The most secluded tail within one hour’s drive of Toronto that I know is the blue trail at the Jim Baillie Nature Reserve just north of Leaskdale.

It can be very icy or very muddy here. I was glad to have my ice grippers. There was very little sound apart from the tones of nature. I heard Canada Geese overhead, Killdeer, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Blue Jay, American Crow, Black-capped Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, American Robin, Red-winged Blackbird, Northern Cardinal and Song Sparrow.

The trail is mostly in a Red Maple swamp.

Some Botany:

MAILBOX

I received this about Sandhill Cranes:

Why southwestern Ontario is currently home to thousands of sandhill cranes | TVO.org

NATURE POETRY

March is a boisterous fellow,
And undeterred by fear,
With many pranks proclaims himself
The tomboy of the year!                             – The 1931 Old Farmer’s Almanac

Miles Hearn