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.


View Larger Map

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Cheap Flights Toronto YYZ to UK Spring 2009 - Travel Planning Step One

I'm planning to travel from Toronto (YYZ) to the U.K. in Spring 2009, and the first thing I like to do is check out the flights. Once you have your flight set, then you can make a start on booking the hotels, tours and ground and domestic travel.

It's early days yet, to actually book a flight for travel in May or June: Airlines are in a state of flux, not sure how they will come through the recession, or what fuel costs will be; others, usually discount cheap air fare or charters carriers, do not start Summer season flights until May or June; and many airlines will not have their summer fares available yet.

But I can at least check what the scheduled fares are right now, so I have a base to help me choose a flight as I get closer to my travel date.

Travel dates are flexible, in that one attraction I really want to see in Britain is Exbury Gardens, to see the rhododendrons in bloom. That event is very weather-dependent, but rhodos can bloom over a 4 week period; Here in Port Credit, that's usually from mid-May to mid June. I suspect the dates may be a bit earlier in the south of England.

With that in mind, I chose somewhat randomly, May 6, 2009, to go from Toronto (YYZ) to London Heathrow (LHR). For flights TO the U.K., I check the arrival time, first. I like to arrive early morning in London; there's a 5-hour time difference ahead of EDT (Eastern Daylight time) and it's about 7 hours flying time.

Air Canada Fares Toronto YYZ to London LHR

So, if I get on a flight that leaves Toronto around 7 p.m. EDT, it's already midnight in London; add 7 hours flying time, and I would arrive around 7 a.m. London time. Good time to get through customs and immigration, and make ground or domestic air connections.

Mind you, a red-eye flight is not a lot of fun, but I prefer it to taking an early morning Toronto departure.

I checked Air Canada, for May 6: All four non-stop direct flights are the same fare at this time. Three flights meet my departure time needs; two have the red star beside them, meaning the cabin interiors have been remodelled. This is good. And of course, I go tourist class.

Air Canada total fares Toronto-London return

For flights from the U.K to Toronto, I like to take one that gets me here around 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. This avoids some of the Toronto airport rush hour traffic; if I have been used to U.K. time, then in effect, I am landing in Toronto close to midnight according to my body clock. If I can stay awake until 10 p.m. Toronto time, then I can often get a good night's sleep and minimize jet lag.

Minor points, to be sure, but if I have a choice to better suit my preferences, why not take it? Especially since this fare is showing as just over $1,000 CAD (Canadian. And who knows what the exchange rate will be in a few months?) As I said, early days to actually book. But now I have a base ticket cost to make comparisons.

I checked Air Transat: I am not a fan of charter airlines to other than all-inclusive holidays to the Caribbean or Mexico. Why, you ask? On an all-inclusive, with the one carrier/holiday package, it doesn't matter much if they change the flight times, or dates. I get there when I get there and the carrier is more likely to care about my business.

Book an air-only charter flight from Toronto, to say, Florida, so that you can take a cruise: See what happens when the flight times get pushed around, and you arrive in Florida a few hours after your ship has sailed.

Will the cruise company care if you miss the boat? Will the charter airline care if you miss your cruise? Not likely. Trust me on this one.

So if I were to get a cheap charter fare to the U.K., I'd not book any onward travel for my arrival date. Leave a day or two to explore London, and then hit the road.

Air Transat -- depart midnight Toronto - arrive noon London

I checked Air Transat fares next, and they are so much cheaper, at this time, that I am sorely tempted. I will keep in mind all the above cautions I outlined before booking onward travel. If the flight times change, I may have to 'eat' one night hotel, but that is still cheaper than full fare Air Canada.

Air Transat Toronto YYZ to Manchester (MAN)

Transat also goes to Manchester, which I plan to visit anyhow, so why not start my U.K. trip there? I checked the cost of a flight to Manchester (MAN): Hm-m-m $100 CAD more. Not sure if this is good value or not until I check the BritRail Flexi Pass I plan to use.

Other carrier options include Flyglobespan.ca, recommended to me by Tourism Ireland for flights directly from nearby Hamilton Ontario International Airport. However, Globespan isn't showing any flights at this time. There's also Canadian Affair, for around $650, all told. The flights shown are on Transat, so the rate is a bit lower via Canadian Affair, though the charter airline issues are the same.

Now on to British Airways, to see how those fares compare.

See also Air Canada flight finders and Air Transat schedules.

New Flights LAN Toronto YYZ to Santiago Chile SCL

According to the GTAA (Greater Toronto Airport Authority) website, LAN (Chile) Airlines will start flights 5 days a week from Toronto (airport code YYZ) To Santiago de Chile (airport code SCL) on or about September 3, 2008. That could be good news -- I've flown LAN before, domestic flights, in Chile, and really enjoyed the service. Plus this new routing might be a viable alternative to Air Canada for the international portion of a trip to South America.

So I popped over to LAN.com to have a look around. I checked for flights departing Toronto (YYZ) in mid-September and returning from Santiago (SCL) mid-October. Indeed, as the GTAA site states in its NEWS for July 17, the flights are (alas!) not non-stop; On the flight south, the stop is in New York City; and on the return flight, the stop and change is in Miami (MMI).

Flying via the USA is a whole other can of worms -- ask any traveler -- but I plowed ahead to check out fares anyway. And the odd thing is, each time I checked, the fare changed slightly, according to availability.

The above screenshot shows the fare in U.S.D. which is currently almost at par with the CAD. There is a currency converter to find the cost in other currencies. Then I headed over to Air Canada, with whom I'd flown to Chile a few years ago. At that time, I used my Aeroplan miles, and paid only the taxes, etc. I loved the flight (Air Canada is ever so lovely on international routes; the polar opposite of domestic routes).

The departure time was great, too, departing YYZ (Toronto) a few minutes before midnight, and heading non-stop to arrive in SCL (Santiago) just after 10 a.m the next day. With minimal time difference between EDT/EST and Chile time, this overnight Air Canada flight is one of the easiest longer-haul flights you can take. Board, eat , drink, put on sleep mask, recline seat, and snooze away the night!

Here's the screenshot of the fares on Air Canada aka the bad news . . .

As you might see, the cost is higher for Air Canada -- almost $400 more! Now that's a large chunk of change -- several nights hotel -- or a domestic flight. Now I have to justify spending $400 more for the convenience of flying non-stop, getting additional Aeroplan Miles and a shorter flight. Air Canada flying time to Santiago is 10.5 hours, and 11.15 hours returning from SCL to YYZ.

LAN, with the stop over, is a lot longer travel time: Southbound, it's 14.5 hours; northbound, it's 15.5 hours, so between 4 and 5 HOURS longer. Business travelers have an easier choice - pay more, get there faster. Leisure economy travelers (the rest of us) have a choice to make. How much will you pay for convenience?

When I went back to double check fares on LAN again, I received a lower fare; a note on the page said more availability since first checked.
Now the fare difference between AC and LAN made it even harder to choose.

Think I will go check my Air Miles balance and see what I can come up with! I hope to go to Chile, Argentina and Uruguay this winter, and since it will be the antipodean summer, I had best get booking flights pretty quick.

There is a reciprocity tax Chile charges Canadians, and others (US Included). Each payment is valid for 5 years, and I think mine has now expired. Last time, it cost me additional $55 payable on arrival in Chile. Now, the reciprocity tax seems to be $132 CAD for Canadians I cannot find the amount charged US citizens - will keep looking - it used to be $100 USD), and payable upon arrival by air by cash, credit card or travelers' cheques (checks). See snapshotjourneys.com/chile.html for details.

Later!
Karen
ps February 2009 -- See this post about travel deals to Chile-Argentina tour.

West Jet to Kamloops B.C. New Route December 2008

Finally! West Jet will begin flying to Kamloops, B.C. ! That is the good news. Friends and relatives in Kamloops have been longing for the day that West Jet will come to town to give them a choice in air carriers. Finally! Yes!

The not so good news is the new route, via Calgary Alberta (YYC), is set to begin December 15, 2008. Though this date will undoubtedly gladden the hearts of Christmas travellers, it's a few months too late for the early September trip that my mom has planned.

The closest she can get flying West Jet to Kamloops (YKA) in September is to fly to Kelowna, B.C. (YLW) and either take the bus, or have someone in Kamloops drive down to meet her plane, and then take her back to Kelowna for the return trip. It's about a 2-hour drive each way, and a major inconvenience.

In any event, I went to the West Jet site to see what the current fares were for her September trip. Here's what I found: Total including taxes is $665.00 CAD, just as far as Kelowna (gas or bus fare to Kamloops is extra).

And then over to Air Canada to compare fares. I selected the Tango class (the cheapest) with no meals (you can prepay $6.00 for a meal/snack voucher). Total: $735.35 to Kamloops via Calgary.

Air Canada also flies to Kamloops via Vancouver, but this routing adds another 2 or more hours to total travel time as you retrace your route.

So as it stands now, mom will likely choose to pay the $70 fare difference and take Air Canada so she won't have to worry about buses or having someone transfer her to and from Kelowna. But come next year, she will most likely choose to fly Westjet. We'll decide once we see the routing, the fares and the planes. But if customer satisfaction counts for anything, West Jet should win the route hands down.

How to Get To Moncton NB from Toronto - Comparing Air Canada, WestJet, and VIA Rail

Update Moncton NB trip -- See Road Trip NB.
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I spent an enlightening half hour last night, looking for ways for my mom to get to the Canada Senior Games in Moncton New Brunswick (well, Dieppe, actually, but the same airport).

Mom had thought she would fly, as it's a short flight (about 2 hours) from Toronto (YYZ) to Moncton (YQM). Since I have the computer and the credit card, I checked flight times, availability and rates for her.

Off the top of my head, I thought it would be about $400 to fly, and that WestJet might be cheaper. I added VIA Rail as an afterthought, since I'd heard that travel from Toronto via Montreal to New Brunswick required a stopover in Montreal.

Here's what I found out:

WestJet flights from Toronto to Moncton leave at 7:30 a.m. or 8:20 p,m. The first (early) flight means mom would have to take a cab to the airport (about $45 from her home) as Mississauga Transit would not get her there in time for check-in. The later flight would mean arranging for a late check-in at her hotel in Moncton.

WestJet returns from Moncton to Toronto at similarly unsuitable hours for her: Departing Moncton at 6:30 a..m. or 11:05 p.m. The first is just inconvenient; the second more so, as she'd have to take a cab home after midnight.

Cost: $589.55, return, taxes etc included.

Air Canada Tango has lots of flights to and from Moncton each day, so I checked details on flights leaving around noon. The cost for round trip showed as $652.55, taxes etc. included. (Don't even THINK about getting free food on board! Bring a snack, as those available for sale at inflated prices are suited only to those in advanced stages of hunger.)

I checked for other, regional carriers and found CanJet. Their website shows they do charters only for tours, etc., so that's out.

When I last flew to Moncton about 6 years ago, I paid about $400, taxes in, return. Welcome to the wonderful world of fuel surcharges!

Not liking the prices I was being quoted, I went to VIA Rail's site, and entered the dates for a round trip, ticked the box that said 'Senior' and clicked 'go'.

The train trip from Toronto Union station to Moncton via Montreal takes just under 24 hours, so it's long, but no overnight in Montreal is needed (though if you had time, this would be a nice place to spend a few days sightseeing).

Departing at 11:35 a.m. from Toronto Union Station (an easy GO train ride costing about $3 from her home), it arrives in Montreal mid-afternoon, then leaves for Moncton a few hours later, reaching Moncton just after 6 p.m. the following day.

The return trip has similarly good departure times: Depart Moncton at 6:19 p.m., arriving Toronto Union at 5:30 p.m. the following day.

Cost for the round trip on VIA: Senior - $291.90 (the only tax shown is GST, and it's included in that price). If she upgrades one class, it will cost another $15 or so, but she can make changes to her ticket for a minimal fee.

This is the economy fare, with no sleeper or berth, just the coach seat reclined. Not conducive to the best night's sleep, but Mom, my daughter and I have slept on trains like this before and survived!

And, on a train, it's a ground level tour of the country, and easy to get up and walk around.

Since the train trip takes much longer, Mom would have to leave 2 days earlier than planned and therefore arrive one night earlier at her hotel in Moncton (cost for one night at hotel is about $100 CAD).

So here's her choice : Go slow, and save $300. CAD. Or go fast, and pay a lot more.

Guess which one she's booking? You got it. But Mom's not happy with saving a lot of money -- she wants MORE! She asks me to check out this thing VIA calls a 'Companion Fare', where the person travelling with you travels for free. She thinks she will get another competitor to travel with her, and so halve their costs.

I checked: VIA does have the Companion fare listed, but only for select, more tourist-destination routes, and Moncton isn't one of them.

Another option to get to the Canada Senior Games this August is to drive from Toronto, in a van with her fellow competitors. But relying on the schedule and vagaries of others is simply not reliable. Better to book VIA then cancel with a small penalty than not to have gotten a ticket at all.

Daughter Jen has driven to Saint John NB a number of times. Jen says it takes 4 tanks of gas, and about 16 hours, depending on traffic through Toronto and Montreal. The trip can be made in one long day, but it's best to stay east of Montreal for one night en route.

If you assume a tank of gas costs $100, then gas alone is $400 each way. Assume a hotel is $100 for the night, and the total return costs for driving would be $1,000-$1,200 CAD roundtrip. Divide by the four sharing costs, and it's $300 or so per person.

Makes VIA seem more than reasonable, doesn't it? Of course, gas prices could come in lower, and hotel prices could be slightly higher.

As for meals, you are on your own here. Simply too many variables to generalize. You know what you spend and what and where you like to eat, so budget for food, too.

And do post a comment if you can think of an alternative!

Shanghai Travel From Toronto :: New Route in April

Speaking of travel to China (as I was on yesterday's post), Air Canada is launching a new non-stop flight from Toronto to Shanghai on April 12 (see the Air Canada web site for specific times).

While I personally feel AC's domestic service is an absolute deterral to air travel, its international service (Santiago, Chile (Chile photos ) (Chile flights continue on to Buenos Aires) and Hong Kong) is second to none.

Of course, I am talking about service to those of us in the economy (cheap) seats, not, alas, first class or business class. But there are more of us in economy seats than the other two combined, so however they treat the least of their passengers -- me -- I think is a good benchmark of overall service standards.

Dim Sum in Mississauga at the Chinese Centre

August 2022: Sun Sun Dim Sum Restaurant later Royal Dragon Chinese Restaurant has closed.

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On Sunday, October 1, my daughter Jen treated me to Dim Sum at the Sun Sun Chinese Restaurant, which is located in the Mississauga Chinese Centre. (This photo is of the buddha in the main courtyard area there, in Mississauga, Canada). 

 We'd been here before, a few months back, in May when I had just returned from Hong Kong and was missing it already.


Then, though, we ordered from the regular menu, as you can, at anytime. But on Sunday's this place ROCKS for dim sum choices and freshness.

When we got there around 2 p.m., we had to wait about 15 minutes. Larger groups naturally get first seating, and couples might wait a bit longer. We didn't mind, as we watched how some of our favorites were made. 

There's one dish that's made from a slice (about one quarter) of green pepper (capsicum, to you Aussies) and filled with a shrimp mixture.

We couldn't figure out how they got the shrimp to adhere to the raw pepper slice, but did discover that it's grilled, not deep fried, first one side, then flipped like a pancake, but gently. 

 
And who knew I loved congee? Not me, until a few months ago. When I think of all the times I could have eaten congee in China, I could kick myself. 

At the Sun Sun, the congee is lightly salted, not fishy tasting or smelling, and has bits of boneless chicken, a few small mushrooms and topped with sliced green onions, toasted peanuts and white pepper. 

 
Oh! It is so good! And one serving is enough for two people, easily. I must learn to make this at home. But it is so inexpensive to buy and take home (even at Tremendous, another great Mississauga Chinese restaurant, it's only $1.50 Canadian per large container!) 

 
We filled up on various shrimp and rice paper dumplings, braised beef in sauce and pork dumplings. Most of the time, you select your food by pointing, nodding or shaking your head. The staff, bless them, know enough of Canadian body language to understand when we mean yes or no. 

 
You will order too much food, so go to the cashier desk and ask for take-out containers. Guess what I am having for supper tonight? You got it! Leftover dim sum!

And while that would make a Cantonese cringe, I think it's ambrosia!