Burlington

• Traffic was heavy leaving Toronto on a Wednesday morning headed southwest, but drivers here are very polite. We took Lakeshore Road almost exclusively rather than the expressway and, consequently, had the pleasure of motoring through Oakville. What a gorgeous community --- marvelous old trees decorating huge mansions, some of which must have included private beaches on Lake Ontario. The downtown is both quaint and upscale; we found it very attractive. And it went on and on, eventually blending into the town of Burlington. Our primary destination of the day, the Royal Botanic Gardens, lay just ahead.
  
  These gardens are unusual in that they are comprised of several disjointed parts, geographically separated from each other --- almost as if squeezed into whatever spaces were left for gardens after streets and expressways, train tracks and waterways had taken priority. We managed to tour the indoor section with Mediterranean plants, Hendrie Park gardens (first picture below), Hendrie Valley Sanctuary with its long boardwalks and, finally, the Rock Garden (second and third photo below). It was unfortunate that we saved the best for last because the Rock Garden provided little shelter from the rain, which quickly drove us out.
  

  

  

  

  
  After an overnight nearby, another fine morning greeted us as we aimed for Stratford. One stop we made on the way was Webster Falls near Dundas. We reached the viewpoint without difficulty, joining two artists busily documenting the scene on canvas. However, nice as it was, we thought these falls could use more water:
  

  

  What had brought us here were Internet photos such as the following:
  

  

  They say, “Into every life a little rain must fall.” Obviously, the emphasis here was clearly on “little.”