RESTORE COOTES

It seems that McMaster can't quite figure out a welcoming approach to this historical trail.  Signs have gone from "no trespassing" to "use at own risk" and now, "do not use" with the unwelcome addition of a chain link fence at the top and the bottom of the west campus trail. Why all the changes from threatening to personal responsibility, and now back to prohibitive with physical barriers?  Bottom of Maria's Walk trail 2013 Top of Trail C 2016 2018 top of trail with Do Not Use sign and fence 2018 Fence at top of trail looking down 2018 fence at bottom of trail Historical photo of Thorndale trailhead when the area was and RBG Nature Sanctuary                                Selected links http://www.restore-cootes.org/2013/05/marias-blocked-walk.html http://www.restore-cootes.org/2015/01/re-open-and-repair-marias-walk.html http://www.restore-cootes...

With the former RBG trail system mostly under pavement since the late 1960s, there remain limited opportunities to hike the natural trails that once threaded their way through Coldspring Valley Nature Sanctuary. Having the former trailheads -- at Thorndale for the "Maria's Walk" trail, and Lakelet Vale which lead to the Rim Circuit trail -- still intact, helps us re-visit the site with our imagination tuned to what it must have been like, and to get our bearings. Having pieced together the location of the mostly intact Maria's walk (broken only by the driveway into the west campus), I've never ventured to take in the view that Rim Circuit would have provided. Until now, that is, and while the trail may have vanished beneath asphalt of the campus service building parking and rear service driveway/yard, I still managed to get a feel for how this trail would have been spectacular in its day. It's a steep drop down to the floodplain, which was onc...

" The way leads along for several hundred feet though young deciduous woods until a junction is reached. The trail which goes uphill is Maria’s Walk leading to Thorndale Entrance ." That quote, from 1961,  by RBG's Conservationist   W.J. Lamoureux  is part of a larger description of the trails in the Royal Botanical Gardens' Coldspring Valley Nature Sanctuary, now McMaster Parking lots M, N, O, and P. The photo above is from the vantage point at the bottom of Maria's Walk , as described by Lamoureux , but we can see that 50 years later, while the trail is largely intact, the use and meaning of the area has changed drastically.  Rather than a very nice forest trail, McMaster treats the path as a liability and goes to great lengths to block and hide its existence. People still use it, but obviously in contravention of the University's wishes. That's what happens when you pave a nature sanctuary for parking: remnants of the forest are actively margi...

Hamilton's Trails Master Plan has a planned trail connection that would link the busy Hamilton to Brantford Rail Trail to the Spencer Creek Trail system in Dundas. The new trail would run roughly north - south along the Ancaster Creek valley between Main/Osler and Cootes Drive, and run parallel to the creek through McMaster's west campus, further enhancing McMaster's position as a hub for a regional network of trails. Trouble is, there needs to be enough room to fit the trail along the Ancaster Creek and McMaster's parking lots, which would require McMaster to act on their Campus Master Plan's call for a minimum 30m naturalized buffer between the creek and the McMaster parking lots in Lot "M." Unless McMaster fulfills this (minimum) requirement, any chance of a connecting trail will be weakened (hikes will be through paved parking lots), if not abandoned.

When we think of parking at McMaster, we see parking as something we will always need. With over 1,000 spaces available during peak demand, some of us have questioned - first the "need" and then the rationale for maintaining so many excess spaces. Little in the way of rationale has been offered from McMaster, except "demand for vehicular transportation continues and the need for parking remains." The photo on the left shows the Hamilton - Brantford Radial Electric railway climbing the escarpment, and the photo on the right shows the same scene today, sans railway, now known as the Chedoke Rail Trail. I'm guessing that in 1908 they thought this railway would be there forever. In 1931 the last of the hourly trains made the trek, and the railway was abandoned. Decades later , in 1995-96, Hamilton developed the former rail line into a multi-use trail that is a busy corridor for non-motorized traffic: running club...

“The importance of environmental protection and conservation is increasingly being recognized by society and, as people become more aware of the benefits of environmental protection, demand for passive settings and trails that connect people to nature is increasing,” CATCH Articles: Residents want more natural areas and trails    0 digg Dec 14, 2011 Hamiltonians identify more natural areas as their top priority for additional public spending on recreational facilities. More trails came second in the survey conducted as part of the  outdoor recreational study  received by councillors earlier this week, but the city is actually reducing annual funding for purchase of natural areas. The  survey  asked 800 randomly selected residents to rate more than two dozen recreational features on a scale from one to five, where one meant do not spend additional money and five meant definitely spend more. Just under three-quarters (74 percent) gav...

Photos and a map from the Royal Botanical Gardens archive show the Coldstream Valley Trail system which existed prior to McMaster University expansion to the west in the late 1960s - a floodplain paved over for car parking, destroying prime turtle and other wetland species' habitat. Can we restore what we've lost? The time may be right to start!

"At the same time that we are earnest to explore and learn all things, we require that all things be mysterious and unexplorable, that land and sea be infinitely wild, unsurveyed and unfathomed by us because unfathomable. We can never have enough of Nature." H.D.T.

Some Cootes Paradise south shore trails mapped out for you! Ginger Valley/Ravine Road trail   - a commute route! Caleb's Walk/Sassafras trail   - down to the water! Chegwin Loop  - from McMaster University, down to the water on a boardwalk! The description says it touches Grindstone Creek, which it most certainly does not. You can find more trail maps for Cootes here

I share the columnist's (see below) angst about some of the trail closures in Cootes Paradise and the observation that the impacts of walking on habitat are less damaging than driving. Nevertheless, I can appreciate that some of the trails can and should be closed to preserve sensitive habitat. It is because Cootes is surrounded by a city that the impacts of both cars and yes, even feet, can cumulatively degrade the integrity of this nature sanctuary. Blocking trails with bushes generally seems to occur on "unofficial" trails, though I have   previously expressed my concern with closing trails that once provided access through Cootes to hook up with the Spencer Creek Trail in Dundas. The utility of a trail as a path to someplace, rather than just a recreational loop, means a lot to me , and I have hoped the RBG would reconsider the trails layout with this in mind. Again, with so many people accessing Cootes, on foot and on mountain-bikes, the threat...

"The NCCH believes the Dundas site would best serve three of the four cycling disciplines as it is close to road cycling routes and mountain biking trails." What trails are they referring to? RBG trails? Bruce Trail? Neither of which are open for cycling, being footpaths in naturally sensitive areas? Or do they consider Dundas Valley trails close? How well thought out is this plan? Cycling centre rejects harbour TheSpec.com - Local - Cycling centre rejects harbour John Kernaghan , The Hamilton Spectator , (May 13, 2010) Hamilton's cycling centre has joined the Tiger-Cats in rejecting the west harbour. But unlike the Ticats, the centre has firmly identified another Pan Am Games location. Andrew Iler, president of the National Cycling Centre Hamilton (NCCH), said almost four years of study have ...

PRESCRIBED BURN SCHEDULED IN ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDENS’ NATURE SANCTUARY This spring, Royal Botanical Gardens will be conducting several prescribed burns in order to restore rare oak woodland, oak savannah and tallgrass prairie habitat at Sassafras Point, Princess Point and York Boulevard Prairie of the Cootes Paradise Nature Sanctuary in Hamilton. Prescribed burns require specific weather conditions and accurate forecasting before a precise date can be established. A second notice will be posted on our website once the date is confirmed. Visit www.rbg.ca for a daily countdown to the burn day! Tallgrass Prairie and Oak Savannah Management at RBG Today, less than one percent of Hamilton’s prairies and savannas remain. Prairie and savannah plant communities require frequent disturbances such as fire to be maintained. Without fire, woody plants and invasive species take over. Ecologists use low-intensity burns as a tool to restore these rare communities. In the past 30 years, highly success...

We have degraded, fragmented and paved over the majority of natural lands, and the RBG is nobly trying to preserve what they have managed to save. As we have noted before , conservation isn't enough, we need restoration. As population density increases, these natural lands will become further degraded. By focusing on limiting trails to save the remnant, we miss the opportunity to re-evaluate the larger context of roads, parking lots, and unsuitable development in natural areas. RBG protects endangered species TheSpec.com - Local - RBG protects endangered species Trails reworked, protection areas created Eric McGuinness , The Hamilton Spectator, March 11/10 The Royal Botanical Gardens wants to preserve the few remaining green spaces large enough to support endangered plants, amphibians and predator animals such as bald eagles and bobcats. To do it, four special protection areas are being created in Cootes Paradise and Hendrie Valley, pa...

I'm thinking that one day, the RBG will be able to have roads that cut through sensitive natural areas repurposed “ to create a balance between sensitive species, habitat protection, outdoor education and community enjoyment." In the meantime, bet on less hiking trails, a notion I first encountered here , and support in principle for the sake of restoration, but if we want to talk habitat disruption/restoration, Cootes Drive is a much much larger problem. RBG proposes keep-out zones to protect plants and animals TheSpec.com - BreakingNews - RBG proposes keep-out zones to protect plants and animals The Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) plans to protect sensitive plant and animal habitat by creating no-go zones in its 900 hectare...

Student struck by car on Cootes Drive path Parent calls on city to prevent further accidents Craig Campbell,Published on May 02, 2008 A Dundas father is calling for safety improvements between Cootes Drive and the paved trail next to it after his daughter, a 22-year-old McMaster University student, was struck by a car while walking the family dog two weeks ago. Malcolm Skingley said his daughter, Jennifer, suffered a concussion and neck injuries. She must go back to the hospital for further tests and rehabilitation. Ten days after the accident, Jennifer was still suffering headaches, her father said Tuesday. "I see a lot of people, seniors and people with children, walking on that path," Mr. Skingley said. "But there are no signs or safety barriers to keep cars off the path." He believes the city should be pressured into making safety improvements between Cootes Drive and the pave...