Sixth Line isn’t trying to hog all the limelight, but this bale is known to ham it up for photos.
Photo: Diana Martin
Deer me, the enthusiasm for Amaranths inaugural bale trail is outstanding in this field along 20 Sideroad.
Photo: Diana Martin
The Township of Amaranth office selected turkeys as their bale trail theme, which is stop 26 on the map.
Photo: Diana Martin
There are some pretty punny bales on 2nd Line, so grab your popcorn and prepare for the corniness to begin.
Photo: Diana Martin
Covid-19 protocols apply to students, staff and bales at the Laurelwoods Elementary School at stop 24 on the trail.
Photo: Diana Martin
Plenty of baleful eyes being cast on 2nd line, but the question remains, how do you get the attention of a country girl?
Photo: Diana Martin
The answer is simple, you at–TRACTOR #SheThinksMyTractorsSexy – Google the song, you won’t regret it.
Photo: Diana Martin
Country Road 10 is all a buzz with the baby bee bale.
Photo: Diana Martin
Bicycles and bales don’t mix along 9th Line in Amaranth.
Photo: Diana Martin
The spooky spirit of the bale trail can be found at stop 38.
Photo: Diana Martin
The spooky spirit of the bale trail can be found at stop 38.
Photo: Diana Martin
Beefy as this bale is, he’s ready to hit the hay. What do you call a sleeping bull?
Photo: Diana Martin
A bulldozer of course.
Photo: Diana Martin
This Teddy bale is looking for some hugs on 10th Line.
Photo: Diana Martin
Amaranth-East Luther Line put all their eggs in one bale with this little hen.
Photo: Diana Martin
An autumn bale trail would be complete without at least one pumpkin.
Photo: Diana Martin
The Township of Amaranth is getting noticed for its economic development cre-Hay-tivity.
Nicole Martin, the township’s chief administrative officer, wanted to create an event to spur farmgate sales, build a sense of community and entice people to spend time in Dufferin County, which has a large rural base.
“The idea is hopefully people come to Amaranth, get out of their car and take a selfie with a bale,” said Martin. “Because, you know, once you’re in Dufferin County, you never want to leave.”
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She never anticipated the Amaranth Bale Trail would balloon into a 45-stop adventure of straw and hay sculptures and displays or catch the attention of ToDoCanada.ca’s 80 things to do in Ontario over Thanksgiving weekend.
“I’m thrilled with that,” she said. “It’s exceeded anything I could have imagined.”
Martin said the staff toured the entire trail Sept. 30, stopping at each piece of bale art to take photos.
“It took us nearly three hours because we were discussing them, and sometimes homeowners would come out and want to talk to us,” she said, adding everyone had their favourites.
Some participants shared details on how their family and friends brainstormed ideas and created the structures.
The bale trail features many themes, from spooky goblins to a giant teddy bear and punny competitions by neighbours who connected their bale art with jokes and punch lines.
Martin said the response has been fantastic and has allowed residents and visitors to become more familiar with what local farmers have on offer, especially as Dufferin County has seen an influx of new residential growth during the pandemic.
Accessible by car, the trail allows viewing from the car or outdoor access for those who prefer to get close to the creations, Martin said.
She anticipates a good number of the bales will remain for viewing into the early part of November just because people have enjoyed them so much.
Next year Martin hopes she can entice other municipalities within Dufferin County to work jointly in creating a county-wide bale trail to highlight rural life.
“It’s only going to grow,” she said, adding a little friendly competition should make it even better. “Some of the creations people came up with – honestly, I think you have to have an engineering degree (to build).”
