PARKHILL - Hey kids! Grab the picnic cooler, sunscreen, mosquito repellent, nose plugs and maybe your swimwear. We're on the way to Middlesex County.
"Middle what, Dad? What's a county?" a curious child asked.
Middlesex is a name carried over by our ancestors from England, I explained. A county is fields of corn, cows and pig barns interrupted from time to time by a village or town, a park or a pond.
Middlesex County is a big horseshoe surrounding London, except at the city's rural south end. You've breezed through it but have you ever considered Middlesex as a tourist's destination?
The people who govern this county and its Community Futures Development Corp. (CFDC) are convinced their member municipalities offer "numerous leisure opportunities." Aided in part by Industry Canada's coffers and local advertisers, they've made their first stab at publishing a touring guide, a 38-page combination of glossy colour and black on white newsprint.
"From championship golf courses to some of the most unique historical and cultural attractions in Ontario, Middlesex has all you need for the perfect vacation and more," say Ian Brebner, warden of the county, and Cara Finn, general manager of the CFDC.
So what does the touring guide Middlesex: We're on the Way! have to offer? Let's tour its pages.
North Middlesex offerings include Parkhill Conservation Area, with its scenic lookout and Great Canadian Hideaway campground, Ailsa Craig Gala Days and Turtle Races, Corbett Fun Day and Ailsa Craig and District Historical Society's two church-museums.
The page turns to Thames Centre, which boasts "a nature lovers' paradise" at the Dorchester Mill Pond, the Donnybrook Fiddle and Step Dance Competition, the revitalization of Thorndale's King Street and fishing, camping, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing at Lake Whittaker Conservation Area.
Flipping over to southwest Middlesex, we learn about Glencoe's restored train station, the town's fair and the district historical society's re-enactment of the British-American Battle of the Longwoods, Wardsville's nearby Big Bend Conservation Area and its boat launch to the Thames River, Wardsville Golf Course's expansion plans and the village's bed-and-breakfast accommodations.
Wrapped around the northern and western edges of London is Middlesex Centre, which stretches from Arva and Ilderton through Poplar Hill and Lobo to Komoka and Delaware. Attractions include the Komoka Railway Museum, Komoka Provincial Park along the Thames, Sharon Creek Conservation Area, Ska-Nah-Doht Iroquoian Village and Museum and the three-day Ilderton Fall Fair.
Rounding out the county's western mid-section is the Municipality of Adelaide Metcalfe, whose attractions range from the Gemini Sportsplex and its two NHL-size ice pads for curling, figure skating and hockey to "the sleepy little town" of Napier, established in 1830 and home to the oldest church in all Middlesex. The pioneer frame of St. Mary's Anglican was erected in 1841.
Strathroy-Caradoc is home to the Strathroy Middlesex Museum in the 1871 Murray House, the Strathroy Art Group's annual tour, Bear Creek Golf Course and the 27th annual Strathroy Hometown Turkey Festival.
The tour ends at Lucan Biddulph, home to the Lucan and Area Heritage & Donnelly Museum and its historical recollections of the infamous
Donnelly family, and the African-American heritage of the Wilberforce Settlement.The Wilberforce Inn offers elegant dining with Old World charm.
Promise of "the perfect vacation and more" in Middlesex is a tall order when your eyes and wallets are lured by Sarnia-Lambton's 64-page full-colour display, not to mention Huron County's appealing pitch as "Ontario's west coast."
Curiously, one of the county's biggest attractions is the historic courthouse it owns at the Forks of the Thames -- in the heart of London. That's not in the touring guide, but this inaugural promotion by Middlesex reveals a treasure trove for year-round day trips and plenty of seasonal accommodation for visitors from more distant homes.