Chapter Two Hundred Forty Seven

We have just returned from visiting Collingwood, Ontario, Canada.  Our fellow travelers were Hitty Moonbeam and Hitty Claire.   I will try to put into words how spectacular were the colors of fall!  Collingwood is a lovely resort town on the Georgian Bay at the south end of Lake Huron.  We all took along warm clothes as we were sure that being that far north would be quite cool but were delightfully surprised that sweaters were only needed occasionally.  Now and then there were clouds and showers but that did not interfere with any of our activities.

The hotel where we took up residence had an amazing roof.  It had flat areas with benches to sit on.  One could see  spectacular views from every side.   Hitty Colleen and I sat carefully on the railing to have our picture taken overlooking the Georgian Bay.  

Hitty Claire and Ima could not believe the distances one could see from high up on this roof.

Monday was Canada's Thanksgiving Day and the gorgeous weather brought  many, many people out to enjoy the sights.  We drove up to the Blue Mountain and at least looked at the ski slopes and then headed for the beach.   This area is a very favorable location - lakes,  mountains and beaches so it has something for tourists for all seasons.

After leaving the mountain top we headed for the Wasaga Beach area.   We tried to see the lighthouse we had spotted from the mountain top but with no success. 

Some of us did, however, enjoy just sitting on a wooden bench watching the seagulls.

Our next adventure was to Midland where the guide book said there would be many buildings with scenes painted on them.   The car made several stops just to take in the fabulous fall colors.  Esther said she had never seen a fall color array such as these.  It was like driving through a tunnel of butterscotch!

Arriving in Midland, we finally did get to see a lighthouse!  Of course, it was painted on the side of a building.   There were many such scenes telling the history of the town.

Next we visited the Martyr's Shrine to the  six Jesuit Priests and two lay persons from the Mission of Sainte-Marie among the Hurons, near Midland.      It was dedicated in 1926 and visited by Pope John Paul in September of 1984.   

After leaving the shrine we stopped at the Huronia Museum Shop and  some Hittys played among the merchandise while the adults shopped!

The next day we ventured much further.   Carol and Martha had always wanted to go to Algonquin Provincial Park and to be only three hours away and not make the trip was just not to be.  We left early in the morning and were back to the hotel in time for a late dinner.   We saw huge lakes and more trees than I have ever seen.   We noticed signs along the one and only road through the park alerting drivers to  the moose crossings but did not see any moose!

When we arrived back at the hotel after a long day, a very tired Hitty Claire and Ima spent the remainder of the evening in front of the fireplace.

Our last day was spent relaxing and checking out some local shops.   One such place was a toy shop with cages of live lizards and such.   What attracted us the most was a unique dollhouse.   We were told that is was OK if we wanted to play in it so indeed we did!

We certainly were made to feel quite welcome and our visit to another country was most delightful.   Esther found only one fabric shop and the ladies working there were quite taken with us Hittys.  Also, it took us several days but we finally 'got it' that in Canada one does not find 'Dunkin Donuts' but 'Tim Hortons' will do just as well!   We left with wonderful memories and not the least was the absolutely wonderful sumac!

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