Caledon Cycling Trek

Continuing our efforts, to bring you enthralling bike trails in and around Toronto, we couldn’t have afford to miss briefing about Caledon trail way. Situated about 28 km away from Toronto,  Town of Caledon was awarded Greenest Town in Ontario by TV Ontario. Absolutely breathtaking views, river and a silence that one would love to sink in- stands as a strong testament to that. Our love for bikes led to us to reach Caledon Hill Cycling. We borrowed two gravel bikes from them at the rate of 35$ per day, and as guided by the store manager, we made our way to Caledon the trail way.

Akin to Algonquin Park, the trail at Caledon too follows the path of an abandoned rail line. From what we have learnt, this place was the home of the first Trans Canada Trail Pavilion (in Caledon East). If we could manifest picturesque perfect, we would manifest everything that we spotted in our journey- farm fields, woodlots and a couple of beaver dams. A melange of mixed terrain, mostly graded, crushed limestone the breathtaking view sort of made us stop for a while to let the aura sink in. We parked our bikes at the bridge and made our way to the credit river which runs beneath the trail.

Post our trail, we were beyond curious to know about the iconic heritage that this trail must have had. In our research, we were pleased to learn about,  Diane Allengame, (Regional archivist at Region of Peel) who in her upcoming book, The Caledon Trailway: Building the Dream, says ,”At one time, railway was the connection, or the series of them. Stations dotted the countryside, and from one you could reach another, traversing the country via the locomotive, watching the countryside pass. They (trails) are such a key part of recreation, but they have become that community connector in a sense. You can access a number of other trails. Literally from Caledon, you can cross Canada.”

From the research done by  Allengame and from the stories compiled by the former Caledon Mayor, Emil Kolb there were several local discussions, which happened prior to the inceptions of trail way. A project which kick started in the early 70s was executed in 1988.

Caledon was already on our top list as our Go to! destination, after the completion of this hike and gaining this knowledge about the town, it surely has become an inseparable part of our hearts

Information courtesy:  Ontariobiketrails.ca /headwaters.ca / Matthew Stradder-Caledonenterprise.ca

A snap of snapping turtle spotted on Caledon Cycling Trek. Snapping turtles are the largest turtle species in Ontario and the largest freshwater and terrestrial turtles in Canada. Picture courtesy: Vrunda Bhatt

Helpful information: 

FAQ’s

What: Caledon Trailway

Where: Close to McLaughlin Rd, Inglewood- Caledon

Can I bring my own bike? Yes!

Can I rent a bike?  Yes at 35$ hour

Types of Bike: Road/Gravel/Fat bike/Hybrid

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