Burlington's Waterfront - Spencer Smith Park
In the middle of winter, I find myself dreaming of the Lake Ontario waterfront. Lake Ontario has been a constant in my life from the time I was 7 years old and we moved from the tip of James Bay in Quebec down to Batawa in southern Ontario.
A special occasion in my family was when my Dad would announce 'Let's go to the beach!'.
My two brothers and I would jump for joy and run to find our sand toys and bathing suits.
Mom would pack dinner into a cooler and my Dad would go out to the back garden shed to get the hibachi and charcoal briquettes so we could barbecue our dinner on the beach. Then off we would go.
On other occasions we would go smelt fishing with two or three other families. When the smelt were running in the spring, my Dad and his friends would use big square nets to catch thousands of them.
They'd bring the nets on shore where the Moms and kids were warming themselves around a giant bonfire, and we would scoop all of the smelt into buckets or whatever other containers we had brought.
North Beach on Lake Ontario in Prince Edward County -
where we used to go to the beach on weekends and smelt
fishing in the spring.
Back at home my Dad would pay my brothers and a penny for each smelt we cleaned. It was a quick and easy way to make a few dollars and we enjoyed the opportunity to make some extra money over and above our allowances.
Anyhow, just sitting here this evening thinking of the Lake Ontario shoreline here in Oakville and Burlington and started to go through some of my pictures from last summer. These are taken at the Burlington Waterfront in Spencer Smith Park.
Looking out over Lake Ontario at Spencer Smith Park on Burlington's Waterfront.
View of the Burlington Pier - Under Construction
Spencer Smith Park on Burlington's Waterfront
If you're in Burlington, be sure to stop by and take a stroll (or go skating in the winter) down on the waterfront at Spencer Smith Park.
©2010JoSmith
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Jo-Anne Smith, the author of this article, is a REALTOR® with Brekland Realty Group, Oakville, Ontario and welcomes your real estate inquiries. To contact her, visit www.oakville-burlingtonhomes.com |
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Jo-Anne Smith, the author of this article, is a REALTOR® with Your Choice Realty , Mississauga, Ontario and welcomes your real estate inquiries. To contact her, visit www.oakville-burlingtonhomes.com |
Beautiful photos. Hope you are enjoying your new home.
Jo, I loved the pictures and your story reminded me of MY mother or father telling us we were heading to the beach and what a joyful thing that was. You can bet I would be strolling along the water at the park here listening to the waves. We still walk the boardwalk at our beach and I can't wait for warmer weather!
Jo - Now that you are getting settled in to your new home I can see your mind has already turned to towards summer and sailing ...
Hi Jo..sound like a fishy story, but I'm buying it...Great Photos and Story :O))
that's a terrific new pic of you Jo - haven't seen you in ages - how're you doing? Love the photos too- beautiful waterfront/boardwalk!
Hi Kay,
Thank you! Bit by bit we're getting unpacked and organized....
Jo
Carole,
I can just picture you as a little girl when you Dad announces it's a day for the beach....these are one of my best childhood memories too.
I bet Jones Beach is beautiful!
Jo
Carole,
I can just picture you as a little girl when you Dad announces it's a day for the beach....these are one of my best childhood memories too.
I bet Jones Beach is beautiful!
Jo
Jo, lovely post. We did not have a beach in Texas and even the lakes were rather far away. I did take walks or hikes with my Dad and those are fond memories. I just loved your shared memories of the beach!
When I think of going to the beach (Rye NH) I remember plums (I think that must have been my Mothers favorite fruit to bring) sand in my sandwiches, a huge yellow beach umbrella (it could be spotted no matter how far we wandered) and a smooth rock with my name mysteriously written on it....(I have since figured out that my Dad would write our names on a few of the rocks we had to climb so we were bound to find one)
Jo, what a beautiful post! I have long forgotten memories of my summers spent at Cape Cod with my grandparents. What is not to love about the water? Your pictures are beautiful, thank you for sharing with us.
Kathy,
It was nice escapism for a little while....supposed to be extremely cold here tomorrow as in -20 so I guess winter is finally making it's appearance.
Jo
haha Fred, You're too funny.. ((-;
Jo
Hi Liz,
Nice to see you too! I'm doing great, and you?
Jo
Jeanean,
Growing up in Ontario, lakes and beaches are part of our blood....I can't even imagine not being near a lake.
Jo
Jo - Yes the balmy past week had us thinking about our little hideaway up north ... even though managed to break through the freezing point and had some rain we still have several inches of snow
Hi Jo - wonderful memories come to mind reading your post-my dad used to take us smelt fishing on lake michigan I grew up on the south side of chicago minutes from the beach.
thanks for sharing yours!
sincerely,
grace
Spencer Smith Park looks like a place I would love to take my grandbaby to, and just let him run around and have fun! Gorgeous photos Jo.
Jo, Spencer Smith is one of my favorite parks in Burlington. My uncle used to bring us smelts to eat and my husband and his family would go out smelting. Now a days though I regard them as unsafe to eat ... too bad, they were delicious. Here's hoping that the pier gets finished soon ;).
Hi Jo,
Great photo's! Burlington looks like a lovely place I was there once passing through, we stopped at the Ikea that was the extent of what I saw. We were on our way to visit family so I wanted to pick up hostess gifts.
I too loved going to the beach as a child hey I still do! We too would go as a family on the weekend and stay and have a picnic the days when life was simpler!!
Joan,
What wonderful memories you have! Your Dad was very imaginative and playful from the sounds of it.....
Jo
Hi Andrea,
It sounds like you do have some wonderful memories of Cape Cod....perhaps you'll blog about them?
Jo
Kathy,
It's neat that you have snow and yet you aren't that far away from Oakville (we have none).....where-abouts is your hideaway?
Jo
Grace,
That's so nice to know! And here I thought only Lake Ontario used to have smelt .... did you have a big bonfire on the beach too?
Jo
Thanks Kris!
He must be growing so big.....any new photos of him?
Jo
Hi Janice,
I don't think there are still the smelt runs on the lake that there used to be....you're right too about them being unsafe to eat.
Jo
hi Trace,
Where does your family live?
Burlington is a lovely city....how close are you to a beach in Winnipeg?
Jo
Hi Jo,
Not my family my husband's we were coming back from a trip to Florida and the Eastern Seaboard we came back to Canada through Niagara Falls. They live in Petersbourgh, London, Sarnia and Ottawa. My family is all out west!
I think we are an hours drive from Winnipeg Beach. I have never been though. As a child we went to Regina Beach a lot as it was about 1/2 an hour drive out or to QuAppelle Valley were there a lot more beaches.
Trace,
It's nice that you have family to visit here too....and many beaches out west.
Jo
Trace,
It's nice that you have family to visit here too....and many beaches out west.
Jo
Hi Jo,
There are a fair amount of beaches in Sk. but they are not real beaches the sand is not nice and the water is full of algae by late summer as the lakes are not that large or deep. But as a child they were wonderful!!
Trace,
Like you, I remember any kind of water, even swamps, were attractive to me as a child....I used to spend hours in a swamp catching frogs. My parents didn't know, of course. I left my clothes hanging on a tree and would wander in pretty much naked.....
Jo
HI Jo,
Oh Jo, catching frogs was a favorite past time of mine and still is. I taught my kids all of them how to catch frogs. I always want a pond in my backyard where I could have frogs. But after thinking about it not such a good idea for the frogs!! We use to swim in the dug outs and irrigation channels in Alberta. I would also catch snakes...I was not your girly girl...dressed and looked like one but played like a boy!!