Charlene and I have visited thousands of destinations over the past few years. Some attractions are clearly designed to take as much money from us as possible, and others, like Heartland Forest Nature Experience, were created to celebrate life.
Heartland was founded in 2004 to provide accessibility, education and preservation. The founder, Dan, had a granddaughter that had a rare disorder and was wheelchair-bound. The experience of nature was denied to her, but with this area’s creation, Dan could share nature with her.
Sadly, this beloved child died young, but the dedication remains. Heartland Forest Nature Experience is open to all and free to explore. We visited this location on a spring morning to see everything to enjoy.
We went into a visitor centre to learn more about this setting. Our main draw was whimsical carvings that we had seen from other sources, and they were unique and varied. We would wander the grounds and notice that many others shared this experience.
The trails are very flat and wide. There are boardwalks for a few sections that allow those with accessibility issues to enjoy this experience. Our favourite aspect was trying to find all the carvings.
We saw that people had placed birdhouses in the trees. We saw similar places where people could freely add these and fairy homes along the trailways. I wish I had done this with my kids, and they might have had a greater appreciation of the natural setting. Among the birdhouses were larger creations that were more permanent.
It was early in the season when we visited; the snow had just melted the day before. When it is warmer, there is a mini-golf section and an obstacle course. These are paid add-ons to help support keeping this area free.
It is nice that there are these places dedicated and designed to share life and all it entails with others. The story of why it was founded touches the heart, which is probably why it is called Heartland.
- A great place to take small children.
- Free with plenty of parking.
- You can volunteer here.
- For the location of this, and other great places, check out Featured Map for directions.
