Winter Vantages In Guelph

Today I start with three shots taken on three different days in Guelph, at roughly the same spot. There is a wetland area neighbouring the retirement home where my father lives.

Railroads run through the city. This first view looks northwest from a spot near Woolwich and Speedvale.

And this looks southeast along the same track, back to where I was in the above shot. Woodlawn Cemetery is the area at left. A newer portion of the cemetery is actually along the right hand side of the track.

The Speed River, downslope from my father's home, stays open all winter, and so Canada geese remain here through the season, coming up from the river on a regular basis, such as with these four seen from the living room window.

I was awake early enough on a couple of days to get dawn views.

I headed into the nearby Riverside Park for a walk. The bandstand is quiet through the winter.

The river keeps flowing. There are signs that beavers are in the area, with the odd tree that's been gnawed on.

A pedestrian bridge crosses the Speed River in the park. This view looks upstream.

And this looks downstream.

Further downstream in the park, a windmill stands alongside the river.

Guelph Views

There's a wetland area between the retirement complex where my father lives and a small shopping plaza to the west. Here it is one morning when I was visiting.

And here it was later that afternoon.

There is a wooden covered pedestrian bridge downtown in Guelph, crossing the Speed River just upstream of its confluence with the Eramosa River. My brother, who lives in the area, picked me up and took me around to a few places.

Here we have views from within. This looks upstream.

And this looks downstream as the Eramosa joins the Speed.

Here we have a view from the far end.

I went upstream a bit to take shots from another perspective.

We had lunch here. It was good.

These two shots are actually the last ones I took in Guelph, heading for Toronto on a GO train on the morning I left. There is a war memorial near the station.

Across the tracks lies the Guelph Armoury, dating to 1908 and built in the Gothic Revival style. It is still used today, housing military cadet units. It can also be seen in the background of the above shot.

Dark Skies

Reminders to those in the Ottawa area. The Leonardo da Vinci exhibit at the Museum of Science and Technology wraps up on September 2nd. I went yesterday and enjoyed it. And the Gauguin Portraits exhibit at the National Gallery comes to a conclusion on September 8th. 

On the same day as my cemetery visit, I kept walking, heading for downtown Guelph along Woolwich Street. Some of the homes around Guelph are quite old (brand new by European standards). This 1866 limestone house has been designated a cultural heritage building by the city.

The Dominion Public Building here in Guelph started life in the 1930s as federal government office space, and today is used by the County of Wellington.

By the time I got down here, the skies were growing dark and ominous. This street view gives a sense of that. Guelph's war memorial is at left.

The memorial is an impressive one, with names of locals who have died in service on plaques to one side.

This being the home town of John McCrae, his poem is inscribed on a plaque.

Another view of the dark skies. I kept walking.

The above location includes the Speed River, out of sight below the street surface. That street bridge can be seen in this shot, from a pedestrian bridge downstream.

And this view looks downstream as the Speed River heads towards its confluence with the Eramosa River, another local river.

Old Quebec Street is the name of a shopping and office complex that occupies what was once an extension of Quebec Street downtown in Guelph. It was once a smaller scale version of the Eaton Centre, but when that retail chain went out of business, the building seemed in trouble. The city acquired it, and a rethink and renovations were done. A hockey arena for the OHL Guelph Storm team was built onto the far side, and the interior was overhauled to feel more like a street, with retail on the ground floor and offices upstairs. It's a welcome change.

I took a bus back up to my father's retirement home. Those brooding skies were still the order of the day. The wooded area we see across the road is in fact Woodlawn Cemetery.

And this view looks east out of the guest bedroom. The Speed River is hidden by the treeline, and is down slope from the buildings here.

Speed River

Most of my time away in July was spent in Guelph, staying with my father. Guelph is a city to the west of Toronto. It is both the county seat of Wellington County, but politically independent of the county, if that makes any sense. Settlement here started in the 1820s by the Scottish businessman and writer John Galt (no relation to the character created by that pretentious whackjob Ayn Rand), who is considered the city founder. 

Riverside Park lies along the shores of the Speed River, which passes through the city on its way to its confluence with the Grand River in Cambridge. It encompasses eighty acres of land, and includes a bandstand as seen here.

The shoreline of the Speed River is being allowed to naturalize. Ducks and geese swim here this time of year.

A pedestrian bridge crosses the river. This view looks upstream.

And this looks downstream.

Here we have a view of the bridge and the spillway.

The path continues through the park.

There is a Dutch style windmill placed here along the river. Tomorrow I'll show you another spot in Riverside Park.