Daytripping Summer 2022

Lake Huron
MI
ONTARIO
NY
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The Great White Squirrel Hunt
We love your travel magazine and
would like to share a funny story about
when we were Daytripping. You guys
always have fantastic suggestions
about where to go in S.W. Ontario...
keep up the great work!
It was a sweltering July afternoon
when my family, ever the intrepid
adventurers, descended on the lovely
town of Exeter, Ontario, for the first
time. While my grandma and cousin
were interested in shopping and my
dad only wanted to pursue something
from the ice cream parlour, my mum
knew the real motivation of this trip:
to catch a glimpse of the mysterious,
elusive white squirrel.
So, we set out together into one of the
parks, hoping to spy the cryptic, nearlegendary
creature. Sadly, this turned
out nothing like the imaginary, BBCnature-show-like
sequence of events
that we tourists had predicted.
First, there was all this trudging about
in the forest. For almost an hour, all
we could see were tree trunks. The air
around us was green from the vibrant
light filtering in from the canopy, which
was admittedly gorgeous, but it had
nothing to do with the squirrel pictures
we so feverishly desired. Over a bridge
we went, but… where were we? More
forest stretched before us, as unending
as one of our vacationing family
arguments.
Briefly, a female cardinal flitted across
the boardwalk in front of us. “What was
that?” my mum hissed, hyperalert.
“It’s just a bird,” offered my dad,
who’d turned his vigilance from
By Bea Hanson, London
Photo credit: Ronny D’Haene
squirrels onto his unsuspecting prey:
an after-dinner mint he’d found in his
fanny pack. Meanwhile, the cardinal
rapidly vanished, like a mirage.
So, onwards we marched in our
fearless expedition. Well, nearly fearless
—my dad had now become increasingly
fearful he’d have to hit the bathroom.
“There are public washrooms at the
park entrance,” murmured my mum,
focused intently on the surrounding
nature.
“Come back quick,” whispered my
cousin. “We might see the squirrel!”
As my dad turned on his heel and
sauntered off through the humid forest,
his form growing more and more distant,
I began to wonder if this squirrel was an
unknowable myth, like a smaller, cuter
version of Bigfoot or the Loch Ness
Monster. But then, suddenly, a telltale
flash of white made itself known in my
periphery. I slowly, silently swivelled to
face it. There it was! On an old stump,
under an unbroken ray of sun that shot
in through a gap in the trees, sat the
famously pale, enigmatic rodent.
My mum and cousin crouched,
cameras poised, ready to take in this
striking phenomenon. My grandma,
too, trundled up, but then hesitated.
She gazed plaintively after my dad,
who was about to round a bend in the
path. Then, she began gesticulating
wildly.
“COME BACK!” she boomed,
waving her hands. “LOOK! IT’S A
WHIIITE SQUUUIIIIIRRRRELL!”
Alas, all this excitement proved
too much for our nervous, creamcoloured
little friend. Terrified, he bolted
away. My mum returned from the
edge of the boardwalk, disappointedly
showing us her not-so-prized pics of an
indistinguishable white blur.
Hours later, as we left Exeter with
ice cream treats but no decent squirrel
photos, my dad pointed calmly out the
window at one of the houses in a nearby
subdivision. “Hey, guys, look at their
birdfeeder!” he chuckled. Clustered
on the house’s front lawn, nibbling at
seeds from a birdfeeder, were three
white squirrels! My grandma, my
cousin and I smiled with glee. My mum
nearly veered the car off the road into
a garden gnome. At last, this was the
photo opportunity she’d been waiting
for—and these squirrels were much
hungrier for attention!
Six years later, this trip is still vividly
emblazoned in our minds. It taught
us all a very important lesson: when
travelling, don’t look too hard for
things, because they’ll find you! (Oh,
and also, know where the ice cream
parlour is.)
BISBACK FAMILY
ANTIQUES
ALWAYS BUYING GOOD QUALITY ITEMS
72040 London Rd
HENSALL
Huron County
By chance or appt.
janisbisback@tcc.on.ca • 519.263.3505
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Summer 2022 “Warning: Knives are sharp!” (label on packaging for sharpening stone)
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