Chilling in the Bruce, Part 7

The Singing Sands of Dorcas Bay

On Friday we drove north again to visit the Bruce Peninsula National Park near Tobermory. On the way there we stopped at Crane River Park, where we had lunch on Wednesday, after finding out from another visitor that there were nodding trilliums there. Naturally, we explored this area a bit and found not only the nodding trilliums, but also ostrich ferns, tall meadow rue, horsetail club mosses, a currant and a clematis vine we weren't able to identify--a botanically rich spot by a small stream.

An aside here, I thought I'd seen nodding trilliums while hiking in Natural Bridge Park in Kentucky a couple of years ago, but I must have been mistaken--these nodding trilliums didn't look anything like the ones I'd seen there, these were really "nodding," with the flowers nearly hidden under the foliage!

Nodding trillium (Trillium cernuum)

Tall meadow rue (Thalictrum pubescens)

After this stop we drove into the Visitor Center at the park to watch a short nature video about this wonderful area and find out about parking permits at Singing Sands on Dorcas Bay. Singing Sands--what a wonderful name! The sands were silent today, but the name makes you wonder what the sands might sound like on blustery days...

It was getting to be lunchtime, so after parking, we made our way to some picnic tables by a building with restrooms. From here we could see the beach on one side, and a fen on the other side of the boardwalk--it was much chillier here with the breeze from the lake than at the Visitor Center the eastern side of the peninsula.

The fen behind the boardwalk

After lunch we made our way down the boardwalk crossing the fen and began to look for the fascinating ram's head orchids (Cypripedium arietinum) that are unique to this site. The first ones we came across were just beyond the fen, amid some low-growing junipers. This curious flower is smaller than the yellow lady slipper orchid, with a slipper that has a pointed "beard" in the front resembling a goat's beard, with white fuzz on the upper part, thence the common name. The maroon markings on the slipper add to its surreal look.

Ram's head orchid (Cypripedium arietinum)

Front view of the ram's head orchid

Ram's head orchids growing with prostrate junipers.

Ram's head orchid bud opening and a seed pod.

We found a few more clumps of the ram's head orchids, generally growing among conifers, specially prostrate junipers. The flowers of most of them were just starting to open. Dwarf lake iris was blooming here too, interspersed with blooms of gaywings.

Dwarf lake iris (Iris lacustris)

Dwarf lake iris and gaywings (Polygala paucifolia)

It took me a while to get the shots of the ram's head orchid that I wanted, and by the time I looked up, the rest of the group had vanished. I continued on the trail looking for them, but despite walking at a very fast clip, I couldn't locate anyone--how could they possibly have gotten so far ahead? They must have taken a side trail, but which one? There were too many to choose from, so rather than getting lost, I went back towards the boardwalk. Here a few of the birders who had remained behind were watching some water snakes and some tiny fish swimming in a shallow creek.

Water snake in a creek with fingerlings.

Later on one lady spotted a red-headed woodpecker on a far-away snag in the middle of a stand of trees in the fen. We watched the woodpecker dive and turn, always returning to "his" snag. After a while, a scarlet tanager showed up on another tree near the snag--incredibly bright--both were too far away for me to photograph. Thus we were entertained until the rest of the group returned--they had taken a trail towards the beach, no wonder I couldn't find them.

Yellow lady slippers and Indian paintbrush

Yellow lady slippers and slender blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium mucronatum)

Lots of yellow lady slippers.

On the drive back from Singing Sands, we saw that the yellow lady slippers by the roadside were out in force among the Indian paintbrush, and stopped to get more photos of them--lovely! They do seem to grow like weeds here on the Bruce.

Chilling in the Bruce, Part 6

Flowerpot Island

Thursday was to be the best day weather-wise, according to the predictions, so we had chosen this as the day to visit Flowerpot Island, a short ride across the lake. The predictions were correct as it turned out, the morning was bright and sunny, with no wind. The hotel agreed to serve our breakfast early today, so that we could make the one-hour drive to the town of Tobermory in time for the 9:30 AM ferry.

Great Blue Heron ferries in Tobermory.

Several ferries make regular trips to Flowerpot Island and the surrounding islands during the summer season. We boarded the Blue Heron VIII at 9:15 AM and got underway at 9:30 sharp. The ferry cruised around Tub Harbor slowly to show us one of several shipwrecks that can be seen through the crystalline blue waters of the harbor. There are many other shipwrecks in the Fathom Five Marine National Park which surrounds these islands. There was a lighthouse at the entrance of the harbor, and another lighthouse on an island not far off shore.

Lighthouse on Tub Harbor

Shipwreck in Tub Harbor

A closer look at the sunken ship in Tub Harbor

After that our boat left the harbor to take us past a number of small islands. I was glad to have heeded the advice to wear every layer I had brought with me for the boat ride--the moment the boat sped out into open water, the wind chill on the deck was hair-raising--but the upper deck had the best seats in the house!

Islands near Tobermory

Approaching Flowerpot Island

The formations on Flowerpot Island

After cruising past a few other islands, Flowerpot Island appeared into view--the "flowerpot" formations are on the eastern side of the island, and our boat approached from the other side cruising past the big flowerpot and then the little flowerpot to moor in a small man-made harbor where we were dropped off.

Our return tickets were for 2:30 PM and we agreed to meet back at the dock by 2:15--about four hours to take a look around and have lunch. Fortunately, there were only a few trails, and the Calypso orchids we were hoping to see were found on the Marl trail.

Plaque at Flowerpot Island.

We started out and right off the trail, came across several plants of the western rattlesnake plantain orchid (Goodyera menziesii) by its side, but with no flower spikes--the flowers wouldn't appear until mid-July. Along this trail we saw shining club moss, and several spikes of striped coral root orchid (Corallorhiza striata), an orchid I'd never seen before.

Rattlesnake plantain (Goodyear menziensii or M. oblongifolia)

Shining club moss (Huperzia lucidula)

Striped coral root (Corallorhiza striata)

Detail of the striped coral root flower.

Several of the group split up to continue up the trail while our botanists were keying in information to identify a plant which was finally determined to be a spiny swamp currant (Ribes lacustris). Along the ground I saw emerging plants of bunchberry (Cornus canadensis) and twinflower (Linnaea borealis), but again with no flowers. Quite a number of snakes were sunning themselves, enjoying the warmth of the day.

Black snake

Yellow-striped garden snake

Bunchberry and twinflower on the ground.

I met others from the group walking back towards us, excited that Larry had found a couple of Calypso orchids in the woods up ahead. I went forward trying to locate the spot, and luckily found another of our group marking the precise spot. It was surprising to see how tiny the orchids were--the plants were no larger than an ordinary violet! But what they lack in size they certainly make up for in charm.

Calypso orchid (Calypso bulbosa)

Another view of the Calypso orchid

View of Calypso orchid next to a tree trunk.

The shot just above gives a good idea of the actual size of this tiny and rare orchid. We also saw another unusual small plant, goldthread (Coptis trifolia), with a white flower--the roots have the appearance of yellow threads, hence the common name.

Goldthread (Coptis trifolia)

After sighting the Calypso orchids I continued on the Marl trail to look at a large pond where I saw a number of water snakes. The trail ended at a rocky beach, where I found another lady from our group eating her lunch--it was the perfect spot for it, so I joined her and we enjoyed the view towards Tobermory. We saw a much larger ferry crossing right in front of our shingle beach and I guessed that this must be the ferry taking cars & passengers across the lake to Manitoulin Island.

The view from our lunch spot.

Time was passing much too fast, and before we knew it, it was close to two o'clock--time to hurry back to the dock to rejoin the rest of the group. We made it back just in time to board the ferry and learn that the rest of the group had backtracked to get a closer view of the flowerpots, which I would have liked to see close-up, but our lunch spot had been so peaceful and lovely, it didn't matter.

Caves carved by the waves on Flowerpot Island.

Some of the caves carved by the waves were visible as we pulled out of the harbor on the return trip. The ride back to Tobermory was more direct, faster and warmer than the trip going out, the temperature had risen to be very summer-like. It was still early afternoon, and we decided to stay for a while to explore the town.

Art gallery in Tobermory.

A quick glance revealed two art galleries across the quay, I walked over to check them out. The first one was nondescript on the outside, with some beautiful high-end Raku pottery and a lot of touristy items. The second gallery was more what I consider a real art gallery, with an appealing garden in front--the owner was obviously an artist himself, and had his easel with a half-finished painting on it by the cash register. There were many reproductions and some original paintings, much too expensive for me. I found a case with some fascinating soapstone sculptures by Inuit carvers that were reasonably priced, so I decided to buy one to bring back for Herb as a souvenir. I think the owner was pleased, it was probably his only sale for the day--it being early in the season, our group seemed to be just about the only tourists in town.

On the drive back I saw a gas station that was open (not a frequent sight here) and since my tank was getting low, I stopped to fill up. The owner was quite surprised when he saw my Virginia license plates--he probably didn't get drivers from this far away very often. When I paid, I told him it had been many years since I'd seen a full-serve gas station.

Chilling in the Bruce, Part 5

The Bruce Alvars.

On the third day we visited the Bruce alvars--this is a Swedish word for rock formations with large flat plates of limestone broken up by cracks which support some very unusual vegetation. It's only recently that these formations on the Great Lakes were recognized as being similar to those found in Sweden and Estonia.

There is very little soil on the surface of these plates, making a harsh habitat for plants, baking in temperatures of over a 100 degrees in the summer, cold and windswept in the winter, with spring flooding which lasts a long time, delaying seed germination. Soil accumulates in the large cracks, known as "grykes," that can support a variety of trees such as jack pines, white cedar, quaking aspens, prostrate junipers, and there are some rare plants that are unique to the Bruce Alvars.

VNPS members explore the alvars.

Jack pine (Pinus banksiana)

On our first site at the crossing of Dyer's Bay Road, the trees were mostly jack pine and quaking aspens with low prostrate junipers (Juniperus horizontalis) and serviceberry. On the alvars we saw bearberry, columbines in bloom, calamint, Seneca snakeroot, wild strawberries, lyre-leaved sage, early saxifrage, and harebells. In places one had to step carefully to avoid stomping over the hundreds of yellow lady slipper orchids--quite dwarfed here compared to the ones in the rich woods. Ebony spleenworts, mosses and other ferns grew in the shelter of the grykes.

Ebony spleenwort (Asplenium platyneuron) growing in a gryke

Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi)

Yellow lady slipper buds (Cypripedium calceolus)

Wild columbines (Aquilegia canadensis)

We were reluctant to wander in too far--in this unmarked terrain it would be easy to get lost, and I had no desire to find any of the endangered Massasauga rattlesnakes that live here. We stopped for a quick lunch at Crane River Park and then went back to the other side of Route 6 to check out the plants there.

Plaque at the Dyer's Road crossroad.

There was a boardwalk here, where we came across flowers of the rare native lakeside daisy (Hymenoxys herbacea) with its charming yellow flowers. We also found lake iris, big leaved aster, and death camas.

Lakeside daisies on the alvars.

Close-up of lakeside daisies.

Reindeer moss (Cladina rangiferina)

The light drizzle that had started as we were setting out on the boardwalk continued, becoming steadier--I was feeling so chilled by then, I began to lose interest. Lovely as the lakeside daisies were, once we had seen these, our spirits began to flag, and around three everyone decided to call it a day and head back to the resort. A good call, as we drove back on Route 6, the drizzle became a heavy downpour. I was one of the designated drivers and was having a hard time staying awake. I was so exhausted and chilled by the time I got back to my cottage, I got in bed under the covers and slept until dinnertime.

Chilling in the Bruce, Part 4

Plaque at Bruce's Caves

We stopped for lunch at a covered picnic shelter by a lake, where one of the birders in our group spotted a beautiful loon swimming along the shore. Unfortunately, the loon was just too far away to photograph, and I hadn't brought my new telephoto lens along today, so I settled for just observing him through my binoculars. The iridescence of his black and white mating plumage was lovely as he dipped his beak in the water looking for small fish, and he lingered along the shore for a long time.

After lunch, we drove a short distance to visit Bruce's Caves. The plaque above tells the story of eccentric Robert Bruce, youngest son of an impoverished Scottish noble family. Given a small allowance to live on, he chose to emigrate to Canada, where he bought land in the peninsula that now bears his name. He lived in this cave for a number of years before he was able to build first a small shack, and later a larger cottage where he lived to the age of 84. While living in this cave, he would arrange to spend the winters in the local jail to survive the cold.

Our group at Bruce's Caves

These caves were carved under the cliffs of the Niagara Escarpment by erosion from the waters of the Great Lakes at a time when the water level was much higher, rather than by filtration, as most limestone caves usually are. Here we found many of the same plants found in the previous rich wood sites, along with some new ones: large-flowered bellwort, sharp-lobed hepatica, two-leaved toothwort, and rose moss.

Large-flowered bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora)

Miterwort (Mitella diphylla)

We had a hard time trying to identify the large-flowered bellwort until we found one flower. I'd seen rose moss before growing in Virginia, but this patch had fruiting bodies, which was unusual. Other flowers were just so lush, it was impossible to resist photographing them.

Two-leaved tooth wort (Cardamine diphylla)

Rose moss (Rhodobryum roseum) with fruiting bodies

Wild ginger flowers (Asarum canadense)

Large-flowered trillium (Trillium grandiflora)

At the end of the trail Bruce's Cave showed as two large openings separated by one pillar. The cave was quite large and deep, a good-sized suburban house would have fitted inside, and I wondered if the rubble on the floor had accumulated since Mr. Bruce's days or if he had lived there with the cave in the exact same condition. Had he cleared enough rubble for a space to sleep, a chair and a fire, at least?

Bruce's Caves

Exploring the inside of Bruce's Cave.

On the way back we examined a hop-hornbeam tree in full bloom and found some female flowers hiding under the foliage, something that although I have several of these trees growing in the woods behind my yard, I'd never seen at this early stage.

Hop-hornbeam tree with pendant male catkins.

The female flowers of the hop-hornbeam

With the chilly rain still penetrating the woods, we returned to the Evergreen Resort to warm by the fire.