Sakura Watch, May 11, 2019 - Peak bloom continues throughout the Mother's Day weekend, and what a better way to celebrate your mom then by spending some time under the cherry blossoms. In this update, I'll be taking you on tour throughout each cherry blossom area.

Watch the latest YouTube update below:

Bloom by the Sports Fields (near Bloor St entrance)

Let's start our tour in the sports fields near the Bloor St Entrance, where the trees have approximately 98% of opened blossoms. These trees are always the earliest to bloom and are the furthest along. There were plenty of opportunistic Instagrammers trying to capture perfect photos as this area has several beautiful low hanging branches that make it much easier to pose without having to grab and pull them down. On that note, I've seen many people today do just that, and I remind everyone that is harmful to the trees so please don't grab or pull down branches.

Bloom on Cherry Hill (near Grenadier Restaurant)

Next, we walk on over to Cherry Hill near Grenadier Restaurant where the most extensive collection of trees are located. The trees in this area had some variation and displayed approximately 95% of opened blossoms. Nearly all the trees were adorned with beautiful white blooms.

A few trees did show some earlier pink, closed flowers which mean they will open in the next few days. This is by far always the busiest area in the park and at times felt like everyone was walking shoulder to shoulder down the long, winding path.

Bloom along Grenadier Pond & Dock

Continuing down the path and along Grenadier Pond toward the Dock, we come across the next area of cherry blossom trees that had approximately 90% of opened blossoms on display. This area has many younger and vibrant trees that form beautiful canopies and surround the base of Hillside Gardens. The tulips may not have yet been out, but many were enjoying the day with picnics on the hillside.

Once you get closer to the Dock, this favourite spot also has several low hanging branches that are great for capturing photos without having to disturb the trees. Plus having Grenadier Pond glistening in the background on a sunny day also makes for a beautiful backdrop for any photo.

Bloom near Children’s Adventure Playground & High Park Zoo

Our last stop is near the Children’s Adventure Playground and High Park Zoo. Always the stragglers, these trees were only showing about 65% of opened blossoms. Many flowers were actually still closed, which gives visitors an extended opportunity to view cherry blossoms days after the other areas have begun to fall.

See photos of the all the areas down below:

forecast Rain may shorten viewing time

Though we do have more rain in the forecast over the next couple days and even on Mother’s Day. How long the peak bloom lasts will depend on the amount of rain. The more rain that falls and knocks off petals, the shorter the viewing time will be. So now is the best time to view the trees at their fullest.

Wishing everyone have a wonderful and Happy Mother’s Day weekend! Watch for more updates on Tuesday after the rain to see how many of the blooms have survived - stay tuned!

Reminder - Road Closures May 4 - 13, 2019

High Park will prohibit any vehicle form entering the Park during the peak bloom (see my special report about the ban and my Maps & Directions for alternative options). TTC Wheel-Trans will be the ONLY exception - no one else will be allowed to drive into the park until the cherry blossom season ends. The City will announce when the park will re-open to vehicular traffic.

So you’re only options are to walk, bike or take TTC. I know and understand that there are some people who will be impacted by this, and this is the first year the City has done this, so there will inevitably be some lessons learned. In the meantime, they do encourage those that there are 14 other locations throughout the city that people can experience the park without any vehicle bans or crowds as large as High Park is expected to have.