I met Ron as I was section hiking a northern section of the Bruce Trail near Dyer’s Bay and he was completing his End-to-End hike of the Bruce Trail four years earlier. Ron volunteered to assist me on my hike by shuttling me to and from the trail and by arranging accommodation with his wide network of friends and family living near the trail. Ron is seen here at the Cheltenham Badlands. The trail through the Badlands was closed four years ago due to the construction of viewing platforms and erosion restoration. This day he would complete the missing section of his hike.
We were to spend a second night in the farm field near Orangeville, but just after lunch with Ron, east of the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park, one of the worst thunder storms in Ontario’s history struck. The storm, a derecho, travelled from Windsor, Ontario to Magog, Quebec. Four tornadoes and 190 km/hr winds were recorded. I walked through a highland area with pockets of red pines between open pastures. After 30 minutes of dark skies, wind, rain, and hail, it finally subsided. I was wet but unharmed.
Ron and I met on Escarpment Road, and I suggested we get a hot meal in Orangeville before deciding what we do next. I suggested that the field we were to camp in would not be suitable for the Porche, given the rain, and that we could simply drive home. I skipped a 30 km stretch of the trail in order to make my next accommodations work. Kelly dropped me on Hockley Valley Road two days later. I made up the missing piece of trail after I reached the end of the trail.
6 hours, 30 minutes: 29.2 km: 4.5 km/hr
Jamie