Exploring Tranquil Pathways: Bartley Smith Greenway
Bartley Smith Greenway is a cherished recreational corridor that meanders through Vaughan, Ontario, offering a multitude of features that make it a beloved destination for outdoor enthusiasts. Its well-maintained trails provide a scenic pathway for walking, jogging, and cycling, allowing visitors to explore the natural beauty of the surrounding landscapes. The greenway’s interconnected network of paths offers versatility and convenience, enabling residents and visitors to access various sections of Vaughan while enjoying the tranquility of nature. With its carefully planned access points, the Bartley Smith Greenway encourages community engagement, providing easy entry to the trails and fostering social connections. From its smooth paved surfaces to the captivating natural surroundings, this greenway epitomizes the town’s dedication to creating inclusive outdoor spaces that enhance quality of life and promote the health and well-being of its residents.
Exploring the Natural Haven: Maple Nature Reserve
Maple Nature Reserve holds significant value as a natural sanctuary within the community. It serves as a vital refuge for biodiversity, preserving native flora and fauna and protecting critical habitats. The reserve’s diverse ecosystems, including woodlands, meadows, and wetlands, contribute to the overall health of the local environment and provide a valuable space for environmental education and research. As an accessible green space, Maple Nature Reserve offers residents and visitors a peaceful retreat from the urban environment, allowing them to connect with nature, engage in outdoor activities, and foster a sense of environmental stewardship. Its significance lies in its role as a haven for wildlife, a source of inspiration and recreation for individuals, and a testament to the importance of preserving and conserving natural spaces for future generations.
Immersing in Nature's Playground: Kortright Centre for Conservation
Kortright Centre for Conservation Trails is a captivating haven that beckons nature lovers and outdoor enthusiasts. This extensive trail system spans through woodlands, meadows, and wetlands, offering a tranquil escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. This Conservation centre is a 324 hectares of forests, meadows, streams, ponds, marsh and river habitats with abundant wildlife. The Humber River , which flows through the property, was designated a Canadian Heritage River in 1999.
Exploring Nature's Tranquility: Boyd Conservation Park
Boyd Conservation Park Trail, nestled in the charming Woodbridge area of Vaughan, Ontario, is a captivating escape into the beauty of nature. This picturesque trail meanders through lush forests, serene wetlands, and alongside the enchanting Humber River, offering outdoor enthusiasts a delightful retreat. The area has a hiking trail that circles the Conservation Area and offers views of the Humber River, a Canadian Heritage River.
Discovering Tranquility: William Granger Greenway Trail
William Granger Greenway Trail offers a serene escape into nature’s embrace. This captivating trail winds its way along the picturesque Humber River, immersing visitors in the sights and sounds of the surrounding natural landscapes. The trail begins at Rutherford Road linking to the Boyd Conservation area trails to the south. North of Rutherford Road, it crosses the Humber River and connects to Canada Company Avenue. Along the trail you will experience several significant natural habitats, cultural and heritage resources, recreational and educational facilities and historic aboriginal trade route known as Toronto Carrying-place Trail.
Exploring Nature's Oasis: Nashville Conservation Area
Nashville Conservation Area, nestled in a serene pocket of natural beauty near Vaughan, Ontario, offers a picturesque escape for outdoor enthusiasts. This enchanting conservation area boasts a network of trails that wind through diverse landscapes, allowing visitors to immerse themselves in the tranquility of nature. Overall 900 hectares that includes a diverse site containing many different habitat types, such as upland forests, meadows, former agricultural fields and wetlands. The property supports variety of wildlife, provides significant deer wintering lands and is an important migratory corridor. The Humber Valley Heritage Trail is the centre piece of the trail system at the Nashville Conservation Reserve.
Essentials for Hiking
A day hike can be as simple as walking a well-maintained trail near your home, or as complex as a dawn-to-dusk journey through a remote wilderness. The items you bring may vary slightly depending on the difficulty and length of the hike, but no matter how you travel, it’s always nice to be prepared.
Hiking Footwear and Clothing
Perhaps nothing is more essential to a day hiker than healthy, comfortable feet, and it’s important to take care when selecting the right pair of shoes for the job. The current trend in hiking footwear—especially for day hiking—is toward lightweight models, including both hiking shoes and trail runners. Hiking shoes will provide the ideal amount of protection and support for day hiking, while more lightweight trail runners will shave weight and bulk so you can move more quickly and freely. A durable yet nimble shoe like the Fresh Foam X Hierro Mid GTX for men and Fresh Foam X Hierro v7 for women is one of the top pick for most day hikers looking for a great combination of toughness and support without too heavy of a feel. For hikers willing to forgo some frills in the name of traveling fast, Fresh Foam X Hierro Mid for men and Fresh Foam X More Trail v3 for women are both well-made trail runners that provide great traction and stability on a variety of terrain.
Socks
As mentioned earlier, happy feet make for a happy hiker. Once you’ve settled on a pair of shoes or trail runners, it’s important to look for a set of hiking-specific socks to complete your setup. We prefer wool socks to those made with cotton or synthetic materials: Wool has an incredible ability to regulate temperature, stays warm when wet, and dries much faster than cotton
Pants or Shorts
Ideally opt for hiking pants over shorts, as they provide more protection from abrasive trail-side plants or boulders or sun, and can be rolled up or down depending on conditions. In the end though, it all comes down to a matter of preference—if you want to hike in shorts on a hot and dry day, we don’t blame you. But that said, the features of hiking pants are many: You get ample pockets and great freedom of movement, temperature regulating fabric, and even a protective durable water repellent finish. Some options to consider:
T-Shirt of Base layer
For a wear-all-day hiking shirt, we recommend a short-sleeve t-shirt or lightweight long-sleeve baselayer made with synthetic fabric or merino wool. Collared button-up hiking shirts offer a great deal of ventilation and sun protection for hot days, while standard t-shirts are less restrictive and easier to layer over. Be sure to opt for fabrics like polyester and wool over cotton, as they wick away sweat, dry quickly, and stay warm even when wet. My favourite outer layer: Impact Run water Defy Jacket
Nutrition and Hydration (Extra Food and Water)
Hiking is hard work, so you probably bring some water and snacks or a lunch on most hikes, right? But it’s also a good idea to bring a little bit extra in case you are out longer than you planned. Or in case things go really wrong and you need to spend a the night while waiting for help. Invest in a good water bottle.
Navigation
A trail description from a guide book or website is great, but that won’t help you when you take a wrong turn, lose the trail or get lost in a maze of unmarked junctions. One of the best options is to access any trail information via AllTrails that makes is easy to access maps of any trail across any country/region. One can be rest assured that they have all the navigation information available at a tap (only thing to ensure is your cellphone if fully charged)
Hand Sanitizer
Dirty hands are the biggest contributor to illness in the backcountry. This happens because many hikers leave proper hygiene habits behind when they hit the trail. But this is an easy issue to avoid, so bring a small container of hand sanitizer and use it after bathroom breaks and before preparing meals.
Trekking poles
Trekking poles shouldn’t be considered an essential item, but many hikers like them for a variety of reasons. The main benefit of trekking poles is reduced impact on knees and increased stability, which can be especially beneficial on long uphill or downhill sections of trail and when fording rivers. In addition, trekking poles can be used as tent pole supports for many ultralight shelters, which will help shave weight on long-distance trips.
2 thoughts on “Great trails of Vaughan”
Tim Sparks
28 July 2023Great hikes in Vaughan - Thanks for sharing
sam@livenormous
28 July 2023You are welcome