Rail Trail (Binkley) #071118

Hamilton - Brantford Rail Trail

This is actually two connecting trails, the West Hamilton - Jerseyville Trail maintained by the Hamilton Region Conservation Authority, and the Jerseyville - Brantford Trail of the Grand River Conservation Authority.

The Trail

The West Hamilton - Jerseyville trail was the first to be constructed, in 1993. It begins on the west side of the city, near McMaster University, following the Dundas Valley for 18 km to the community of Jerseyville. The surface is an excellent fine granular. Past Jerseyville the trail is newer, having been constructed in 1996. The surface is of similar construction.

History

The trail was originally the right-of-way of the Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway. The TH&B was incorporated in 1891 and previously operated 110 miles of line in Ontario, providing passenger and freight service between Toronto and Buffalo. It was at one time jointly owned by the Canadian Pacific, New York Central, Michigan Central and Canada Southern Railways.

In 1993, the City of Brantford commenced its Gordon Glaves Memorial Pathwayalong the scenic Grand River.

When opened in 1994 by the Grand River Conservation Authority, the Cambridge to Paris Rail Trail was one of the first abandoned rail lines to be converted for recreational trail use in southern Ontario.

In 1996, the Hamilton to Brantford Rail Trail was completed by the Hamilton & Grand River Conservation Authorities and became Canada's first fully developed, entirely off-road interurban trail.

In October of 1998 these three trails were joined by the SC Johnson Trail, through the generosity of SC Johnson and Son Limited of Brantford, to form a continuous trail system suitable for both hiking and bicycle use.

A major trail system now links the cities of Hamilton, Brantford and Cambridge. These 80 kms of trail form a major component in the southern Ontario loop of the Trans Canada Trail System.

Hamilton to Brantford Rail-Trail

0Km Hamilton Trailhead & Parking Area

3.3Km Sanctuary Park (rest area & washroom in season)

5.5Km Dundas Valley Visitor Centre Trailhead & Parking Area

12.3Km Steam engines used to fight the steep grade from Hamilton westbound to Summit - Observation deck overlooking Summit Muskeg Preserve

12.7Km Copetown Parking Area and crossing of former Hwy. 52 - watch for traffic

18.5Km Jerseyville - Redland Quarries and TCG Materials Trailhead & Parking Area

25.5Km “Duck Under” Hwy 403 beside Fairchild Creek. Thanks again to the Ministry of Transportation for permission to use this bridge and scenic trail diversion to cross their highway. (steep grade for wheelchairs)

26.7Km Bridge crossing of Fairchild Creek

30Km Site of the 1986 Brantford Landslide, which caused abandonment of the railway line on which the trail runs.

32Km Brantford - Brantford Jaycees Trailhead & Parking Area

Hamilton to Brantford RailTrail

The Hamilton to Brantford Rail-Trail is Ontario's first entirely off-road, interurban hiking and biking trail. The Hamilton Region Conservation Authority owns and maintains the trail from Hamilton to Jerseyville, and the Grand River Conservation Authority owns and maintains the trail from Jerseyville to Brantford. Trail users can enjoy 32 kilometres (20 miles) of completely resurfaced trail on the abandoned roadbed of the Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway (TH&B). The railway, affectionately known as "To Hell and Back", provided transportation to communities along its route from 1894. It was officially abandoned in 1988 as a result of a landslide and completed as a Rail-Trail in 1996.

General Trail Description

The Hamilton-Jerseyville section of the trail begins on the west side of Hamilton, near McMaster University and follows the scenic Dundas valley for 18 kilometres (11 miles) to Jerseyville with a long steady climb from kilometre 3.5 to kilometre 12. The Jerseyville to Brantford section is newer and constructed in 1996. The entire trail length is surfaced with stone dust. Posts mark each kilometre from the Hamilton end, and some benches are provided along the trail. The Brantford end of the trail crosses under Highway 403 into Brantford, and connects with Brantford's Gordon Glaves Memorial Pathway through the city. Remember to take plenty of water as there are no stores along most of the route.

Trail Access

There are three formal parking lots for trail users with ample parking for up to 20 cars, and kiosks featuring trail maps and information and railway history.

Brantford: The Brantford Jaycee's Trailhead and Parking Area is located on the eastern edge of Brantford, just south of Mohawk Lake. From Highway 53 (Colborne Street) take Locks Road south. At the bottom of the hill, the road makes a sharp right turn and becomes Mohawk Street. Continue on Mohawk Street to the next right at Greenwich Street. The parking lot is visible a short distance along the left hand side of Greenwich Street. There is an information kiosk and parking for 40 cars. A short extension trail has been built to Mohawk Park, Brantford, where washrooms and a food concession are available during the summer.

Jerseyville: Take Highway 53, east of Brantford. Turn north onto Jerseyville Road. You will cross the trail, but continue to the western outskirts of Jerseyville. The parking area is on the south or right hand side of the road. There is a nearby general store.

Dundas Valley Trail Centre, Dundas: Take Highway 99 east from Copetown. Watch for signs for the Dundas Valley Trail Centre on the south or right hand side. This area is operated by the Hamilton Region Conservation Authority and an admission fee may apply.

Linkages with Other Trails

In Hamilton, the trail links with the City of Hamilton trail and bikeway network.

In Hamilton, the trail also connects with the Bruce Trail at the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

In Brantford, the trail links with the Gordon Glaves Memorial Pathway which runs along the Grand River through the City of Brantford. The Glaves trail in turn connects wtih the and the SC Johnson Trail from Brantford to Paris which then connects with the Cambridge to Paris Rail Trail. The trail has been formally incorporated into the Trans Canada Trail system.

Dundas Valley

Description

This is a re-entrant valley in the Niagara Escarpment. The area is characterized by many forest types on the wide variety of slopes, exposures and moisture regimes. Significant wildlife populations. Various portions known as Spencer Gorge Escarpment Valley (ca. 56 ha), Mineral Springs Forest (ca. 38 ha) and Sulphur Creek Forest (ca. 180 ha)

Vegetation

Spencer Gorge Escarpment Valley:

The vegetation patterns here appear to be transitional in character between those of the valleys of the Niagara and Halton Sections of the escarpment associated features. The slope forests are reported to be a mixture of Acer-Quercus-Tilia-Pinus and Tsuga-Acer-Betula (?) communities; the valley bottom canopy includes elements of either as well as very local terraced forests of Acer-Fagus.

Mineral Springs Forest:

It reputedly has a relatively mature and rich forest which includes several Carolinian species as well as many other species that are typically associated with this habitat and its vegetation. The western half of the area appears to be disturbed and plantains occur all around the area, but its eastern half indeed presents a well developed forest.

Sulphur Creek Forest:

It has generally intermediate to young aged forests on the dry mesic ridge crests (Quercus-Acer-Carya), the mesic valley slopes (Acer-Tilia-Fraxinus) and wet mesic valley bottoms (Acer-Betula-Fagus). There are representative southern plant species such as Sassafras, Hamamelis, and Symplocarpus with a good nesting avifauna.

Dundas Valley:

The Valley contains many species that are found in Canada only within the Carolinian life zone. The varied topography and the resultant soils, slope, moisture and incident sunlight variations, the southern location and the land use history has produced an area with very high biological diversity. Some of the distant communities include: upland deciduous forest, upland (north-facing) coniferous forest, river, floodplain deciduous forest, upland conifer plantation, working and abandoned orchards, farms plus all ages of ecological succession, on a variety of sites, ranging from grass fields, through old fields, young forest to climax forest. There are forests that may never have been logged. As a result of these conditions and the extensive size of the natural forests many otherwise rare and endangered species still survive and prosper in the valley.

Representation

Spencer Gorge Escarpment Valley:

Any talus slope forest patterns do not appear to be well developed; however, there are representative and often well developed escarpment face and rim groves. Unfortunately there is severe disturbance of the escarpment plain communities except in very local and small portions. This valley provides a deep, natural contrast to the surrounding areas; not only scenic splendor is here, but also a significant geomorphological feature and a well developed community pattern.

Landform

Spencer Gorge Escarpment Valley:

This escarpment associated feature in an excellent development of an incised escarpment valley which has two branches behind the escarpment face. It is located to the north of and adjacent to Dundas and is managed by the Hamilton Region Conservation Authority as a natural Conservation Area: The "Spencer Gorge Wilderness Area". The geomorphology of the area consists of a bifurcating, incised, stream cut escarpment valley of the East and West Spencer Creeks. The former branch presents the more typical pattern for the vicinity: that of a small, steep sided water cut valley directly penetrating the escarpment face of limestone and shale bedrocks. The latter stream, however, has a spur from this valley and has meandered to the west producing a varied complement of meander patterns that occur only very locally elsewhere along the escarpment in the Niagara Peninsula. Both of these branches have excellent water falls at their heads that provide excellent displays of the bedrock strata.

Mineral Springs Forest:

This site contains one of the most mature silty loam till slope and valley forests in the Dundas Valley. The physiography presents one small valley with a permanent stream and some seepage which is reported to present a local exposure of the Dolomitic bedrock.

Sulphur Creek Forest:

This site is the most extensive forested silty loam till valley pattern in the Dundas Valley. It encompasses the crest and a major portion of the slope including a series of valleys, permanent and intermittent streams, seepage slopes, bottomlands; no escarpment exposures are evident.

Dundas Valley (ESA):

The Valley resulted from pre-glacial erosion which cut deeply into the Niagara Escarpment. Later the glaciers eroded the surface further and rocky, unstratified material was deposited by the advancing and retreating ice lobes covering the area. The oscillating ice margin created glacial lakes between ice lobes and exposed land spillways, glaciolacustrine deposits and shoreline features in the Valley are part of these depositions of glacial waters. The lower section of the Valley is part of a glacial end moraine with gravelly depositions and intermittent proglacial lake terraces. Stream bank erosion and slippage can be seen in various areas. The middle part of the Valley is a rough area of glacial deposits with a kame and kettle land form, and drainage is blocked in places. The upper section of the Valley is characterized by glaciolacustrine land forms. The sides of the Valley are defined by the Niagara Escarpment which disappears under the deep glacial deposits. The major soil of the area is the well drained Ancaster silt loam, which formed on the ridges and moraines surrounding and separating the ravines of the Dundas Valley. It developed from silty, clay, loam till. Small areas of well-drained Oneida clay loam developed from clay till also occur. In the upper portion of the valley, adjacent to Spring Creek a complex of Grimsby sandy loam and Brant silt loam developed from water-deposited material.