This long weekend my partner and I had the opportunity to visit 2 beautiful but quite different locations in the Kawarthas. We started by visiting the Millbrook Valley Trails. On our way down we came across 3 turtles near the Peterborough Airport. The flooded lands surrounding the roadway must be making perfect habitat for them! During our afternoon picnic we were greeted by twittering chimney swifts, turkey vultures, and orioles near the millpond. Medd’s Mountain was a delightful show of spring wildflowers. Along the trail they were placed out as if they were exhibits at a museum. Bloodroot and Trout Lilly were both particularly showy on this day. On the way out we came across an incredible mass of roots perched above the ghost of a stump, a great indicator of old growth forest.
A carpet of Trout Lillys 
A Particularly Handsome Bloodroot 
A “Perched” Root Mass
On Sunday we managed to visit High Falls near Petroglyphs Provincial Park. the water levels were higher than I had ever seen them, and some crossings of the river were much more difficult than they have been in the past. Without much effort we managed to see several snakes and frogs as we hiked through the woods. It was nice to see a second bloom of Hepatica, as the season is about a week behind here in Peterborough, we even saw some very pretty blue varieties. With the blackflies beginning to emerge, we didn’t stay for long, with the warm weather they will likely begin biting soon.
A snake posing for his moment. 
A great specimen of blue petaled hepatica. 
Belwort in full bloom! I always forget the name of this plant…
A great weekend to be out in the Kawarthas. I was pleased to get up to the Highlands before the blackflies have fully emerged for the season. I definitely recommend visiting the Millbrook Valley Trails in the coming weeks!
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