Village Squire, 1973-06, Page 29You'll see the best side of Huron
It's one of those horrible dreary
days and you're going nuts under a
leaky tent or in your cottage. Or
maybe it's one of those beautiful
sunny afternoons you'd like to get
out of the house for a drive and see
some scenery. But where to go.
Well, here's a few suggestions, but
only if you don't mind driving back
roads. We'll start at Goderich for
this journey and take you through
some of the prettiest country you'll
find anywhere.
Before you hardly get started, there
are a couple of interesting th ings
you could do. If you feel energetic,
you could c limb the steps to visit
the tomb of Tiger Dunlop on the hill
just north of Goderich. Tombs may
not excite you, but the view from
the hill will. You'll overlook the
town of Goderich and the harbour
area. The steeples of the churches
and a few industrial buildings poke
their way through the heavy umbrella
of trees that cover the town.
The Maitland River snakes its way
through the valley, past the Maitland
Golf and Curling Club, under the old
railway bridge and down to the har-
bour where the big freighters are tied
up.
If you'd rather not get out of your
car, you can drive up the road a
little farther and see the Skyharbour
Airport and the big Lancaster Bomber
that is a memorial to the men who
trained at the Commonwealth train-
ing base there in the Second World
War, men from all over the world.
Once you've seen these two mem-
orials, drive into the village of Salt -
ford just off Highway 21 to the east
of the Maitland bridge. Drive through
the village and up the hill on county
highway 31. You'll wind through the
township of Colbourne until you come
to the hamlet of Benmiller, one of
the most beautiful little places you're
likely to find in Ontario. You can,
if you have time, relax in the Fall's
Reserve Park just outside the village,
a park opened a couple of years ago
by the Maitland Valley Conservation
Authority, and see the Maitland River
as it tumbles over the low, step-
like falls.
Or you can drive through the vill-
age and see the old woolen mill,
a big brick building that once was
famous for the Benmiller Blankets
produced in it. You can't get too
close now, however, because
London millionaire Peter Ivey is busy
converting the old mill to a private
club for the rich. Down the road is
one d the last water -powered mills
around, a big, metal -covered build-
ing. This too is now owned by Mr.
Ivey who has not yet begun plans
to convert it to other uses.
To see the grist mill, you'll have
to turn right off county road 31 and
drive straight ahead (don't follow
the main road across the new bridge.
Then, go back to county road 31
and turn right again to take you
north out of the village.
About two miles north of Ben -
miller, county road 31 takes a sharp
turn to the right. Here you can
make a choice. You can take a
side trip by following county road
31 over to Holmesville to see Les
Jervis' game sanctuary with its deer,
ducks, birds and fish or you can
carry on straight forward. Even if
you make the side trip you can al-
ways double back and follow the rest
of the route outlined.
In another mile or so you come to
a sharp turn to the left on the road.
It won't be hard to find if you read
the signs because all other roads at
the corner are dead-end roads that
end up at the river.
After the turn, you soon find your-
self at another turn to the right, but
this one is between two small lakes
in the middle of a forested area.
The road winds within a few short
feet of the water's edge then on
through scenic, narrow roads until it
crosses the Maitland at Ball's bridge.
After crossing elderly Ball's bridge,
one of those old iron bridges that are
rapidly disappearing (this one won't
because it has just been repaired so
will be around for several years yet)
you'll come to The Base Line, so
called because it is the division line
between Hullett and Colbourne town-
ships. The official name is county
road 8. Turn left, and as you drive
up the hill you'll see one of the fine
old stone homes of the area high on
the hill to your left. It has recently
been purchased and is being restored
by a member of the county planning
department and his wife. Many of
the old homes are receiving the same
treatment, often by people from the
city who use them as weekend re-
treats.
Travel up county road 8 until you
come to the first road on your left,
just over the hill a: out 200 yards.
Turn left and you'll wander down a
narrow road, tree -lined on both
sides. You'll get some stunning looks
at the Maitland through the trees,
but make sure they don't attract
your attention so much you take your
eyes off the road since it is narrow
and a car just might be coming the
other way or, for that matter a deer
may be on the road, as they "
frequently are.
The road will loop back into Col -
Holland
Shoes
Albert Street
C I in ton
Shoes for
the entire
family
Phone 482-9692
D iscover the
beauty
of wood
Visit Jack's
Wood
Turnery
REAR OF 82 ALBF R'I STREET
CIinton