Perth, ON
Accommodation We stayed in Smiths Falls, a town 15 minutes’ drive East of Perth. This was our base for Perth and Almonte. Our accommodation was a commercially-managed AirBnB, a modern apartment. It was clean, compact without feeling cramped, and contained all the essentials and more. The kitchen was well stocked, including Tupperware for taking food on the go. Check-in was smooth and a guide to the surrounding area was provided. The only fault I could find was that the corridor was a bit smelly – drugs or food, I’m not sure.
Hiking We spent the morning hiking in Murphy’s Point Provincial Park. As it was off-season (December) when we visited, the main car park inside the park was closed, as the internal park roads are not winter-maintained. Instead, I parked in the skiers’ car park just off the main road. There is a self-service pay station (cash only), but as I have an annual parks pass I didn’t need to use it. From here, there is a short trail which takes you to the main summer entrance. I then had to walk up the road (which doubles as a ski trail during the winter) to get to the day use car park and the trails. As this was a good walk in itself, I just did the 2.5km Sylvan Trail. It was pretty scenic, with views of Nobles Bay, which was partially frozen. The trail was pretty snowy but I managed it in my hiking boots. You can also snowshoe here.
In the town Once in town, we downloaded the Driftscape app and followed the self-guided Heritage Perth Downtown Walking Tour. This allowed me to follow my route on the interactive map whilst reading about the history of each of the sights. These included buildings such as the Edwardian Code Mansion, which used to be heated by the steam from the factory across the street, and Perth Town Hall, which was playing Christmas music from a loudspeaker reaching across the town when we visited.
Taking in the Town Hall
We also saw the Mammoth Cheese, a replica of an actual cheese weighing 22,000 pounds, at 6 feet high and 28 feet in circumference, a joint creation by 12 local cheesemakers in an effort to promote Canadian Cheddar at the World’s Fair in Chicago in 1893. Stewart Park was very picturesque in the snow, but our favourite spot was the life-size statue of Big Ben, a famous Grand Prix and Olympic showjumper whose rider Ian Miller brought him to Perth as a youngster. Big Ben is one of two horses inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.
Of course we did some last-minute Christmas shopping for ourselves in Perth. All the shops I visited were fine with Rita entering. The ones we loved the most (and who loved Rita most!) were Ground Waves, Flint and Honey and Red Brick Emporium. Our last stop of the day was at Coutts Coffee. Their patio is dog-friendly but I got a takeout for the road!
