To the editor:
Similar to Steubenville's Friends of Beatty Park, Toronto has a volunteer group dedicated to building trails; educating people about nature, geology, history, and archeology; and giving city residents and visitors a place to recreate, cogitate and associate. Formed in 2022, Hike Toronto is about to open the first of our trails at the Toronto Cemetery on July 1. We invite everyone to come and visit our initial offerings and our friendly community.
The first trail is a 1.75 mile walk along a marked path that includes the upper and lower portions of our historic cemetery. Flags featuring our logo will direct you to several beautiful informational signs designed by Erika Lyon, agriculture and natural resources educator at the Ohio State University Extension. These signs educate on various topics of local flora, fauna and fungi. If you desire to learn even more as you stroll between placards, each sign features a helpful QR code which will open a web page featuring additional information from the university's archives.
The nearly two-mile route is mostly on recently chip-and-sealed roadway, although the path briefly passes through wooded areas and an open meadow. Also, as part of our grand opening offerings, we will be cutting the ribbon on Peri Van Winkle Gardens, a fairy trail designed and built by volunteers on a wooded parcel just to the east of the city cemetery.
Meanwhile, plans are in place to expand our trails by converting old logging roads on a peak known locally as Mount Nebo. This project will begin construction as soon as work is completed on a new road that will include parking for our visitors. The Mount Nebo trails feature large sandstone outcrops, most of which are still in the same orientation from when they formed some 300 million years ago. Plans for this portion of our trails include rustic camping and a tower above the canopy which will give visitors brazen enough to climb a scenic vista of the river, a panorama featuring miles of the Appalachian foothills, as well as a view of Brown's Island.
Additionally, a parcel of city-owned land approximately 50 acres in area adjacent to the cemetery will be converted to a park featuring a 1.5-mile-long figure-eight trail, a wishing well, and an archaeological anomaly known for decades to city residents as Indian Rock. At present, there is a local poll taking place to select a name for the new park.
We also are accepting applications for those wishing to volunteer their creativity on the fairy garden trail. Those wanting to participate in the fantasy walk's design or who wish to vote in the poll are directed to visit our website, hiketoronto.com, for information. While there you can sign up for our newsletter to follow our progress; and remember, you can always volunteer to help build for the future.
Thanks for reading to the end, and I hope to see you on the trails.
J. David Core
Founding steward
Hike Toronto