Sherman Falls and Tiffany Falls, Hamilton

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Sherman Falls and Tiffany Falls, Hamilton

It’s obvious why Niagara Falls gets all the attention, but did you know there are a TON of other Waterfalls in the Hamilton area?

They’re not as big and thunderous as Niagara Falls and they don’t come with an abundance of overpriced trinket shops, but they’re still a great little excursion for your family.

A few weekends ago we visited two waterfalls.  Tiffany Falls and Sherman Falls.

Hamilton Waterfalls Close to Home

Hamilton is known as the waterfall capital of the world and there are some good sites out there to help you navigate them.  Such as http://www.waterfalls.hamilton.ca/ and http://tourismhamilton.com/hamilton-waterfalls and http://www.cityofwaterfalls.ca/

I chose Tiffany Falls and Sherman Falls for a few reasons;

  1. Easy access to the falls from the parking area (no long/difficult hiking with little ones and one of the paths is stroller friendly)
  2. Easy to get to these falls from the highway and close proximity to each other
  3. Free and almost free (Sherman Falls is free, Tiffany Falls was just 2 bucks for parking)
  4. Prettiness

As I mentioned in my About page, my husband and I are originally west-coasters and we still love spending time there.  We are always on the lookout for hikes and trails in the Halton area that come close to that beautiful scenery (not fair I know, but we still look!).

These 2 waterfall areas are pretty close to meeting that criteria!

Tiffany Falls
Tiffany Falls
Sherman Falls
Sherman Falls

 First up – Tiffany Falls

I really liked the trail to the falls and I would definitely go back.  I’ve seen some pics of this area in the winter and I think it would be a neat spot to check out when everything is frozen over.

Path to Tiffany Falls
Path to Tiffany Falls

Tiffany Falls is located near Wilson St. E. and Lower Lions Club Rd. in Hamilton.  There is a very small parking lot and if you are coming north on Wilson St. E. there is not a lot of warning that it’s coming up.

The trail to the falls is really beautiful and stroller friendly.  It is not perfectly flat and you will encounter a few spots with some rocks and uneven ground.  When you arrive at the falls, there is a viewing platform with stairs, but everything before that should be easily navigated with a stroller.

kids on trail
3 and 5 year old can easily walk the trail

 

Viewing platform at Tiffany Falls
Viewing platform at Tiffany Falls
Rocks on the trail
A few rocks on the trail but I would still consider it stroller friendly up until the platform.

 

I think it took us a leisurely 10-ish minutes to reach the falls from our parked car.

Path to Tiffany Falls
Leisurely stroll to Tiffany Falls.

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LaSalle Park and Wading Pool

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LaSalle Park and Wading Pool

So Many Reasons to Like LaSalle Park

There are many reasons we like LaSalle Park in Burlington.  In a nutshell –  6 bucks entertains our kids for a few hours!  Specifically, a great wading pool, really nice nature trails with great scenery and a good playground.

Nature trail
Nature trail in LaSalle Park

 

LaSalle Park is located at Lasalle Park Rd and North Shore Blvd E.

There is no charge to get into the park , to use the playground or explore the trails.  The wading pool has a small fee of $3.35 per child and parents don’t have to pay (bonus)!

Finally, a real wading pool!

My kids hate splash pads.  Hate.  Back in my day, wading pools were everywhere, but now, not so much.  Bronte Provincial Park has a sort-of wading pool, but what I don’t like about that pool is that it starts out shallow and just gets deeper and deeper…

The LaSalle wading pool is a nice sized square pool that is shallow (only goes up to my knees!).  There is a lifeguard on duty and even a small splash pad area for normal kids who like that sort of thing 😉

lifeguard
Lifeguard at LaSalle Wading Pool

 

Wading pool
Nice size wading pool with shallow water.

 

Swimming pool
Water toys are available (but limited).

The small pool size + shallow water + lifeguard means us parents can sit back and relax a bit.  We can let our kids wade in the pool without having to constantly be right beside them.

They even have some comfy chairs available for lounging – but they are very limited, so I recommend bringing your own folding lawn chairs.  The deck around the edge of the pool is cement, but you are free to put a blanket down if you like.

deck chair at pool
Deck chairs are available or bring your own lawn chairs or blanket.

I’m a shade lover, so there is a decent amount of shade from the umbrellas and the trees.

There are signs that say no food or drinks but I see lots of parents feeding their kids so I”m not sure if it’s fully enforced.  Outside the pool area there are lots of areas to sit and have a picnic so that’s always an option as well.

Bathrooms – last year they had a portable thing inside the fenced area of the pool.  We went there on opening day this year (2017) and it wasnt there. Not sure if it’s will be back, but if not there are bathrooms located at the gazebo/shelter.

Nature trails

The nature trails at LaSalle park are a nice little trek in the ‘woods’.  Stroller friendly and very scenic. It usually takes us about 30 minutes to walk the trail.  The trail is somewhat of a loop, starting at the main parking lot (if you are facing the playground, the start of the trail will be behind you).

The trail loops around and ends near the boat launch area.  You can then walk up the hill (or the stairs) to get back to the shelter/pool area.

kids on the boardwalk
A lovely boardwalk with great spots to view ducks, swans and geese.

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Lions Valley Park

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Lions Valley Park

Lions Valley Park – A peaceful spot in the middle of Oakville

If you’re like us, any place that can entertain your kids for a good amount of time and is FREE, scores big points on the must-do list!

Lions Valley Park in Oakville is indeed free and you will find a playground, a creek, stroller friendly walking trails, a nice pedestrian bridge, frogs, birds, picnic areas and fishing.

This park is often referred to as ‘Oakville’s best kept secret’.  Wanna take a sneak peak?

Here’s a short 23 second clip that was intended to show you a bit of the scenery near the creek.  Instead;

This video perfectly sums up what every.single.outing.ever. is like with a toddler or preschooler…  Ever!

 

Sixteen Mile Creek Trails

Despite the park’s list of features, our kids weren’t (initially) enthusiastic about any of it (more on that later)!

Lions Valley Park is located at Dundas St. W. and Lions Valley Park Rd (although it stretches down to Upper Middle and their are various entrances).

The trails in this park are part of the Sixteen Mile Creek trail system.  You can find some additional trail info on the Town of Oakville website. http://www.oakville.ca/culturerec/sixteen-mile-creek-trail.html.

There are a number of ways to get on to these trails.  We chose to start at the parking lot on Lions Valley Park Rd and Dundas St. W.  The parking lot is directly underneath the Dundas St. bridge.

Bridge in Lions Valley Park Oakville
Underneath the Dundas St. bridge in Lions Valley Park

From the parking lot, there are a few different trails.  There is a map in the parking lot outlining the different options.

Most normal humans would have read those maps before heading out.

Unfortunately we weren’t those people…..

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Cherry Hill Gate

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Cherry Hill Gate

Cherry Hill Gate – Family fun in Burlington

What parent doesn’t want a cool photo of their kid feeding a chipmunk or a bird?  (hint: every parent wants this 🙂 ) and so Cherry Hill Gate delivers!

Chipmunks, birds, beautiful tall trees, a nice stroller friendly trail, and a scenic boardwalk await you at Cherry Hill Gate.

Feeding chipmunks at Cherry Hill Gate.
Feeding chipmunks at Cherry Hill Gate

 

A fun family activity in Burlington. Feeding birds and enjoying the boardwalk.
Enjoying the scenery and feeding the birds on the boardwalk.

A fun Burlington activity for toddlers, kids and the whole family

The trails here are very scenic and just the right length for small kids in tow.  It’s stroller friendly, but the first hill, right inside the entrance, is a bit steep (easier down than up J).  We’ve taken our stroller here the past few years and never had a problem.

Entrance to Cherry Hill gate with view of the hill.
Main entrance of Cherry Hill Gate. This hill is a bit steep but we did it with a stroller no problem.

 

Beautiful scenery. Water with swans.
A great nature walk in Burlington. Easy scenic trails.

 

Fun kids activity. Feeding the birds.
The kids feeding the birds

To get the most fun out of this trip, you absolutely must bring a big bag of bird seed.  To get the birds and chipmunks to eat from your hand, just grab some bird seed, and hold out your arm.  Wait a few moments and …voila!

Hold out your hand and the birds will come.
Feeding the birds at Cherry Hill Gate

 

Birds eat right from your hand.
Just hold out your hand and the birds will come right to you.

A hidden gem in Burlington

Cherry Hill what? Is the most frequent question I get when I mention this place.  It’s somewhat of a hidden gem tucked in between the Burlington/Hamilton border.  It’s part of Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) and is located at the intersection of Plains Rd W and Botanical Dr.

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Let’s Have Some Fun This Weekend!

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Let’s Have Some Fun This Weekend!

The inspiration for this blog came from no longer wanting to spend a ton of time searching all over for fun/unique/cheap etc stuff to do with my kids.  I had so many other things to do in the evening (House of Cards isn’t gonna watch itself 😉

Occasionally I would stumble upon a list of some activities but they lacked reviews and any of the details I needed to determine if the place is worth it.

What I really wanted was one central spot where I could find fun activities to do with my kids in my area, AND a parent’s review with all the inside details.  So when I couldn’t find this, I decided to create my own space.  I figured if I wanted this info then maybe other parent s would be interested too!

And so Weekend Fun with Kids was born.

My focus is on the Halton/Hamilton ON areas, but I’ll include reviews for activities we do outside of this area as well.

I would love to hear your comments and suggestions on what to include in these reviews.  Please connect with me anytime and let me know what info you wish you had about a place before making the go/no go decision.