"High Park" a Toronto Travel Page by windsorgirl

High Park was a lovely place for a stroll, photography and lunch. If you have kids in tow, they will love it here also.

This photo shows a giant red maple leaf formed from flowers. It is very close to Grenadier Pond.

High Park is full of squirrels and some chipmunks. I actually bent down to get a photo of a chipmunk but this squirrel came right up to me instead. Obviously people are feeding them and they have become quite tame. My friend from Malta would have loved it here, she was enthralled with squirrels when she visited Canada and used to chase them around in a futile attempt to get a photo. To me they are just common pests ( they raid my birdfeeder! ) but the next time I have an overseas visitor who is dying to get up close and personal with a squirrel...I will send them to High Park with a bag of peanuts!

There are many paved walking paths throughout High Park. Some pass along manicured lawns and gardens, others through natural wooded forest and some along the banks of Grenadier Pond.

High Park is a great place to bring children. There are ducks to feed and a small zoo to visit in addition to this large castle like play ground.

There is a very nice self serve restaurant in High Park near Grenadier Pond. It was quite busy at lunch time, but there is a large outdoor patio as well as indoor seating under this lovely artificial tree.

Not only is High Park the largest park in Toronto at almost 400 acres, but it is also home to the largest pond in Toronto.

The original owner of the High Park property, John Howard, used to entertain officers from Fort York and they liked to fish at this large pond. This is why the pond is named Grenadier Pond, after the British soldiers (called Grenadiers).

Today it has a lovely path along its shore and many ducks and swans eager to be fed. In the winter, once frozen, it makes a great outdoor skating rink.