Presqu’ile Provincial Park on Lake Ontario in Brighton is
more than just a place to go camping for me.
It is where camping for me began.
I was born in Belleville and my family lived nearby in Frankford until I
was nine years old. I think I have only
missed five years as a camper or day visitor at Presqu’ile since 1979. Every step at the park brings back good
memories and my recent trip there was no exception. My parents, sister, nephew, and niece arrived
there on May 19. I followed on May 21
and my brother-in-law arrived May 22. We
all returned to our respective homes on May 24.
My parents had a site in the Pines area with electrical
hookup for their trailer. Due to Ontario
Parks completely ridiculous occupancy rules on the number of people per site, I
set up my tent nearby on a site in the Lakeside area. The rules state that only a maximum of six
people can stay on a campsite. More are
allowed but only if they are children with parents. A mix of children, grandchildren, and in-laws
don’t count.
Presqu’ile is not a wilderness park. The setting, history, and memories for me
however give it special significance. Friends
or family joined us around the campfire for each night I was there. On a walk Friday afternoon, Dad told us that
he had changed the insulator pins on the hydro poles along the main park road
during the late 1970’s. The pins are
still in the crossarms. He told us he
accessed the off-road portion of the line by driving a ladder truck through the
right-of-way so he and fellow lineman Ray Bauer could climb the poles and do
the work while keeping the wires live while wearing specially insulated rubber
gloves.
Gull and High Bluff Islands are just off of Presqu’ile
Point. They’re both home to 10,000 seagulls. A swarm is visible from the mainland, and if
the wind is light, one can hear the constant screech of the often disliked
birds. Their population is down compared
to the past due to cormorants, which eat seagulls. The Ontario government has organized culls of
cormorants in recent years to bring the seagull population back up. I remember as a kid when the gull population
was huge and nearly resembled scenes from Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds. White splotches dotted pavement and roofs
throughout the park. I recall seeing a
gull swoop down and attempt to steal chips from someone outside the park store
and snack bar. The store sold hats in
the 1980’s that had a white blob of paint (at least I hope it was paint) on
them next to the words “Those damned Presqu’ile seagulls!”
The Marsh Boardwalk trail is just over one kilometer and
easily rivals the boardwalks in the more popular marshes at Rondeau and Point
Pelee on Lake Erie. The major highlight
for fun on the boardwalk is the grove of twisted cedar trees near the end of
the trail that are shaped in a way that allows hikers to sit on them as though
they are riding a horse. The trunk
saddles are worn smooth after decades of this.
At one point last Friday, all three generations of my family were
sitting on the horse trees. There’s
something heartwarming about seeing my five year old nephew and three year old
niece doing the same things my sister and I did when we were that age.
The tip of Presqu’ile is home to the second oldest operating
lighthouse on Lake Ontario. It is nearly
175 years old. The former lightkeeper’s
cottage is next to it and forms part of the park visitor centre and
museum. The lighthouse was built in the years
following the loss of HMS Speedy. The Royal Navy sailing ship was lost in a
blizzard off of Presqu’ile in October 1804 while transporting the accused and
several officials to a murder trial to be held at Presqu’ile in a newly
constructed courthouse. The peninsula,
which is actually French for “almost island” was the original site of the
administration for the Newcastle District, which formed part of today’s
counties of Northumberland and Durham.
The loss of Speedy led the
British government to abandon Presqu’ile as the district town due to the risk
of further shipwrecks. The Speedy story changed the course of
settlement in east central Ontario. In
my family, which is prone to using irreverent humour, the story has been retold
as The Loss of the Speedo, the tale
of an unfortunate swimmer who lost his trunks during a day at Presqu’ile beach. During the late 19th Century,
Presqu’ile became a popular resort destination with a cottage community. There was a store, a seasonal post office,
and the Presqu’ile Hotel remained open until 1971. In 1922, Presqu’ile became one of Ontario’s
original provincial parks (the others are Algonquin, Rondeau, Sibley/Sleeping
Giant, Long Point, Ipperwash, and Lake Superior).
As I mentioned earlier, the memories are relived and more
are made whenever I visit Presqu’ile.
Evening visitors included Heather Poot and her daughter Candace. Heather was my pre-school teacher. I’ve known her since I was three years
old. It’s special to still know your
pre-school teacher when you are working on a PhD. My Aunt Peggy and cousin Holly visited. Relatives from my uncle’s family were camping
down the road from us in their 25 year-old Winnebago RV. Due to the appearance of the vehicle, they
have renamed it the Turdabago. They even had someone professionally redo the
Winnebago lettering across the front grille to spell out Turdabago to oncoming traffic.
Lifelong friends from Frankford, Debbie and Alex Gaudet joined us
too. Debbie worked in the Frankford Area
Ontario Hydro office when my Dad was there.
Dad and Alex both played on the Frankford Firefighter’s baseball team. Evening visits like that at Presqu’ile take
me back in time. It’s great to have
longtime friends and family who stay in touch.
Camping conversations with small people are always
noteworthy. While sitting by the fire on
Friday evening, we were commenting on the beautiful clear sky filled with stars
and Venus just above a crescent moon. Jimmy
looked up to my brother in law Mike and asked; “Dad, when can we go to space?” Mike said “It’s hard to get there Jimmy.” My Mom said “You have to do a lot of training
and go to a place called NASA.” Jimmy
said; “We could tow our trailer there behind a rocket and go camping on the
moon.” Jimmy has a wonderful imagination. While packing up before leaving on Sunday,
three year old Annabelle observed Mike deflating an air mattress. She looked at my Mom and said “Grandma, Daddy
killed the air mattress.” A blunt
statement from a sweet little girl.
Presqu’ile is a place of golden memories and experiences
for me. The rich and famous can have
their gated compounds and private islands.
Presqu’ile is my family’s place for fun and being together outdoors.
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