always see the camera settings; it's even trickier when one is wearing glasses and composing images via the screen. Yes, the settings appear in the onscreen image but with a new camera, I was focused on trying to focus the picture! As a contact lens wearer, one of my requirements is a camera with a viewfinder, as I find my eyes' focal length and my arms' focal length are often at odds with the camera's focal length.

Full Moon Third Photo

Unlike my now-traded-in Canon SLR film camera with the 300mm lens, the viewfinder on this new digital Canon is not WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get), and I usually had trouble determining if the shot was in focus with digital camera screens. This new Canon, though, the screen is much easier to use than the one on my little backup Canon Powershot A530. The screen pivots ever so nicely so I could shoot holding the camera high and angling the screen downward.

Full Moon Fourth Photo

And unlike trying to keep the camera steady while using the 300mm full zoom on the SLR Canon EOS, this new camera has such great image stabilizers, it did all the work for me. I have a tripod, but I have never used it, nor ever used the remote shutter cables. I like to travel light, and hauling around a tripod -- even one of the new tiny ones -- is just one more step that a non-techie wants to avoid.

Full Moon Fifth Photo

The photo above is my favourite!! Though my blogs and website are image-based, I do not consider myself a professional photographer. My training is in journalism, which requires writers to take pictures, and though I love to take photos, I am an accidental photographer. I would not presume to compete with serious photographers.

That's why I am so excited about this new camera! It does the work for me. Whew! And with such great results, I am stoked! I took all these pictures with the camera set to AUTO. One can only imagine the results should I learn to use all the various settings.

Sunset Port Credit Mississauga Ontario

The day before - ie the first night the new Canon came home -- a late afternoon thunderstorm had passed and the sunset gave Port Credit a golden bath. Confession time: My upstairs windows could really use a cleaning, but I decided to see how the new camera would handle dust and rain drops. Again, I am very pleased with the results! Daresay if there had been no rain, you'd never know I was shooting through the dusty window.

Sunset Port Credit - Second Picture

I zoomed in more for this photo -- could not BELIEVE how sharp the focus on the raindrops. Again, camera set to AUTO. My attitude was, "Okay, Camera! Let's see what you do when I just point and shoot. Then I will have some idea of what I need to learn."

Sunset Port Credit ~ Third Picture

And here's the third photo. This window faces northwest, and if ony I could rid myself of the other townhouses and a few large trees, I could get some amazing sunset shots without leaving the house!

Rainbow Port Credit ~ New Camera Day One

After the rain, the rainbow over Lake Ontario, Port Credit. This is the view outside my front door. The grounds were really soaked after the storm, so I didn't feel like getting raingear on and heading to the lakeshore to get a better shot. Again, my attitude was Let's See What Happens Without Trying (or reading the manual first).

Earlier in the day, I used this new digital camera (here it is at Henry's camera web site - Canon SX20IS) to take pictures at a Mississauga park. See these daytime first day pics here.

So I am so excited about taking pics now with this new camera. No longer will shooting through windows elude me. Sunset, full moon, raindrops and more - look out, here I come!

And best of all, with the built-in lenses in the lengths I need (28mm-560mm), I can travel lighter - no need for large camera bag and several lenses. No need to scan photos before uploading to the website or the blogs! And better pictures from a non-photographer! WooHoo!!!

PS Forgot to say that with an adaptor ring, I can use my old polarizing filter on the new camera! Not even sure I will still need it, but good to know.

Update: Good information on how to take space shots here.

Friend just bought the same camera and loves it too! Look for warranty info and service centers for your country. Mine is for Canada of course :-)
Canon SX20IS