The recent decision of the Northern Bruce Peninsula Municipality to permanently close the Cabot Head Road for motorized vehicles is certainly a blow to the large population of retired seniors of the peninsula. Walking or cycling the distance to the lighthouse is certainly out of the question for many seniors of the area including myself and my wife.
This beautiful road along the shores of Georgian Bay used to provide easy access to many historic and special natural places such as the so called “Lost Lake” [1], the notable Flume, the historic lighthouse and museum, the historic Winfield basin as well, the surrounding park, and other installations located in Cabot Head.
From notes published earlier in the Bruce Peninsula Press, it would appear that a good number of residents of Dyers Bay are opposed to the reopening of Cabot Head Road. However, it is interesting to note that the very idea of maintaining the historic lighthouse of Cabot Head came from residents of Dyers Bay.
In a DVD produced by the History Committee of Dyers Bay Association in 2011 [2], there is an interview with longtime resident of Dyers Bay, the late Mr. Ron Baker, in which he gives details of how a group of residents and concerned citizens of Dyers Bay, recognizing the historical and marine heritage significance of the lighthouse, managed to maintain this site, which was going to be abandoned, and gave rise to the Friends of Cabot Head Lighthouse, a not-for-profit, all-volunteer organization that oversaw maintaining this important historic site. In other words, it was through the initiative and effort of Dyers Bay residents that the historic lighthouse was maintained along with the access road to it.
The argument about the high cost of repairing the road should be seriously evaluated, if not by the current municipality that has postponed the opening of this road for many years, but perhaps by private interest groups or the new municipality officials after the elections in October. Alternative access options to the road should also be examined to reduce the traffic through Dyers Bay. I understand that there are at least two alternative options for the entrance to Cabot Head Road from the top of the escarpment. Owed to the high historical value of this site, support from the provincial or federal governments should also be explored by means of well-founded petitions.
Finally, I fully agree with the notes of Mr. Ron Zinger [3] and Mr. Kevin Doyle [4] in the last issue of The Bruce Peninsula Press on this matter. That is, Cabot Head access should not be denied to seniors that do not have the capacity to walk or cycle to the lighthouse.
Tomas Ireland, M.Sc., P. Eng
Dyers Bay Rd.
[1] See for example: Shutt, Lee. “Fishing the hard way” in “Reflections of Dyers Bay Stories and Memoirs of an Enchanting Place” Delwyn Higgens, Tomás Ireland, Dianne La Pointe and Doris Smith, editors.
[2] “Dyers Bay” a documentary written and directed by Tomas Ireland and produced by Dianne La Pointe and Tomas Ireland. Dyers Bay. 2011
[3] Zinger, Ron. Disabled Excluded from ever seeing Cabot Head Lighthouse. Bruce Peninsula Press Aug. 11 to Sept 1.
[4] Doyle, Kevin. “Cabot Head Access shouldn’t end with age”. Bruce Peninsula Press Aug. 11 to Sept 1.
