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Ontario boasts over 80,000 km in trails. Whether you're in downtown Toronto or North of Superior, we have a trail for you. The Ontario Trails Council is a registered charity, led by volunteers who promote the development, management, use and conservation of Ontario's trails. You'll find everything from gentle walking trails to rock faces for climbing and water routes to canoe and kayak.
Showing posts with label Toronto. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Toronto. Show all posts
Thursday, June 22, 2017
Ontario Trails News - Trailwise - June 22, 2017
Friday, August 5, 2016
Ontario Trails News - from around Ontario's 2600 Trails, events, activities and trail managing!
Everyday Ontario Trails assists trails in Ontario - Service Request Form
The Ontario Trails Council requests that folks start using it's Service Request form so that we can track the supports we provide to trail organizations in Ontario - a lot of which is unfunded.
Our work, leading to Bill 100, or an Ontario Trails Implementation Strategy benefits all trails, but not all support our work, so if you want our valuable assistance please complete this form going forward so we can track requests!
We believe in trails and would be happy to assist as per our mandate and mission, but a priority, given resource and time constraints will be given to our partners first.
News From Partners!
OFATV
Thanks Pablo for the mentions!
Thanks Mississauga Parks and Forestry for the mention!
Thanks for the mention Toby!
Thanks for the photo Jeremy!
After all the discussion about it (at Trailhead Ontario - Renfrew), I spotted a horse and buggy using the Thousand Islands Parkway recreational trail this morning.
Jeremy
Watch for this recurring special on the Group of Seven Trail!
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Ontario Trails News - news about trail activity, development and preservation from all over Ontario!
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Service Request
Membership is just the beginning! We thank you for becoming a member, here are some of the services you can access. Our service request form is at the bottom of this page.
Great Benefits!
Access to insurance, trail insurance and other services from CAPRI.
Advocacy Information
Your voice in Toronto, in your town and city, and in Ottawa, representing you on issues that matter to you. Trail Legislation, Landowner Rights, Best Practices, Funding and Grant Programs.
Latest Information for Having Your Best Trail
OTC members can access the latest information to learn more about healthy living, trail planning, trail protection and managing your trail. OTC members get access to E-newsletter and programs like the Trillium Trail Network.
Community Events & Services
Get involved with one of our 200+ members across Ontario and join the many volunteers making a difference in your community. We'll promote and list your events at no charge.
Planning and Development
We'll get your community to support you! We'll get your community leaders to fund you. If we don't we'll assist in writing grants (for a fee) to get you the money you need to develop the trails you want.
Trail Management Services
We'll help you develop a Regional Trails Council, Incorporate, we provide governance guidance and education to staff and volunteer. We'll help you define projects, secure funds, and we'll bring other knowledge experts in to assit you!
"Trailhead" Brand Conferences and Meetings
We'll help you plan, invite, secure and present, on your trails! Use the power of our network to bring experts to your community, where your leaders can learn about latest practices, trail successes and opportunities. - From 40-140 people, we bring media and marketing of your work home to you! Investment Requred, OTC Earnings and Return on Revenue Offered.
PLUS! Award-winning WEBSITE Publication
The Ontario Trails Council lists you, your trails, and your latest events, news about your work. Our award winning website gets people to Ontario Trails better than just stand alone!
Service Request Form - For member and Non-Members
In order to help you out best, please complete a service request form so we are better able to help you out! Pleasw note - Service Priority is given to members.
Service Request Form - pdf
Service Request Form - Word Doc
Monday, July 11, 2016
Ontario Trails news - a news archive about Ontario Trails, use, development and activity that takes place on trails
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Toronto slowly improving its bicycle network
New downtown lanes a game-changer, says bicycle advocate Yvonne Bambrick
City bike plan
Staff/Metroland
York Guardian
In 1991, 15-year-old Yvonne Bambrick rode the streets of Toronto with the brash confidence – making the considerable daily commute from her family home at Victoria Park in East York to Jarvis Collegiate by bicycle, along busy downtown streets that made scant accommodation for bikes.
“Back when I was a naive teenager, I didn’t think twice about it,” recalls Bambrick 25 years later, sitting on a sunny patio in Kensington Market, steps from one of the city’s massive on-street bike racks and just over a block from the busy College Street bike lanes.
“The concept of bike lanes wasn’t on my brain at all. I did know it wasn’t safe – I got doored on the Danforth and had a wipeout on bad road conditions. Otherwise I was just a teenager on her bicycle, happy to be free getting where she’s going. It meant I could have all the ice cream I wanted.”
In 2016, the Toronto that Bambrick bikes around is a much safer place. Toronto has a total of 558.4 kilometres of on-street bike lanes, including white bicycle lanes, contra-flow lanes that run against the flow of traffic, so-called “sharrows”, signed routes without pavement markings, and even a few kilometres of cycle tracks that are fully separated from traffic.
A lot of people use those lanes. According to the 2006 Census, Torontonians bike to and from work like nobody else in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, with 19,780 commuting by bike compared to 14,925 in 2001.
In 2015, Bambrick published a book for those cyclists: The Urban Cycling Survival Guide: Need To Know Skills and Strategies for Biking in the City. It was a book culled from her work advocating for cyclists as the head of the Toronto Cyclist’s Union – now Cycle Toronto – and her years riding Toronto’s sometimes tricky streets.
There’s a lot to know: how to make a safe left turn (there’s more than one way); how to suit up for cycling in bad weather; dealing with potentially hostile interactions; and how to navigate all those different styles of bike road infrastructure.
Currently, most of those routes are in neighbourhoods surrounding the downtown core – including the relatively new cycle tracks on Sherbourne, Adelaide and Richmond streets.
“Richmond-Adelaide were a game changer,” says Bambrick. “I was having to ride there all the time (before), and I’m a confident rider but even for me it was tough. This is amazing. Transformative.”
Bambrick and other cycling advocates are hoping for more change like that, on roads that extend beyond the downtown. This summer, the city will be embarking on a pilot project to try a cycle track along Bloor Street through the Annex neighbourhood – a test, to see whether a city-spanning track could be installed the length of Bloor Street and Danforth Avenue.
And the outcome of that could determine the implementation of parts of the city’s next big plan for cycling expansion: the Cycling Network 10 Year Plan. Under that plan, Toronto’s bikeway and bike trail network would be extended to the ends of the city: north along Yonge Street to Steeles Avenue; on Kingston Road in Scarborough from Eglinton Avenue to the Highland Creek Trail; Kipling Avenue from Bloor Street to the Waterfront Trail; and Midland Avenue, from Steeles to Lawrence avenues.
Toronto’s Chief Planner Jennifer Keesmaat said to provide an effective cycling alternative, the network needs to expand in the same way that transit networks expand – in a continuum. Do that, she says, and it becomes viable to commute, at least to downtown, from nearly anywhere in the city.
“With cycling, distance isn’t that much of a problem,” says Keesmaat. “The city is really not that big, and 10 kilometres, 20 kilometres isn’t really a big deal. And from the centre of the city you can get pretty much anywhere on a 10 kilometer bikeway. If you’re cycling from Scarborough to Etobicoke, that’s a big trip. But from the centre of the city you can get anywhere – all you need is safe infrastructure.”
The other thing that a cyclist needs, of course, is the will, and a bit of know how. Bambrick is an evangelist for the former and a resource for the latter. When asked what it takes to get on a bike, after dutifully recommending a careful read of her book, she suggests a step-by-step approach. Borrow a bike-share bike; go riding with a friend on a quiet street. If it’s been awhile, take a BikeShare course.
And remember: roads were originally for bikes.
”We paved our roads because wheelmen’s clubs advocated to get the roads paved. The bicycling movement has been around for a long time,” says Bambrick. “It’s never gone away.”
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
Ontario Trails News - head into fall, lot's of events, Ontario's Trail News Archive
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Lot's of events around Ontario and on Ontario Trails5 underrated places to check out fall colours in Toronto Toronto gets a lot more scenic when the temperature starts to drop, and what better way to celebrate the beginning of fall than by seeing the colours of the leaves change. While you could head to a well known green space like Glen Stewart Ravine or Rouge Park, why not go off the beaten trail? These low key places will have you taking in the beauty of autumn without the crowds.
Here are my picks for the most underrated places to check out fall colours in Toronto.
Craigleigh Gardens Park
A mere kilometre from the Brick Works is Craigleigh Park, a peaceful 3.4 hectare reserve filled with greenery. When the seasons start to change its tree canopy is one of the most beautiful in the city. If you're looking to do more than see the fall colours, the park also features an off-leash area for dogs and is in close proximity to a ravine trail (for those who like to hike).
Park Lawn Cemetary
Though a cemetery doesn't normally seem like a joyous destination, it can be come fall time.Necropolis and Mount Pleasant are both popular destinations for checking out fall fall foliage, boasting trees galore and great views. However, Park Lawn should not be overlooked. Its grounds are filled will manicured trees and bushes that look even more stunning when they start to change.
Chatsworth Ravine
This ravine, just south of Yonge and Lawrence, is the optimal place to enjoy autumn outdoors nearNorth York. It may not have the grandeur of Moore Park or Glen Stewart, but it looks mighty fine dressed up in fall colours. Plus, with it's below-the-radar status you'll find it distinctively less populated.
Guildwood Park
At Guildwood Park you'll find much more than just greenery. Among its trails and trees there are architectural gems from demolished buildings. It's a favourite for engagement photos, but even if you're not with a loved one you'll be able to snap some 'grams with the changing colours in the background.
Windfields Park
This former farm site offers 31 hectares of green space in the Bayview and Lawrence area. It boasts 15 bike trails as well as outdoor fitness equipment, making it ideal for those who want to view the fall colours while staying active (it really kills two birds with one stone). |
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