The Humber Arboretum, located just west of Humber College in Etobicoke, offers a perfect setting for long outdoorsy walks while the weather is still warm and the Fall colours are at their best.

To get there we took the 191 Highway 27 Airport Rocket from Kipling Station. Aside from a lone condo building and some sports fields, the Arboretum remains 200 acres of mostly untouched nature reserve. All that land would likely have become a subdivision long ago if it weren't for the expansive flood plain inhibiting development.

Humber College students are fairly lucky in that respect. The Arboretum is walking distance from campus, and I imagine a backyard like this would offer some amazing stress relief after midterm exams. When the wind is blowing from the west, the aircraft approach path to Pearson International Airport is directly over the reserve. The high vantage point of the hill makes for a clear view for avid plane-spotters.

Butterfly enthusiasts frequent the reserve to watch smaller things in flight. The flood plain's abundant milkweed provides monarch butterflies with plenty of space to lay their eggs. August, their migratory season, is an especially good time for monarch sightings. Blue herons, frogs, snakes, and crayfish are not uncommon in the river and ponds. The Arboretum is also a birdwatcher's paradise. Winter chickadee-feeding, anyone?

The Arboretum's Centre for Urban Ecology offers a variety of nature programs for community and school groups. In the '90s, the arboretum was plagued by a purple loosestrife infestation that choked out neighbouring bulrushes, such that it became a summer nature camp activity for kids to pull out whatever purple loosestrife plants they came across.

For those with younger friends, it may be worth noting the Arboretum's upcoming Haunted Halloween events for kids aged 5 through 14, as well as a winter camp in late December. More information for both can be found on their events page.

Photos by James at Middle Age, Don MacKinnon and hitchontheleaves on Flickr.