Waterfront Trail and Greenway News

An Ezine Produced by the Waterfront Regeneration Trust

The waterfront municipalities of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, conservation authorities and community groups* MapArt* DunMap* Niagara Region Integrated Community Planning Department* MMM Group* Heart and Stroke Foundation* Mountain Equipment Co-op* Toronto Cyclists Union*
Holcium (formerly St. Lawrence Cement)

July 2009

In this issue:

Waterfront Trail Partners Meetings
Great Waterfront Trail Adventure – 250 Riders take to the Trail
Updates from Waterfront Toronto

WATERFRONT TRAIL PARTNERS MEETINGS

Mark your calendars – this year’s Waterfront Trail Partners Meetings will be taking place in the last week of October. In order to reduce travel times for our partners, we will be hosting two meetings, one east of Toronto and one west. The tentative dates and locations are:

October 27th – Niagara, Location TBD
October 29th – Picton (TBC)

The meetings will cover:

review of results from 2009 participant surveys
announcement of the 2010 overnight stops

More information will be available soon on our website www.waterfronttrail.org.

GREAT WATERFRONT TRAIL ADVENTURE – 250 CYCLISTS TAKE TO THE TRAIL

The Waterfront Trust would like to extend a big heartfelt thank you to all of our partners who helped out with the Great Waterfront Trail Adventure this year. This year’s tour was another success, thanks in large part to all of your efforts and incredible hospitality – the feedback we have been receiving from participants so far has been outstanding. Media coverage was excellent again this year, with spots in radio, TV and print in communities all along the Trail. We’ve compiled some statistics and information about this year’s tour below for your information.

GWTA Rider Stats

252 riders (including 30 volunteers)
197 end-to-enders (including 30 volunteers)
54 part way riders
youngest rider age 4 / oldest rider age 77
average age: 45
19 participants from Quebec
25 Family Day participants (July 5th)

Trends we noticed (from pre-tour survey):

83% come from Ontario
44% describe themselves as somewhat fit; 45% very fit.
43% indicated the GWTA is their first multi-day tour
52% are training for the Adventure; 48% are using the Waterfront Trail in this training.
82% have been on the Waterfront Trail
17% had never heard of the Trail before learning about the Adventure

Perceptions of the Trail (from pre-tour survey):

92% like that the Trail is near to water
76% like that it is easy to use for fitness and exercise
57% like that it is connected to other communities
61% don’t like that the Trail is not all off-road

Activities, Meals and Rest Stops

As can be seen from the list below, a lot goes in to making the Adventure. Thanks again to all our partners who helped to make the adventure such a diverse, exciting and welcoming experience for participants.

Meals:

Pancake Breakfast Friends of Fort George
August Gourmet Sandwiches, Lincoln
Various restaurants, Hamilton

Barangas Breakfast Buffet, Hamilton
Port Credit BIA Chicken/Sausage on a Bun with loads of fresh fruit and salads, Mississagua
Various restaurants, Pickering

Pickering Breakfast Buffet
Steak on a bun, Chicken on Bun and Salads, Oshawa
Various restaurants in Port Hope
Pizza and Steam Whistle Beer at the Port Hope Rec. Center

Port Hope Everything you can imagine Breakfast Buffet
Dougalls on the Bay, gourment sandwiches, Brighton
Pasta Buffet in Trenton

Pancake Breakfast served by Lion’s Club, Trenton
Box lunches and various restaurants in Picton
Pasta Bar in Kingston

Kingston Continental Breakfast Buffet
Make your own gourmet sandwich, Brown’s Bay
Johnstown BBQ chicken and salads

Johnstown Continental Breakfast Buffet
Upper Canada Village Cafeteria
Cornwall Lasagna Feast

Cornwall’s Icecream for Breakfast! Breakfast Buffet
Pizza and Cake, Riviere Beaudette

Rest Stops:

Happy Rolf’s St. Catharines (Starbucks Break)
Grimsby Strawberry and Shortcake Stop
Burlington Butt Break (Starbucks Break)
OPG/TRCA Frenchman’s Bay, Pickering Break
Rotary Park, Ajax Stop
St. Mary’s Cement Gatorade Rest stop, Clarington
Cobourg Harbour Break
Alnwick/Haldimand Chocolate and Water Stop
Cramahe/Colborne Music, Massages and Fresh Fruit Stop
West Zwicks Park, Belleville Oranges and Prizes
Wellington Quaker House, Prince Edward County
Bloomfield Bike Corral, Prince Edward County
Bergeron Estate Winery-Just a Taste Stop, Loyalist
Village of Bath Break with great produce from Amherstview Foodland
Gananoque Marina
Frontenac Arch Biosphere Headquarters
Brockville Block D Break with Massages and Yoga
Iroquois Civic Centre- trailmix, fresh fruit and bars
Lost Villages Museum Rest Stop
Cooper Marsh Conservation Area - snacks

Other Activities:

Pre-tour Concert at Fort George
Port Dalhousie Scavenger Hunt
Grimsby Heritage Cottage Tour
Hamilton Downtown Shuttle
Ontario Place All Day Pass
Pickering Waterfront Shuttle
Port Hope Memorial Park Concert
Kayaking in Gananoque
Boat Cruise in Brockville
Excursion to Fort Wellington
Prescott Grain Elevator Tour
Excursion to Windmill Heritage Site
Lift-Off Festival and Concert
Ducks Unlimited Photo Contest

Thanks to the many political leaders who participated this year:

This year, 11 mayors and/or councillors rode sections or the full tour:

Pickering Councillor Jennifer O’Connell (end-to-end)
Cobourg Mayor Peter Delanty (end-to-end)
Kingston Councillor Vicki Schmolka (end-to-end 09 and 08)
Ajax Mayor Steve Parish (day ride 09, end-to-end 08)
Grimsby Mayor Bob Bentley
Ajax Councillor (Region of Durham Councillor) Colleen Jordan
Port Hope Mayor Linda Thompson
Cobourg Councillor Gil Brocanier
Cobourg Councillor Miriam Mutton
Edwardsburgh/Cardinal Councillor Hugh Cameron
Mayor Township of South Glengarry Jim McDonell

12 other political representatives met the Adventure along the way:

Oakville Mayor Rob Burton
Port Hope Councillor Ted Watts
Brighton Mayor Chris Herrington
Colborne Deputy Mayor Jim Williams
Quinte West Mayor John Williams
Quinte West Counicllor Sally Freeman
Belleville Mayor Neil Ellis
Kingston Councillor Steve Garrison
Prescott Mayor Suzanne Dodge
Edwardsburgh/Cardinal Mayor Larry Dishaw
Warden United Counties SDG Chris McDonell
MPP Jim Brownell
MP Guy Lauzon
MPP Lucie Charlebois

(Uros Jovic, Bank Manager from CIBC joined the Adventure in Trenton riding with Pickering Councillor Jennifer O'Connell)

Thanks to the local police/fire departments for their support:

Police marshalling in Oakville
Police escort in Pickering
Police escort in Trenton
Police marshalling in Gananoque
Fire Dept assistance in South Glengarry

UPDATES FROM WATERFRONT TORONTO

Thanks to Waterfront Toronto for the following updates. Please visit their website to read more.

Sherbourne Park Groundbreaking - http://www.waterfrontoronto.ca
Rees Wavedeck Opening Soon - http://www.waterfrontoronto.ca/newsletter/viewnewsletter.php?id=4a718c690e5cc&template=5
Revitalized Martin Goodman Trail (at Ontario Place) Opening Soon - http://www.waterfrontoronto.ca

Cheers!

Marlaine Koehler, Executive Director;
Vicki Barron, Director of Administration and Special Projects;
Ian Lobb, Tour Director, Great Waterfront Trail Adventure Tour; and
and David Arcus, Project Coordinator, Editor Waterfront Trail and Greenway News

The Waterfront Regeneration Trust
372 Richmond Street West, Suite 308
Toronto, Ontario
M5V 1X6

Tel: 416-943-8080
Fax: 416-943-8068

Email: info@wrtrust.com

Visit http://www.waterfronttrail.org to download 77 online colour maps of the Waterfront Trail, from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Brockville!

Thank You to our Supporters!:

CIBC
The Lake Ontario waterfront municipalities, conservation authorities and community groups
The Ontario Trillium Foundation
The Heart and Stroke Foundation
The Ontario Ministry of Health Promotion
MapArt
Dunmap
Niagara Freewheelers Bicycle Touring Club
Regional Niagara Bicycling Committee