Mad River Ganaraska section mostly back into shape
Last fall, we had reports that the Mad River section of the Ganaraska Trail, between Utopia and the westerly cairn of the Ganaraska Trail in Glen Huron, was in dire need of some TLC. Since the Mad River club did not have the capacity of doing the maintenance on this 50 km section of Ganaraska Trail, adjacent clubs came to the rescue, and thanks to the excellent weather in the late fall, and with the help of many volunteers, we managed to bring the trail back into shape… for the most part.
In total, we organized 6 trail maintenance days between the end of October and mid November and reblazed 38 kms.
We had to deal with wind storm damage, a myriad of new trails in the Brentwood Forest after a controlled forest fire, new fencing at the Glencairn Conservation Area, hydro poles that had been replaced, and we cleaned up around the cairn, etc. Twenty five volunteers from the Midland, Wasaga Beach, Mad River and Barrie clubs, as well as Ganaraska President, Bob Bowles, contributed a total of 36 volunteer days to bring the trail from km 11.9 in New Lowell to the cairn in Glen Huron, where the Ganaraska meets the Bruce Trail, back into shape. Many thanks to all volunteers!
Unfortunately, we have not found a solution yet for the section from km 0 in Utopia (end of Barrie section) to New Lowell. This section currently follows the now fully abandoned and badly overgrown Barrie-Collingwood railway line. We may need to organize a re-route for this section. In the interim, this section of the Ganaraska Trail remains closed.
Frieda Baldwin