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The Village Squire, 1981-08, Page 13by Susan White to be, or perhaps that's a small kid's memory talking. But there are still some very nice hideaways beneath the trees that grow where sand starts and soil ends. If you come from above, there's a large parking lot (but lock your car, a friend of a friend had his cleaned out last summer) at the top of the hill. There's also an awfully long series of stairs, but the slope is slight and there are a couple of stop, rest, and enjoy the view points. No facilities here- it's just you, the sun, sand and water. For the singles, or those who wish they were, Grand Bend's beach is the place to be. It's also one of Lake Huron's best equipped beaches, with washrooms, changerooms, barbecues, lights. benches and playground equipment. The sand is gorgeous. wide and it seems to stretch for miles. It's also packed in summer and that can be a plus or minus, depending on your inclinations (see above). Lots of food is readily available from nearby restaurants and takeouts, and heavens to mercy, there's no hill at all. You just pull up your car, walk a few feet, and you're at the beach. Grand Bend's minuses, for the con templative among us, are lots of noisy cars, blaring radios and sand to surf people. As a three-year-old with us commented suc- cinctly: "it's a zoo." Don't get the idea that the town beaches are the only ones on this particular stretch of Lake Huron. The strip of beach at the end of all the concession roads in the area is public: the township's road allowance goes right to the water. Just be careful that you're on a township road, not a private one cottag- ers have built at their own expense. No doubt you'll be told if you're infringing on cottagers' territory: the issue of what's private and what isn't along the shore is a touchy one. According to Warren Knight of the Ministry of Natural Resources in Wing - ham. the beach in front of private cottages is sometimes privately owned. sometimes not. In Stephen. Hay, Goder- ich, Stanley and Colborne Townships in Huron County the original crown grants went to the Canada Company and beaches were reserved as public land. Onus is on (cont. on page 32) VILLAGE SQUIRE/AUGUST 1981 PG 11