Web Watch @ Your Library #47 - August 2007 - Other back Issues

End of Summer Trips

This month’s Web Watch features more Ontario travel destinations – this time, it’s a list composed with families in mind!  Most are only a few hours’ drive away – some, in fact, are just minutes away.  Enjoy your trip; discover Ontario, and stay safe!  

The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and the St. Marys Quarries - www.baseballhalloffame.ca Sports fans can spend an intriguing few hours at Canada’s own Baseball Hall of Fame - just a few minutes away in St. Marys, Perth County.  When you’re finished, head down the road for a refreshing swim at “the Quarries”, a former limestone quarry that is now Canada’s largest outdoor swimming pool – Pierre Elliott Trudeau once enjoyed a dip here! Consult www.townofstmarys.com for more things to see and do in St. Marys.   

Ontario Maze at Newton - www.ontariomaze.com If you’ve ever felt, even for a moment, like “accidentally losing your children on purpose”, then drive to Newton, Ontario, where you really can lose your children – safely - in a 45 acre corn maze!  Located on Road 128, between Milverton and Millbank, Ontario Maze (designed and owned by Nelly and Ernst Hofer, two award-winning illustrators of children’s books) also offers a straw museum, educational exhibits and games, mini golf, and picnic facilities.   

The Bruce Peninsula - www.thebrucepeninsula.com/ Why not head to the Bruce Peninsula this summer (and avoid Highway 401)?  This web site will tell you about “The Bruce’s” large sandy beaches, great sunsets, hiking trails (the Niagara Escarpment runs through the Peninsula), camping, fishing, lighthouses, 4 nature reserves, 8 provincial parks and 2 national parks. One of the parks, Fathom Five National Marine Park and Flowerpot Island, is a marine park with some very unique geological formations.  

Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons, Midland, Ontario - www.saintemarieamongthehurons.on.ca/ Steeped in history, this fascinating 17th century French Jesuit mission will both intrigue and educate.  The recreated village and indoor museum offer a look at the site of one of the first interactions of the European and aboriginal cultures in Ontario, when Jesuit missionaries risked their lives to spread the Catholic faith in Wendake, the land inhabited by the Huron Wendat people along the shores of Georgian Bay.   

Ontario Travel - www.ontariotravel.net Click on Vacation Ideas, then Kid-Friendly Stuff, for a great list of family fun attractions, such as the Waterloo Regional Children’s Museum, London Regional Children’s Museum, Santa’s Village, Jungle Cat World, Bowmanville Zoological Park, the Ontario Science Centre, Ontario Place, Canada’s Wonderland, the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory, and many more.  Who knew there was so much to see in our own province?  

Hike Ontario - www.hikeontario.com This provincial non-profit association is the “provincial voice for the hikers and walkers of Ontario”.  Their web site covers both rural and urban trails in our province.  To search for a trail, click on “Find a Trail near You”, then “Ontario Trails Council” and “Find a Trail A-Z”.  Information about hiking equipment and the benefits of hiking, is provided. You can also consult www.canadatrails.ca/hiking/on/ for information on Ontario’s hiking trails.  (There are a number of hiking trails and walks in Perth County; the longest is the Avon Trail ( www.avontrail.ca/), which stretches 105 km. from St. Marys to Conestoga.)  Note: September 24-30, 2007 has been designated as Ontario Hiking Week.

Conservation Halton and Crawford Lake - www.hrca.on.ca This picturesque area of Ontario features 6 conservation areas, including Crawford Lake Park, located on the Niagara Escarpment near Milton.  Crawford Lake features a unique 5th century (reconstructed) Iroquoian village complete with longhouses that once housed up to 80 people each.  Children can take a guided tour of the village, simulate an archeological dig, grind corn, start a bow drill fire, play lacrosse, and take some great hikes around the lake (which is geologically rare and known as a “meromictic lake”.)  

Toronto for Parents and Kids! - http://toronto.parentzone.com/ Click on either “Pools, Lakes and Beaches” or on “Your Family Fun Directory”.  The second option divides attractions and activities into outdoor and indoor fun.  Be sure to check out the “Offbeat Places Kids Love”! HINT:  Be sure to check out some of SPL’s print materials about traveling and vacationing in Ontario and the rest of Canada!  Some examples: Around Toronto with Kids (at J 917.135404 Aro), Toronto: the Unknown City (917.135104 Tor), as well as some of our circulating magazines eg. Our Canada and Cottage Life. 

Transport Canada: Road Safety - www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/ Be sure to have a safe trip with your family – click on Child Safety on Transport Canada’s handy web site to learn how to install and use infant seats, booster seats and seat belts properly with children.  You can also find information about air bag safety, road safety vision, vehicle recalls and defects… and about safe boating (see “Marine”).  

Travelling with Children - www.MomsMinivan.com There’s nothing like a game of “I Spy” or “Cootie Catcher” to banish your children’s back-seat boredom while taking a family trip!  Visit this online resource to help organize long road trips with children - for instructions on playing over 100 non-tech travel games, plus lots of ideas for other activities.   Separate sections offer games for babies and toddlers, and links with printable car games and activities are provided.