Toronto's Sustainable Trails Initiative

About 35 volunteers, including members of the Toronto Off-Road Bicycling Association and the Ontario-based Fly Gurlz women's cycling team, headed to Crothers Woods for two days of hands-on building.

Look for IMBA Canada's mobile tool trailer at Ontario trailwork days. Funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health Promotion's Trails for Life Grant, and through partnerships with the City of Toronto's Sustainable Trails Initiative and Sustainable Trails Ltd., the trailer is equipped with enough tools and supplies for a crew of up to 40 people, and is available for use by IMBA Canada-affiliated groups.

With steep hills, thick vegetation and beautiful overlooks, Crothers Woods is one of the jewels of Toronto, Ontario. Offering a place to ride, run, hike or just enjoy nature, to the nearly 2.5 million residents of Toronto, Crothers Woods in the Don Valley has become a local favourite. As a result, Toronto's Department of Parks, Forestry and Recreation is in the midst of an ambitious Sustainable Trails Initiative, which will revitalize the existing trail system with the goal of providing trail experiences for everyone while also reducing both environmental impact and user conflict.

IMBA Canada is proud to be a partner in Toronto's initiative and during the weekend of Sept. 13-14, 2008, Kelly and Collins Bishop of the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew as well as Jason Murray of IMBA Canada joined volunteers for a weekend of trailbuilding. Following classroom sessions for both Club Care and the IMBA Trailbuilding School, about 35 volunteers -- including members of the Toronto Off-Road Bicycling Association and the Ontario-based Fly Gurlz women's cycling team -- headed to Crothers Woods for two days of hands-on building.

Working alongside City employees and staff from Sustainable Trails Ltd, the volunteers helped build a new trail that will compliment the other trails in the park. With its steep sideslopes, narrow tread, numerous grade reversals, berms, and a rock-armored drop, this one is going to be a rocket-ride through the woods.

The weather may have tried its best to dampen spirits, but despite some seriously sticky temperatures and plenty of slippery mud, the volunteers knocked out an impressive amount of trail - including elevated tread work, two bridges, lots of shaping and finishing and a ton of rock armoring.

Overall, this was a great weekend to be a mountain biker in Toronto. It's not every day that a city supports the construction of a more advanced trail near the heart of downtown, but it's happening in Toronto. A huge thanks to Toronto's Department of Parks, Forestry and Recreation (especially Scott Laver) and to everyone who came out for the weekend.