The Anishinaabe also have an extensive history in this area from time immemorial. In the late 1500s – 1650s, they shared the Land running alongside the Niagara Escarpment with the Betan (also known as the Tionontati and Petun) who are an Iroquoian-speaking Indigenous people, closely related to the Huron-Wendat. They lived in many Villages from CraigleithContinue reading “The Wolf Clan battle the Iroquois in Clearview”
Category Archives: History
Paleozoic Era
“I’d like to be, under the sea, in an octopuses garden in the shade…”Well, did you know that you actually are living under the sea? This land that we live on was once called the Laurentia located at the Equator and covered by ancient warm water shallow seas, 500 million years ago! The evidence isContinue reading “Paleozoic Era”
The Wonderful World of Fungi
The fungi that you find on the Niagara Escarpment descended from one common ancestor that probably colonized the land during the Cambrian Period in the Paleozoic Era, over 500 million years ago, (Taylor & Osborn, 1996), but terrestrial fossils (land) had only become uncontroversial and common during the Devonian, 400 million years ago. It is probable that these earliest fungi livedContinue reading “The Wonderful World of Fungi”
The Petun, or Tionontati (“People Among the Hills/Mountains”)
I led an Historical Hike with fellow members of the Blue Mountain Bruce Trail Club. A day in Our local History – December 7, 1649 marks the 370th Anniversary of when the Iroquois conducted a deadly raid against the Betan (Petun) Wolf clan village Etharita (St Jean), one of the nine Petun Villages located alongContinue reading “The Petun, or Tionontati (“People Among the Hills/Mountains”)”
The Outlier and the Viking
During the Ice Age, continental glaciers covered Southern Ontario on numerous occasions. Over a period of about a million years, major advances of glaciers alternated with long periods of mild climate during which the glaciers completely disappeared. When at it’s minimum, the glacial ice was about two km deep in the Blue Mountains area.The lastContinue reading “The Outlier and the Viking”
The Pretty River and explorer Samuel Champlain
Today, I hiked the waterfall trail in the Pretty River Valley. It is named rightfully so. It is so peaceful and “Pretty” in here, but did you also know that famous explorer Samuel Champlain passed by here in 1616! In his journals, Champlain said that “travelling (here) is very troublesome in winter”. No kidding! CanContinue reading “The Pretty River and explorer Samuel Champlain”
Petun to pioneers – Nottawasaga Township
I hiked to the Petun Conservation Area up the Escarpment in the Pretty River Valley. I did a 10 km and was pretty sore and tired by the end of it. But that’s what Vikings do – they wait for perfect conditions and then push themselves to the top – this time the top beingContinue reading “Petun to pioneers – Nottawasaga Township”
The Niagara Escarpment has the oldest forest ecosystems
During the late Ordovician Period,approximately 450 million years ago, a large, shallow warm water sea filled this area. The climate was tropical, and although the shallow sea was teaming with life, plants and animals had not yet been established on land. It was the time of the first arthropods, such as the trilobites, who’s fossilsContinue reading “The Niagara Escarpment has the oldest forest ecosystems”
The Ruins of Kionontio and the Lake of the Clouds
In the mid 1800’s, an enchanting love story between Britton Bath Osler and his wife Caroline began on County road 19 in Grey County, beside Osler Bluffs. Britton was a famous Canadian criminal lawyer, and also the crown attorney at the trial of Louis Riel on the charges of treason in 1885. He founded theContinue reading “The Ruins of Kionontio and the Lake of the Clouds”
NIAGARA ESCARPMENT HISTORY & HIKING 