Etobicoke Park in the Rain

The way this summer is going, if I waited for sunny weekends to go to all my favourite parks, I wouldn't get far. This weekend it rained pretty much non-stop, but darned if that was going to keep me from going to my favourite park in Etobicoke by the lakeshore. As you can see, it was a mite gloomy.



For you non-Torontonians, "Etobicoke" is pronounced with a silent "k". Say "Ee-TOE-bi-coe". Very good.

The ducks weren't bothered by the rain.



Nor were the Canada geese.



If you peer into the mist, waaaaay across the lake you can see a skinny little spike right in the middle of the photo. That's the CN tower, the world's tallest free-standing structure. It doesn't look like such hot potatoes from this distance, does it?



I wasn't the only one desperate to squeeze some summer fun from the rainy day. Here are some brave folks swimming in Lake Ontario. Personally I wouldn't put my face in that water. I'd be scared of getting pink-eye. I hear the storm drains are prone to overflowing on very rainy days, floating a dose of raw sewage into the lake. Even wading seems kind of dicey under those circumstances.



Here's a dog shaking himself off after a dip. His owner is still front-crawling off the left edge of the frame. I was surprised that the dog showed no interest in chasing any of the five swans who were paddling along just in front of him.



This is a hint of how pretty the park is in brighter light. There are huge swaths of wildflowers, trees, and swampy areas. The place teems with wildlife. We saw birds whose names we didn't know, and several fancy butterflies.



If I get a chance to go back on a sunny day, I'll get some photos that'll knock your socks off. In the meantime, you'll have to make do with these soggy offerings.

That's all for now, folks!

Until next time, goodbye...