Lake Simcoe Shoreline in Georgina

York Region has a waterfront too: the beautiful shores of Lake Simcoe.  Experience it by cycling the Lake Simcoe Trail for about 50 kilometres along Lake Drive and Hedge Road, connecting key destinations within Georgina including the Georgina Island Ferry, Sibbald Point Provincial Park, De La Salle Park / Franklin Beach, Willow Beach, The ROC, Claredon Beach Park, and Adeleine Park as well as the communities of Virginia, Sutton and Keswick.

Check out the Briars Resort for dining or accommodations.  It has lots of bike parking.

Ice cream at Jackson's Point

Lake Drive is part of a larger vision: the Lake to Lake Route.  York Region, in partnership with local municipalities and conservation authorities, has started an ambitious plan to build a 121 kilometre cycling route and walking trail from Lake Simcoe at the northern edge of the York Region through the City of Toronto to Lake Ontario.  The Lake to Lake Cycling Route and Walking Trail will be a major recreational and commuter route that connects key destinations and natural heritage areas.

Motorists and Cyclists: respect each other and share the road

Warden Avenue is one of the most popular recreational cycling routes in York Region.  You can ride it from Markham all the way to Lake Simcoe in Georgina.

Here's some footage of my ride on Warden travelling southbound from Stouffville Rd to Major Mackenzie Drive on Sat, June 20th at about 1pm.  Major Mackenzie is around where the country meets the city. Unfortunately, the City of Markham's urban boundary expansion is pushing development further north. There are lots of farms, greenery and rolling hills.  This particular segment has a wide paved shoulder, but further north it is a shared roadway with no shoulders.



Warden, Kennedy, McCowan and others are enjoyed by hundreds of cyclists each week.  I often hear of complaints between motorists and cyclists.  Either motorists are trying to pass unsafely or aggressively, or cyclists taking up the road and not leaving space to pass.

York Region has developed an educational campaign in partnership with York Regional Police (YRP) and the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) to promote cycling safety and respect for all road users. 

The campaign was launched on May 14 with a media event at Highway 7 and Leslie Street in the Town of Richmond Hill.

The York Region Cyclist’s Handbook, a practical guide containing rules of the road and safety tips, was launched at the event. 

On June 2^nd, the Province passed the Making Ontario’s Roads Safer Act, which includes increased fines for offenses like dooring a cyclist, and a 1m safe passing law.

We all have a part to play in making our roads safer. Please ride and drive with care.

Cycling the Highway 404 Extension

On Sunday, Aug 17th, 2014, I had the opportunity to cycle the Highway 404 extension from Green Lane in East Gwillimbury to Woodbine Ave/Ravenshoe Road in Georgina before it opened to traffic.  What a great idea for a community event in support of Southlake Regional Hospital.  The 26 km roundtrip through the countryside was envigorating, particularly in seeing so many families out on two wheels!

There was an impressive turnout of both walkers and cyclists, and the starting location was only announced a few days prior to the event.

 

A few observations:
- The 13km extension cost about $100M (could build a lot of bike lanes!)

- Concrete was used instead of the typical asphalt

- There are four interchanges (Green Lane, Queensville, and Woodbine), each with a commuter parking lot, and Doanne Road (ramps not yet completed)

- I did a quick helmet count that showed about 75% of adult cyclists were wearing helmets.

- The first 1000 participants got a free waterbottle

- Glass Tiger has some awesome hits.  Takes me back to my youth! 

 

Up the ramp to the start



Speeches

Waiting for the start

Go!

Cycling superhighway

Note that patterned barrier wall

It was a thrill to bike the highway, even if it was just for one day



Missing bridge on the Sutton-Zephyr Rail Trail

Back in May of this year, I checked out the Sutton-Zephyr Rail Trail in Georgina and East Gwillimbury.  It's a 14 km hard-packed gravel trail on a former CN rail bed, passing through quiet wooded areas following the Black River watershed. Holbourne Road/Hwy 48 to Brown Hill to Sutton.  

View Larger Map

The trail is in decent shape, though there were some big ruts at the south end due to snowmobiles. 

Unfortunately, the rumours were true that there is a missing bridge connection about 3km from the south end, and it would take some serious trekking through the bush to find a detour.  Hopefully the Town of East Gwillimbury will replace the bridge soon.

The trail could be promoted more, and perhaps even extended to connect Mount Albert with Sutton.  I only encountered one other person on the trail, who happened to be walking their dog.

Location of missing bridge over Black River.  Note the golf course to the south.



Good sized parking lot at the south end off of Holborn Rd