Winter Hike by Webster Falls

 

Webster Falls in winter

Winter is not my favourite season. I know quite a few people who look forward to winter so they can do their winter sports like skiing and skating. But not me. However, since we are pretty much immersed in cold weather for about 6 months (notwithstanding Wiarton Willie’s spring forecast), the fam just tries to find something that we can do ONLY in winter. Being cooped up at home for months with cabin fever running high, snow has become a welcome sight so we can toboggan down the neighborhood hill.

But sometimes, we need just a little bit more fresh air, more sunshine and more ground to trek. Luckily, we got the chance to do a short winter hike by Webster Falls/Spencer Gorge Conservation.

at the Spencer Gorge conservation

There was a fair amount of paid parking slots in the park, which was great. As you know, ensuring there is sufficient parking has recently become more important to us! The accessible Dobson-McKee lookout, where you have fantastic vistas of the gorge and falls, is also not too far from the parking lot.

The view of the falls from the lookout was just stunning. The 22-metre classical curtain Webster Falls is one of Hamilton’s most iconic waterfalls for a reason. It is beautiful in any season. I saw some beautiful Autumn pics, but we were so glad we got to see its frozen state. It was majestic! Of course, not to the level of the American or Niagara Falls in the winter, but still very much awesome.

The nearby trails were clearly marked and as there was fresh snow, it was not too slippery. Of course, we didn’t stay as long as we would have during kinder weather. But we survived with layers of clothing and good winter boots. My cleats came in handy for some tricky trail spots!

winter hiking

There are also other waterfalls (Tews, Borers, among the 156 waterfalls) and many trails in the area, so it’s well worth the trip. Hamilton is known as the Waterfall capital of the world!