Road Trip

 

Suspecting it might be our last topless (the car, that is) tour this year, we took advantage of the warm temperatures last week and escaped to the Southampton area for a couple of days. Nothing puts me in a better frame of mind than to head north on Highway 21 through Grand Bend to Bayfield and Goderich. It’s my attitude-adjustment area. So I guess that would make Southampton my feel-good zone, and I looked forward to the brief but rejuvenating road trip.

I loved travelling along the water and stopping at our favourite beaches along the way. THAT, my friends, was the best part of the trip. My husband snapped this pic in Point Clark.

There’s something so comforting about being near the water. I spent a few moments on ‘my rock’ at Bayfield, a beach I frequented often for many summers. And in just those few moments of taking in the sights and sounds, I felt the urge to write something…anything. Nature has always inspired me. Especially bodies of water. It doesn’t seem to matter if it’s a river, lake, or creek. To be honest, even a bathtub of water has cleared minor writer’s block for me.

We’ve always enjoyed visiting Meaford and were delighted to see the town celebrating a scarecrow festival. Scarecrows everywhere! Even hanging from lightposts.

An all out effort throughout the town. Even in the residential areas. 

We stopped downtown to admire the displays and then headed to the rocky shore of Georgian Bay where I basked once again in the restorative setting. I believe I left my bum imprint on the rocks of at least five beaches. So, yes, it was the most relaxing of tours and the weather couldn’t have been better.

The evening temperatures were still favourable for a stroll along the beach. We walked down to the benches at the end of the main street in Southampton to catch the sunset. Words don’t do it justice and, alas, no pictures. I guess we were too absorbed in the magnificent view. That experience was more satisfying than the chicken alfredo I ordered for dinner. And everyone knows how much I LOVE fettucine alfredo.

Here and there were splashes of red along the road during our travels but it was too early for the trees to have changed colour. We’ll wait a a couple more weeks for that treat. 

I’ll share more pictures and memories of some of those beaches later. Maybe when the snow drifts turn to mind drifts and I remember standing at the shorelines of Lake Huron, gulping in the lake air, cool and refreshing, as receding waves suck the sand from beneath my bare toes. Yes, that’s when I’ll dig up those photos, slap them on Facebook and say, ‘back in October we ….’