8:38 a.m.
I can’t believe it. Not only are we ready to start our adventure this early, but we have been sitting around doing nothing for about 30 minutes. It’s time to get this show on the road. After all, you know what they say, the early bird gets the worm.
Personally, I’d leave the worm and take the whiskey. Anyways, the next stop is Oakville at a beautiful new condo building on Dundas Street.

9:25 a.m.
We’ve arrived at Jordana’s place and are going inside for some custom clothes fittings. That means Lisa is going to try on some sweatshorts Jordana bought for her.

9:46 a.m.
All done. Time for some serious travelling. Let’s get this show on the road. I hope to know what this show is by the end of this journal.

10:41 a.m.
We have arrived at Fairview Mall in St. Catharine’s. I’m going to Chapters, and my family is heading to Dollarama.

11:13 a.m.
We are all finished at the mall. I bought a book, and Lisa got a pair of socks. After we met up, we went to Sunset Grill for lunch. However, that was a mistake. First, we didn’t get menus until Lisa got up, found our server and asked for some service. I asked for some coffee, and Jordana ordered a drink. We waited and waited until we all agreed that enough was enough. We got up, walked out, and headed to Harvey’s for lunch.

11:41 a.m.
Finished lunch at Harvey’s. I had a chicken burger, not bad, but a little dry. Time to say goodbye to St. Catharine’s (goodbye!) as we head to Niagara on the Lake. Our next stop is Wayne Gretzky Estates. Now I know what you are thinking. They won’t run into Wayne. (That’s Mr. Gretzky to you!) However, one never knows.

12:00 p.m.
We have arrived at our first vineyard of the day, WG Estates.

12:30 p.m.
OK, say it, “I told you so!” Gretzky was not there again. Our second visit of the season, and still no sighting of the Great One. I’m beginning to think that the guy lives someplace else. Anyways, we are leaving now. It was interesting that the Spirits store was closed today. Lisa found out they were only open on the weekend due to declining attendance. That’s pretty sad, considering that summer is their peak season.
Anyway, we did purchase a flight of four to taste (two glasses of wine and two whiskeys). Afterwards, we bought a few bottles and saved $5 a bottle as we had already spent some money at the bar. We are now heading to Konzelman Estate Winery.

12:41 p.m.
We took a slight detour and have arrived at Hinterbrook (Konzelman is just down the road).

12:56 p.m.
We are leaving Hinterbrook, all a little happier with a bit less cash in our pockets (alright, we used debit, but let’s not debate it!) We bought three bottles, and Jordana got two. We were going to get two, but one bottle of white caught Lisa’s eye, and the staff person there asked us if we would like to try a free sample. Who were we to turn down a free anything. It was nice, not an ice wine, but still sweet and tasty. So, we purchased a bottle.

12:59 p.m.
Now we are at Konzelman.

1:09 p.m.
Time to head out again. We looked around, but didn’t buy anything. Heading to Big Head Wines now.

1:24 p.m.
We have arrived at our fourth vineyard of the day. This is the final scheduled stop in Niagara on the Lake.

1:36 p.m.
The place looked slightly different from the last time we were here in June. A lot more refined, a lot less sawdust in the area. Overall, it seemed very nice. While we couldn’t find what we bought in June (that was already sold out), we did find another white wine.
It’s now time to move on and see what else we can see and taste on this adventure. Our final vineyard is Calamus Estates Winery. However, I know we will make a few stops before we get there.

1:58 p.m.
We have arrived at The Red Barn. Jordana has heard us talk about this place often, but this is her first time here. Behold the marvels of fresh fruit and produce.

2:04 p.m.
We are heading out after buying strawberries, cookies and corn on the cob. I am definitely going to enjoy the corn tomorrow night.

2:06 p.m.
A two-minute trip! That has to be some kind of Olympic record! We are now at the Upper Canada Cheese Company.

2:11 p.m.
Let them eat cheese, you say? Well, we got that, but it’s mine to enjoy. Our next and final stop will be Calamus.

2:26 p.m.
That took a little longer than planned due to road closures. Thank goodness for GPS.
Anyway, we are at Calamus. I think this is our favourite vineyard. It certainly is mine.
Along the way, my engine maintenance light came on again, so I will have to look into that when we get home.

2:35 p.m.
I think that was our quickest visit to this place. Probably because we knew what we wanted. We purchased three bottles, while our daughter picked up two for herself. Well, that’s the end of this voyage. We are heading back to Oakville.

3:00 p.m.
Or is it? The closer we got to Jordana’s place, the more we talked about extending the getaway with an early dinner. By the time we finally arrived, everyone was in agreement.

3:30 p.m.
We’re back at Jordana’s place. I am helping her take her purchases upstairs, and then we are going for a very early dinner. Who is to say what time dinner is, especially since we had an early breakfast and lunch.

3:39 p.m.
We have arrived at Boston Pizza, just a very short hop, skip and jump from Jordana’s place. However, if we want to be honest, no athletics was involved in this trip. We leave that to the Olympic athletes now in Paris. We just drove over and are now going for dinner.

4:23 p.m.
Dinner is done, and our trio is once again a duet. After we all enjoyed pizzas, Jordana said she would walk home (once again, no hopping or skipping). It’s time to head out, and our course is now set for our final destination today: Thornhill, Ontario.

5:10 p.m.
There was definitely more traffic, but that was to be expected as it was the end of the day rush hour.

POSTSCRIPT:
For a one-day getaway, there is not too much post-trip analysis. It was just fun.

When your kids are young, they do everything with you, and you take them everywhere you go. When they get older, they have their lives, and we have ours. However, it’s still great when we can find the time to get together and enjoy quality family time. This is not the first time we have done so, and I hope it’s definitely not the last. That’s it for this excursion, though.

Until we meet again, stay well!