 This was our last day on the Niagara Bruce Trail. Legs sore and feet throbbing, wearing just barely dried clothes from the past two-day’s mud escapades – we arrived early at Queenston Heights to catch the bus. I could already tell it was going to be a good day. First of all this location had a washroom (bonus!), the sun was shinning and it was holiday Monday. When we got on the bus, someone asked what the distance was for the day’s hike. Our lovely hike organizer hesitated a bit knowing how everyone has aches and pains. There would be a detour she said that would add a couple of kilometers to the day – and to that a collective moan. The day’s distance was 29KMS (or so). Before we left the parking lot at Queenston Heights, she gave us a pep talk like the previous two days – reminder where the rest stations would be, trail etiquette and to do tick checks. She told us that over the course of the three days many people had dropped out. The number of dropouts grew everyday and that meant we were part of the strong (or stubborn) troops who were staying the course to the finish line.  260 people had registered to do the hike starting on Day 1 but by Day 3 there were only 140 brave souls remaining so we should be very proud. Many dropped out because of the weather, and the others because of injuries. For me the only option was to finish. I got it in my head that I would – I’d come so far already that I’d hate to get so close to the finish line and not touch the cairn. The day started on beautiful nature trails around Brock University. It was a really nice way to ease into the day’s hike. At one point I asked my sister what time it was thinking that we’d made amazing progress and she told me it was only 30 min ago that we started walking. She had to be kidding. It truly felt like we’d been walking for well over an hour. I was getting the impression that today might be longer than I thought – only 28ish more kilometers to go. On Day 1 we were all strangers on the bus but today felt like we were comrades. Over the course of the previous two days there seemed to be a group of us who walked at the same pace, although today there seemed to a be a few more who joined our slower pace – faces I hadn’t seen before. When you slow down a bit, you get a chance to talk with people and I quite enjoy hearing other people’s stories. The trail today took us along the Welland Canal, which as built for ships and pleasure crafts to get between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. There was a ship coming up through the canal but we didn’t want to wait to see it come by as they move very slowly – we had a finish line to get to! This part seem very unromantic and industrial (especially having spent so much time on the forested escarpment) but was also very interesting. The trail took us over a bridge, which would raise in its entirely to let the ships pass underneath it. In the picture on the right below you can barely see a ship in the distance that had just passed through a lock and was making its way to the next one heading south towards Lake Erie. Although it’s hard to pick what my favourite part of the day was (I’d say finishing would be top of the list!) the next part of the trail was really quite lovely and a sharp contrast to the wide open space and cement roadway along the Canal. After veering right off the road the trail took us back in time as we walked along the old Welland Canal. This area is rich with Canadian history and this old canal would have been a feat of engineering when it was built in the 1800s. The trail then took a sharp left through a golf course and took us into another forested area. My sister’s knee was really starting to hurt and so we split up so she could take a short cut to the next rest station. This was the smartest thing for her to do. It was either that or get a ride to the finish line and she was determined to finish it on her own feet. (Don’t tell her but she missed a beautiful part of the trail with beautiful trees and rock formations). Once I emerged from the woodland trail, I followed a country road, went under the screaming tunnel (legend has it it’s haunted but I didn’t hear any screaming – thankfully as I was by myself!) and then over the QEW highway before entering another wooded area. I caught up with my sister about 20 minutes after we split up. The volunteers at the final rest stop of the hike went all out – a rainbow string of flags guided the way to the station and they had blankets for people to sit on, plenty of chairs and a tent for shade. And ice for our water packs – what a luxury! Having not really stopped at all we decided to take a decent break – we sat down, took off the boots, ate and drank. It was lovely! And the best part was that the final stretch was down to single digits – just 9 KM to go. That final 9 KM was quite a lovely part of the trail. It was wooded and very green. Aside from two road crossings it was mostly trail that hugged the top of the escarpment. If you’re lucky, on a clear day you can get a glimpse of Toronto and the CN Tower across Lake Ontario. So close and yet so very far away. As this was a holiday Monday, we started to meet more and more day hikers on the trail as we got closer to the Cairn at Queenston Heights. That last few kilometers was tough for me, I’ll admit it. My feet and legs were getting tired, it was hot, and I had to pee. But knowing that we were so close was our motivation to just keep going. As we emerged from the trail into the park it was like entering civilization again – so many people out for the holiday, playing soccer, badminton, and having picnics. It looked delightful! We could see the cairn in the distance and it was like a honing beam beaconing us home. The hike organizer and volunteers were there cheering us on as we reached the end – so very awesome to have your own cheering committee. We made it! And we got a lovely little badge to prove our tenacity and persistent of finishing the trail. We touched the cairn, took some photos and then sat down and had a sandwich and cold drink. And now it was time to head home. One Bruce Trail end-to-end hike done. Throughout our hike we used the Bruce Trail app and it was the best investment. I highly recommend buying it if you’re going to hike the trail – any part of it – because you can see where you are on the trail, measure the distance yet to go, and track your hike as well. Although the Bruce Trail is very well marked, this came in very handy when we came to a fork in the trail or when my sister decided to take a short cut and followed a side trail, which are on the app as well. Here is a screenshot from the app of the full hike from Grimsby to Queenston Heights:  Go Back: Day 2
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