Thurs.
23 July: Wild Parsnip Hunt
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| The latest danger to hikers in Eastern Ontario |
People say that hiking in the Canadian Rockies is a
risky pursuit: marauding bears, fickle mountain weather, getting lost, and so
on. But Eastern Ontario has its own
challenges: poison ivy at the campsite,
prickly ash on the trail, ticks giving you fatal neurological diseases, and now
wild parsnip. This colorful yellow plant
has a liquid in its stem which can give you serious burns. And it’s spreading like wildfire across the Province.
Just today I heard a terrible story of a man who was
trimming his fields wearing shorts and no shirt. The burns from the wild parsnip killed him.
So today I set out along the Rideau Trail to hunt for
this killer plant. If I had known about
it a couple of weeks earlier, I might have shown more caution along the trails
which I was busily trimming with a weed whacker. But now I knew what I was looking for: a tall thick stem, spiky leaves, and the
yellow flowers. The good news was that
no wild parsnip was to be found along the trail, although I did find large
clumps growing in the ditches along Narrows Lock Road. It’s not easy to eradicate. So, like the bears in Alberta, you just have
to take the proper precautions, and stay alert.
It was a pleasant stroll down the Rideau Trail from Powers
Road, all the way south to Lallly Homestead, followed by an easy bike ride back
along the roads.
From the group camp at Round Lake, all the way to Lally,
the mowing machines had been at work today, creating a lawn-like trail
surface. Now I wonder what the chances are
of the RTA forking out for one of those machines? I checked the price and it starts at
$14,000!!
Meanwhile, back to the weed-whacker!
Note: single-click on the first picture above to scroll through the photos separately. Also, see the Map at the end
Statistics:
Total Distance: 10.7 km (hike) + 8.7 km (bike) = 19.4 km
Height Gain: 190 ft.
Time on Trail: 4 hrs. 17 mins.
Powers Road: 10.27
am
Long Lake Rd: 11.48 am
Swamp Rock: 12.30 pm
Round Lake: 1.02 pm
Lally (arr.): 1.49 pm
Lally (dep): 2.08 pm
Ret. to car: 2.44 pm
Temp: +21C rising to +24C
Weather: Mix of sun and cloud
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| Other dangers include falling down brush-covered mica mine holes! |
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| Round Lake - ideal place for a swim |
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| Lake art |
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| Immaculately trimmed trail between group camp and Lally Homestead |
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| Nice woodland scenery |
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| Approaching Lally Homestead |
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| Mica Mine junction - trail was mowed today |
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| Mower at work |
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| Wild Parsnip beside Narrows Lock Road - but not near the Rideau Trail |
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| Today's route |
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