rare Charitable Research Reserve (Cambridge)

The rare Charitable Research Reserve is a community-based urban land trust. They maintain a series of amazing trails within the Blair/Galt area of Cambridge along the south side of the Grand River. The trails along the river are part of a gorgeous escarpment that contains exposed rock and fossils from the Silurian period. There are also trails across alvars and open fields with two Osprey towers. Further south, you’ll find the beautiful Maple Lane and Grand Allee Trails that contain massive hardwoods and plenty of deer. They comprised the first planned road in the region and the surrounding forest was home to the first settler (Dan Dodge).

Bob McMullen Linear Trail (Cambridge)

This trail runs along the river in the Preston area of Cambridge opposite the rare Charitable Research Reserve trails. It’s winds through beautiful park land and natural area along the river. There are several outlooks, including one where you can view the fork at which the Speed River joins the Grand River, as well as a trail that runs right along the river next to the remains of a hydraulic canal that Jacob Hespeler built in 1839 before abandoning it to focus on building a mill in the Hespeler region of Cambridge.

Huron Natural Area (Kitchener)

The Huron Natural Area is a large, secluded natural space in the west end of Kitchener that has incredibly beautiful trails that are well-maintained by the city. It has a large parking lot with a washroom building that has a living roof, two scenic ponds, a wetland boardwalk, and a wide variety of different forests and scenery - all of which are stunning.

Geo-Time Trail (Waterloo)

This is a beautiful Carolinian Forest trail in west Waterloo that is beautiful on its own. But my favourite part of this trail are the interpretive signs at key points that describe the region’s geological past. Each meter of the trail marks one-million years of geological history. It’s a beautiful and educational nature trail.

Walter Bean Grand River Trail (Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge)

While unrelated to the name of this trail, expect to see the odd Mr. Bean sticker added to the information kiosk at several of the entrances to this trail that runs between all three cities along the Grand River. Some sections wind through urban areas, while others are in beautiful natural areas. My favourite section starts at the Economical Insurance Trailway entrance on Riverbend Drive and proceeds along beautiful forest to the Bingemans recreation centre. My second favourite section starts at the Pioneer Memorial Tower (Kuntz Park) and proceeds along gorgeous fields to the Doon Valley golf course.

Dumfries Conservation Area (Cambridge)

This is a large conservation area in the middle of Cambridge with ample parking and a large series of varied forest trails. There are wetlands, forests, and meadows that are beautiful at any time of the year, as well as many former sports fields that are now being naturalized.

Riverside Park (Cambridge)

In addition to being the prettiest city park in the whole region, Riverside Park also has a slew of beautiful trails. There are trails on the north side that climb up a massive forest hill area next to Hwy 401, as well as a large boardwalk trail through wetlands and forest where you’ll see plenty of birds. There are also trails starting from both ends of this boardwalk that wind along the Speed River and through forest to the Rogers Drive sports field. If you cross the large steel pedestrian bridge on the Speed River, you’ll reach a parking lot with an entrance to the Mill Run trail from Hespeler.

Mill Run Trail (Cambridge)

Named for the Hespeler Mill built by Jacob Hespeler, this trail runs along the old electric railway alongside the Speed River that connected Hespeler, Preston, and Galt back in 1896. It also runs through the Chilligo Conservation Area that has a few additional beautiful side trails. It’s absolutely gorgeous at any time of the year, and also the trail I frequented the most with my daughter and dog as it has two entrances that were close to our house. The picture at the top of this page is the old hydro dam (long decommissioned) that you’ll see along the trail.

Homer Watson Park (Kitchener)

This is a stunning forest trail perched atop high cliffs overlooking the Grand River below. It eventually progresses down to and along the river to Schneider Creek. The first part of the trail runs along an old stagecoach route that used to deliver mail to Goderich almost 200 years ago, and one of the parking lots is the location of an old hotel along this route. You can still walk the paths where the stagecoaches snaked their way down the steep slopes to a ford in the river they used to cross.

Shade’s Mills Conservation Area (Cambridge)

With a tranquil lake and beautiful sandy beach nestled among gorgeous trees, Shade’s Mills is a popular recreational spot in the summer. But in addition to all of this, there are 12km of breathtaking trails that wind along a wide variety of different forests and creeks that are far away from the bustle of swimmers, canoers, kayakers, and sailboarders.