Saturday, June 22, 2013

Road Trip 2013: Centre Island, Toronto

Our second day in Toronto we largely spent at the islands off the coast of Toronto. Situated just off-shore of downtown, the Toronto Islands are the largest car-free urban community in North America. We hopped on board the ferry just after lunch and road the 10-minute trip across the harbour.


The sights from the back of the ferry rivaled the view from the CN Tower!



Once we arrived on Centre Island, the largest, most tourist-friendly island in the chain, we headed straight down the main path through the center of the island.



What a welcome oasis in the midst of a large city to be able to come to this green space.


Of course, the kids had a great time, but they weren't as interested in the gardens, play grounds, or greenery as they were getting to the beach!


We didn't take full suits to the beach so we wouldn't have to lug towels and extra clothes all through downtown, but they each wore trunks and played in the edges of Lake Ontario.







After the kids had their fill of sand and water, we walked out the dock nearby to take in the view.


Niagara Falls is tantalizingly close, as the bird flies.




We took the scenic route to the other end of the island to catch a different ferry on the way back to downtown.




The kids kept stopping to play with the "snow" that was falling from the sky.  Actually it was the fluffy seed pods from one of the plants on the island, but I don't know what kind of plant it was.


After dinner that evening, it was time to say goodbye to my brother and his family. They will be staying one more day in Toronto while we move on to the final destination on our road trip. The cousins had trouble parting, of course. Thankfully we'll see them again in just a few months.


4 comments:

  1. hey, you're in my old hood. I lived in Toronto for 18 years (my hubby is from there) and we moved to Nova Scotia last summer. THe trees are poplar. The city planted them along the waterfront. We were members of the community albacore sailing clubs in Cherry Beach and would get that stuff up our noses all the time. Thanks for the pictorial trip. I'll have to show the kids. they will be delighted. Enjoy the rest of your trip!

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  2. I never knew that about Toronto! How cool to have car free islands so close to the city. If only they didn't have so much winter that might me a cool place to live one day.

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  3. Lovely pictures of Toronto! Looks like you guys had a great time. Isn't the island amazing? We love going there too. I also enjoyed your pictures from the centre of town very much. You managed to make Toronto look more attractive than it actually is ;-)
    Luciana

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