62
Escarpment Magazine Spring 2014
ESCARPMENT
®
OUTSIDE
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sectioning the bruce
Hiddendeepwithin thehardwood forest,
past the timeworn remainsofasawmillbuilt in the
1870s,youcanhear theroarof theBoyneRiveras
it tumblesovera7-metredropcut into the limestone
shale.NamedafterWilliamHogg, (whobuilt the
sawmillwhich subsequentlyburnt down in1888)
Hogg’s Falls is oneof themost impressive falls in
our region.Not necessarilydue to the sizeof the
drop,more so for the shear volumeofwater that
flows over its edge. With the Boyne River at its
peak, Spring is thebest season toexperience the
truepowerandbeautyofHogg’sFalls.
Toget there fromBlueMountain; takeMountain Road (Grey Road19)
north-west toward thewater. Turn left onHighway26and followwest to
Grey Road40. Turn left on40and left again onGrey Road13. Follow
GreyRoad13 southas itwindsalong thebanksof theBeaverRiver, even-
tually leading to thesmallhamletofKimberly. JustpastKimberlyon the right
isGreyRoad30. Follow this scenic roadpast BeaverValleySkiCluband
look for theLowerValleyRoadon the left. It isanarrowdirt road that follows
the lower reachesof theBoyneRiver, andwill takeyoupast an interesting
hydroelectricpowerplantwithmassivewaterpipes scalingdown theeast
sideof theBeaverValley.Continuealong LowerValleyRoadand look for
theBruceTrail parking forHogg’s Fallson the right.
Coordinates44.286933,-80.544291.
The trailbegins rightat theparkingarea. Look for thewhiteblazesignaling
theMainTractof theBruceTrailas it headsnorth-west into thedense, hard-
wood forest. Continue on this trail for less than 1km. Here youwill find
Hogg's Falls. Therearea fewdifferent accesspointsofferinguniqueviews
of the falls. Take some timeexploring the landscape, but be careful as the
terraincanbe slipperyand the riverbank isquite steep.
Don't stophereas the trail ahead travels throughavarietyof dense forest,
farmed fields, cedar groves and lush foliage. Eventually you will come
acrossHogg's FallsUpper Side Trail (markedwithblueblazes). You can
headup this trail and loopbackdown to themain trail (markedwithwhite
blazes).Whenyou loopbackonto themain trail, after about 2.5kmyou'll
findyourselfatHogg'sFallsLowerSideTrail (markedwithblueblazes). Fol-
lowing this trail will bring you back to Lower Valley Roadand eventually
where you are parked. There are a variety of ways to travel this loopof
trails,making it evenmoreof anadventure through thewoods.
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