Markham Town and Trail

The York Region Cycling Tour Map (New in 2016) provides ideas for exploring York Region by bike, from ten tour routes to mountain biking, BMX and family cycling options.  

I intend on biking all ten routes this year, and decided to

 start with the 25 km Markham Town and Trail.

Start your ride amidst the exotic sights, sounds and aromas of Pacific Mall, the largest Chinese indoor mall in North America. Nearby is the gorgeous and quaint village of Unionville. At the eastern end of the loop is the Milne Dam Conservation Park. The water dam and mill attracted mass settlement creating the Village (now City) of Markham. This stretch of lush parkland along the Rouge River Valley offers great migratory bird watching. Or if BMX or MTB riding excites you, take a short detour to Joyride 150, Canada's first indoor bike park.

Ride Rating: Recreational cyclist – mix of trails and quiet streets with mixed traffic on a few busier streets
(Family/leisure option – ride the Rouge Valley Trail from Main Street Unionville (Victoria Street) to Milne Dam Conservation Area)

• Surface: unpaved trail (limestone screenings), paved trail, road
• Possible Starting Points:
• Milliken Mills Community Centre and Park – overnight parking and access to water and washrooms
• Unionville GO Station – overnight parking
• Markham GO Station – overnight parking
• Toogood Pond - parking
• Detailed maps:  RidewithGPS (with Points of Interest)

• Highlights: 
• Main Street Unionville 
• Main Street Markham 
• Markham Theatre
• Toogood Pond
• Milne Dam Conservation Park
• Pacific Mall

Here's the full route captured by my GoPro camera

Here are some more highlights.

Birchmount, crossing under Hwy 407

Approaching Markham Centre, Birchmount at Entreprise Dr

Markham PanAm Centre (site of badminton, table tennis, water polo)

Main Street Unionville

Rouge Valley Trail

New trail crossing at McCowan to Milne Dam Conservation Park

Milne Dam Conservation Area

Main Street Markham

Carlton St

Toogood Pond


Village Parkway

Pacific Mall

It was a pleasant ride with a good variety to see along trail and streets.  Could use some better wayfinding along the trail sections.  I need to go back and spend more time along those Main Streets to sample some culinary treats!

Youth Bike Summit inspires teens to get involved in cycling initiatives

On May 4th, 2016, about 100 high school students, teachers, and decision-makers came together at the Markham Pan Am Centre for the first York Region Youth Bike Summit to talk about the future of cycling. The theme was "your vision, your future".

Justin Jones from the Share the Road Cycling Coalition opened the day by challenging participants to make a difference in their school and community.








Participants were asked....

The Environmental Club at St. Robert CHS were won the cycling video contest for this submission:



The following were recognized for their contributions to cycling in York Region

• Cycling Leader Award - Nelson Mahmoudi, Newmarket High School
• Cycling Group Award - York Mountain Biking Association
• Bike-friendly High School - St. Robert Catholic High School

Olympian Isabelle Turcotte Baird gave an inspirational talk about the power of goal setting and perseverance.

Several interactive workshops were held throughout the day

• School Bike Clubs and More

• Design Your Dream Street

• Advocacy 101

• Cycling Jeopardy

• Cycling Skills Training

Exhibitors

• Rock the Bike
• York Region Public Health
• York Region Transit / Viva
• Real Deal Racing
• York Mountain Biking Association
• Summit Cycle Bike Shop

For me, the Youth Bike Summit was a chance to hear perspectives from high school students.  It was refreshing to meet teens interested in building bike racks at their school, or starting a bike club, or asking for protected bike lanes on Highway 7.  They get that cycling can be transformational!  I left the conference with a renewed sense of optimism that this generation of youth will help to shape a brighter future.

Ninth Line bike lane now open

New bike lanes and paved shoulders on Ninth Line now connect the City of Markham to the Town of Stouffville.  Check out the innovative green markings at the intersections which provide guidance for cyclists crossing the intersections and communicate to turning motorists to watch for people on bikes.

Here's a clip from a 5km ride I did in Markham starting at Major Mackenzie & Ninth Line, covering a range of different facility types.



Route map

Mountain Biking in the York Regional Forest Brown Hill Tract

It was a beautiful Fall day, and adventure was beckoning, so earlier this week I checked out the York Regional Forest - Brown Hill Tract in East Gwillimbury, which is known to be one of the best mountain biking spots in York Region.  There's a good mix of single track forest trails, and I hope to come back to ride some more.

Access from McCowan

Parking lot at Ravenshoe (which has a larger parking area)

Cry Baby trail

Access path along Ravenshoe

 Old Jay trail (lots of leaves so a bit difficult to follow trail).  Yes, I was using an electric cruiser!

Stinky trail

PDF-maps has a smartphone and tablet friendly GPS-enabled map of the Brown Hill Tract that can help with navigation.

The Joy of Biking to School

For me, biking my kids to school is a chance to be outside, spend time together (not the same as in a car), and see them develop confidence and a sense of independence.  I loved it when my son, after having walked his bike up a certain hill many times, was finally able to get to the top by bike.  He was so excited to go home and tell his mom.  Getting to school by our own power is an accomplishment we can be proud of. It's a lot of fun too.

Here's a preview of our ride to school a year ago last Fall:

And there are other benefits too...

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.