Natural Hamilton in Pictures: Trails & Landscapes

Part One of a series of photographic explorations of natural Hamilton, Ontario, Canada in 2013.

Preface

For as long as I can recall I’ve always had an interest in the natural world, and in late 2012 I began to refocus my hobbies away from digitally-focused ones towards exploration of the natural spaces of Hamilton and beyond.

In the beginning this meant just getting out for a minimum of a 20 minute hike anywhere on a hiking trail, and soon branched out to mapping trails, recording species sightings, and of course, taking photos and video.

The result has been a very large collection of data in many forms over the calendar year of 2013, the lion’s share being in thousands of photos and dozens of videos. By the end of the year, I felt I needed to do something beyond just the occasional twitter post of a single photo or video at a time.

Natural Hamilton in Pictures is a series of curated multimedia collections along focused themes: “Trails & Landscapes”, “Wildflowers, Fungi, and Insects”, “Birds”, and “Remarkable Discoveries”.

The first part, “Trails & Landscapes” focuses on the dynamic range of vistas and natural spaces I found whilst hiking throughout Hamilton in the seasons of 2013. All locations are linked in captions to the relevant points in Google Maps.

I hope you enjoy, and I look forward to publishing the remaining parts and continuing to share my experiences exploring natural spaces in Hamilton.

The further parts are currently forthcoming and will be announced on my twitter feed and cross-linked here when ready.

January

Pictured: The Lafarge 2000 Trail in Flamborough, south of Safari Road.

The year began snowy in Hamilton — first day of the new year I was out on the Lafarge 2000 Trail in Flamborough. It was a new trail to me, the first of dozens of new trails I hadn’t known of previously.

At this time my camera equipment was nothing more than an old iPhone 4, so the quality of photos in this month is lesser than later ones.

View from Dundas Peak in early January.

The Wedeln Run trail at Christie Lake Conservation Area is named after a style of skiing called “wedeln”. Strangely, this trail is for cross-country skiing, and “wedeln” is a downhill skiing technique. Surrounded by evergreens in many sections, it can be a very relaxing hike.

Around January 12 a massive melt happened occurred in Hamilton. Pictured here is one of the boardwalks at the Waterdown Wetland Trails, totally washed-out.

The Marshwalk Trail, at the Royal Botanical Gardens’ North Shore Trails of Cootes Paradise Sanctuary. This boardwalk leads to a short observation tower. Later in the year, a pair of Bald Eagles successfully fledged the first new generation of Bald Eagles near Lake Ontario in a very long time.

By January 18th, the snow had returned! Pictured is the McCormack Trail in Dundas Valley Conservation Area, one of the most picturesque trails of the valley.

A distant view of downtown Hamilton: On the horizon lies the downtown core. The camera taking this picture (iPhone 4) lacks zoom, so you’ll have to squint to see it! The location is Sutcliffe Vista, along the Headwaters Trail at the top of the escarpment at Dundas Valley. The view of downtown from here is clearest in the fall and winter months as foliage blocks most of the view otherwise.

Melt! By the end of January, warmth had retuned and the waters of Cootes Paradise had begun melting once again. This photo was originally published on CBC Hamilton — something I actually didn’t even notice until a few days after!

On the last day of January, hiking was made interesting by an unusal mix of fresh snow on top of mud.

February

Pictured: crossing of Headwaters Trail over the Sulphur Springs Road.

The month of February in 2013 was the coldest, as expected, and had one serious snow storm that made even just walking around urban neighbourhoods difficult.

Early in the month I purchased a new camera, the 20x zoom Canon SX260, vastly improving my photo-taking capabilities. This allowed me to expand my repertoire into zoomed landscapes and wildlife photography.

The cold returned, and fast! Pictured here is the Boardwalk Trail passing over a frozen Valens Resevoir at Valens Conservation Area.

One of the first photos I took with the new Canon SX260. Pictured is Pioneer Creek passing under the Pioneer Creek Trail at Mountsberg Conservation Area, at the absolute far north-eastern corner of the municipality of the City of Hamilton.

Sherman Falls, Ancaster. Barely visible at the base of the falls is a common sight there: another photographer, setting up a tripod.

The first day I discovered the power of a super zoom camera! This photo was taken from the Escarpment Trail at the RBG’s Rock Chapel Sanctuary — about 3km away from the York Boulevard bridge pictured in the middle.

February 8: the only real “Snow Day” of 2013 where pretty much anything and everything was closed. Pictured is the Spencer Creek along the end of Dundas Street in Dundas, clogged with ice and beginning to overflow at some of its banks.

The storm left behind more snow than Hamilton had seen in years. Winter hiking was truly made difficult without snowshoes — the first time I can recall this ever being the case. Despite this I slogged through the Webster’s Falls Side Trail at the Spencer Gorge Conservation Area and captured this view of Dundas Peak.

Tiffany Falls, half-frozen. By mid-February a couple days of slight melts began to make hiking trails into dangerously icy paths, making normally short hikes like this one a huge chore.

Canada Geese at the Desjardins Canal, as breeding season began for this birds. This section of the canal never seemed to ever fully freeze over in 2013, making it a popular spot with numerous waterfowl.

Monarch Trail, Dundas Valley Conservation Area. Note that in the shadows further down the trail, it’s all ice! Hiking is a slow and careful endeavour in these conditions, which persisted for almost the entire remainder of the winter season.

In spite of the ice, plenty of trails still looked much nicer than they were to walk. Pictured here is the Sawmill Trail, in the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

March

Pictured: Monarch Trail near Maplewood Hall in Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

March 2013 was the most challenging month of hiking: the weather was deceptively attractive whilst trail conditions remained icy. Hard-packed since mid-February, hiking trails throughout the region continued to turn simple, easy hiking trails into tests of patience, awareness, and balance.

View from a high point on the Lafarge 2000 Trail in Flamborough. The trail follows sections of Middletown Road that have been abandoned or left undeveloped due to the steep terrain.

The weight of dozens of hikers packed the snow in tight, followed by a partial melt. This resulted in trails becoming dangerous ice paths through many conservation area. Pictured is the Spring Creek Trail in Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

When the temperatures hover just above 0°C, a subtle mist can form. Pictured is the Dundas Valley as seen from Groundhog Hill.

When trails turn to ice, closed gravel roads can be a great hiking spot. Pictured is Artaban Road, currently a seasonal road that leads to the Maplewood Hall.

Waterfalls are abundant in Hamilton, and are always fascinating to visit in winter months. Pictured is Upper Borer’s Falls.

When trails go icy, often boardwalks such as this one found at the RBG’s Hendrie Valley are a safe alternative. Pictured is the Grindstone Marsh Trail.

Lake Niapenco is likely Hamilton’s least recognizable lake name, yet is the largest body of water that isn’t part of Lake Ontario. Most know it by the name of the conservation area surrounding it: Binbrook Conservation Area, part of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority. In March 2013, it remained frozen over for the entire month.

A lone picturesque tree seen along the Tyneside Trail on the west end of Lake Niapenco.

For many decades a core practice of forest restoration involved planting pine or spruce monocultures in straight rows, resulting in strange hallway-like trails like the Lowland Trail seen here at Christie Conservation Area.

A few healthy pine trees can coat the nearby ground with rusty-coloured needles making for striking visuals such as this one seen along the south end of the McCormack Trail in Dundas Valley.

April

Pictured: Bruce Trail along Niagara Escarpment, in the Dundas Valley Conservation Area, west of Sherman Falls.

With April came finally a full and proper melt of 2013's snowfall. Right on cue, ferns and other early plants could be seen starting right on April 1.

As expected, rains came and trails became muddy. The mud was a welcome sight compared to the icy conditions of the two months previous, however.

Sherman Falls, seen again, this time without the snow and icicles.

The trail might not be clean, but at least it’s not icy! Pictured is a portion of the Rockcliffe Trails, a whole trail system in Waterdown I had never heard of in previous years.

Trail washouts are not uncommon in the month of April. Pictured is the unnamed link trail between the Monarch and Sulphur Creek Trails.

Pictured is the former site of the Crook’s Hollow Dam, removed in 2012. The original river and floodplain systems are undergoing restoration here. Photo is taken from the west terminus of the Optimists’ Trail.

Nearing the end of April, trails began to dry up nicely. Pictured is an unnamed access trail leading from Old Mohawk Road to Iroquoia Heights Conservation Area.

May

Pictured: “Spencer Woods” trail, in Dundas.

In 2013, early spring growth was sluggish compared to the previous above-average temperature years. Deciduous forest canopies were non-existant for the first week, but quickly took hold in the second and third weeks. By the end of the month, nearly every trail in Hamilton looked completely new.

A favourite vista point in Hamilton, this hill marks a high point within the Dundas Valley reaching nearly the height of the Niagara Escarpment itself. This spot is reached by hiking one of the northern loops of the McCormack Trail in the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

One of my discoveries this year was an old unmarked trail system north of the RBG’s Arboretum, which is still signed with this marker indicating a bird banding station that hasn’t existed for a couple decades. The trails here link together numerous dead-end streets once slated to be connected through the Pleasant View Survey subdivision that appears it was cancelled midway through its development.

Another section of Flamborough’s Lafarge 2000 Trail, passing through the Beverly Swamp.

Few days in 2013 were completely filled with rain. One of these days was in May, which produced almost rainforest-like mist along the Filman Road Side Trail.

An unidentified waterfall seen near the Bruce Trail west of Filman Road Side Trail.

Upper Sydenham Falls, accessed via Bruce Trail from north Dundas.

Another new discovery for me this year were the urban hiking trails in Golf Links Park in Ancaster.

June

Pictured: The new City View Park along the edge of the Burlington/Hamilton border in Waterdown. A number of new trails have been established here.

As the heat rose and days become long, evening hikes became a common occurrence for me in June. The weather was rather co-operative in this month, making an ideal month for hiking.

Sunset over the Christie Conservation Area’s cornfield.

After the removal of the dam in Crooks Hollow the year previous, 2013 was the first full year that Spencer Creek had a proper floodplain here in over a hundred years. Picture taken from the Crooks Hollow Heritage Trail.

A view of the meadows within the RBG’s lands in Pleasant View on a sunny June evening.

Hamilton has multiple rail trails, including the Chippewa Trail leading from Caledonia through to Stoney Creek.

On clear days, from numerous points throughout Hamilton you can see clearly all the way to the CN Tower in downtown Toronto. This photo was taken from the Chedoke Radial Trail.

Built in 2012, this new bridge on the Chedoke Radial Trail is a unique “iron bridge” style is only fitting for the busiest cross-escarpment trail in Hamilton.

July

Pictured: Sunflower Field at a seed farm along Highway 6 in Flamborough.

July saw some very, very hot days. Hot enough that a daily hiking routine required either late evening or early morning hikes, or during the more extreme days, night hikes.

A slow-starter for leaf-growth, this is the picturesque tree seen along the Tyneside Trail which I photographed in March.

Hot days means finding a nice rail trail or country road to take a short dusk hike. The intersection of Slote Road and Mineral Springs Road is a nice spot for multiple options as three directions of dirt road, two of rail trail, and a single hidden stretch of “ghost road” all converge at this junction.

It’s rare to find a trail with a small spring running across it without a bridge or other walk-around. This spring along the Bruce Trail can be found west of Rockcliffe Trails.

Another advantage to evening hikes is getting to experience colourful sunsets such as this one, viewed from atop the Chedoke Radial Trail at the edge of Iroquia Heights Conservation Area.

Hamilton has no shortage of landscape vista viewpoints, such as this one at the top of the Sydenham Hill in Dundas.

From the same vantage point at Sydenham Hill, a telescopic view of Cootes Paradise, North Hamilton and the industrial sectors.

August

Pictured: A rural view seen from the ghost road known as “Foxden Road” in Flamborough, south of the hamlet of Troy.

Unlike previous years, August did not see significant extreme heat days, making it more friendly for hiking. With plant growth in full-force, some unmaintenanced trails normally clear became impassable with the explosion of aggressive vines and thornbushes.

Pastoral views seen along the north-western section of the McCormack Trail, in Dundas Valley.

Grown-in but still passable, this old section of the long-ago closed Hamilton & Dundas Railway in McMaster University’s West Campus is a short and obscure hike which connects trails from within the former Coldspring Valley Sanctuary and the Cootes Drive Path.

Two decades of tree growth has begun to form archways throughout the Hamilton-Brantford Rail Trail near Jerseyville, as regular aggressive tree-pruning normally done by rail companies was ended in 1993 with the closure of this line.

Some trees grow their roots so tightly into rocks, they don’t even let go long after dying. This long-deceased tree can be found along the Headwaters Trail in Dundas Valley, near its terminus with the Main Loop trail.

Throughout rural Hamilton there are many former roads (“ghost roads”) that are still publicly accessible allowances, which make excellent hiking trails. Foxden Road is one of the few with a bridge still used by vehicles: in this case, farm vehicles. In spite of its rusty and rickety railings, the concrete base of the bridge is solid.

On the far northern reaches of the boundary of Hamilton lies completely different habitats: for example, the Fletcher Creek Ecological Preserve is the Hamilton Conservation Authorities’ most remote property, lying just inside the borders of Puslinch Township. Ecosystems there are ones more typically seen in the Canadian Shield: cedar-dominated swampland and coniferous forests sitting upon exposed rock are common.

As August draws to a close, yellow becomes a dominant colour of open landscapes throughout the region. Goldenrod is a staple of the diet and lifecycle of many animals, like goldfinches and butterflies. Pictured is the small peninsula at Princess Point Park.

One of the few rainy days of the summer was in late August. Filmed here is the Spencer Creek Trail during a downpour.

September

Pictured: Sunset over Cockpit Island, in Cootes Paradise.

With the days increasingly becoming shorter, September became a month of sunsets, as I had adjusted to hiking more often in the evenings of the summer. Other changes were in store as well: with bird migrations in full-swing, some trails differed in species on a day-by-day basis, and the last wildflowers of the year began their blooms.

The corn is ready! Also pictured in June, this cornfield alongside the Middletown Road entrance of Christie Conservation Area grew very tall in 2013.

Vines such as wild cucumber sometimes fully engulf whole trees and shrubs by September, giving almost jungle-like appearances to some scenery. Photo taken at Sutcliffe Vista.

Abandoned quarries can make for interesting wetland restoration projects. This one in the Fletcher Creek Ecological Preserve is an odd case of a wetland “creation” rather than restoration: development of an alkaline calcium fen was deemed the best use of the land here, in the hopes of countering loss of this type of ecology in other parts of the province.

Another sunset in Cootes Paradise, this one in the locale known as “the Willows”, a willow clonal colony in the west end of the sanctuary.

In September, the iPhone’s panoramic photo feature actually began working correctly, allowing for amazingly seamless photos like this one of the McCormack Trail in the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

If you catch the light just right, sometimes you can see these “smokestacks” of insects above many trees throughout the summer and fall.

As September drew to a close, trees first started turning in Hamilton’s more northern reaches, such as the banks of Valens Reservoir.

One additional photo of Valens Reservoir, taken in panorama with an iPhone 5.

October

Pictured: Spring Creek Trail at Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

Right on time, leaves began to turn colour everywhere in Hamilton in the first week of October. The typically dry fall conditions can make October one of the best months for hiking: less rain, not too cold or too hot.

Asters and goldenrods dominated the scenery of fields in early October. Pictured is the Yellow Trail at Eramosa Karst Conservation Area.

Contrasting colours foreground a misty Niagara Escarpment, at Dundas’ obscure Lake Jojo.

Dried teasel stands in contrast against the warm October sunset at Rock Chapel Sanctuary.

Rolling hills viewed at dusk in the trails off of Paddy Greene Road in the upper portion of the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

A calm and quiet October day viewing the Desjardins Canal from the Urquhart Butterfly Garden in Dundas.

View along the Bruce W. Duncan Memorial Trail at the Cartwright Nature Sanctuary north of Dundas.

Ravine view from the Hopkins’ Loop trail in Hopkins’ Woods Special Protection Area within the RBG’s North Shore trails.

Late afternoon at the waters of Cootes Paradise.

Tiffany Falls, in late October.

November

Pictured: Fall colours turn to a consistent brownish-orange at the Trees of Ontario Trail at the RBG’s Arboretum.

As colours began to fade with the arrival of frosts, Hamilton was treated this year with early snowfalls. Recent years had seen snowfalls in Novembers and Decembers drastically decline, but not so in 2013.

Creek at the Spring Valley Trail in the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

A forest full of yellow-painted maples, seen at McMaster Conservation Corridor along Lower Lions Club Road in Ancaster.

Panoramic view of the Bruce Trail within Borer’s Falls Conservation Area north of Dundas.

Thousands of snaking spruce roots, seen along the Tyneside Trail at Lake Niapenco.

The first day of snow on the trails, seen here on the Monarch Trail west of Old Dundas Road at the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

Frozen mud, covered with snow can make for difficult hiking without strong boots. This unmaintained trail is actually a ghost road, formerly known as Scenic Drive in Ancaster Township in the 1930s, now referenced as Powerline Trail. Decades of erosion has turned the road into a narrow gully, which varies in hiking and biking difficulty depending on conditions.

The first snow to stick around occurred in November, for the first time in many years. Pictured is the view from behind Dundas’ Olympic Sports Park Arena, locally referred to as Olympic Woods.

One of Hamilton’s newest wetlands, Windemere Basin, is located in the industrial sectors. The waterways and islands seen on the right side have become known to host numerous rare migrating species throughout the year.

Sunset at the east side of the Desjardins Canal in Dundas.

December

Pictured: Constellation Orion above the glow of the city of Hamilton, from Rock Chapel Sanctuary.

After the first few days of December being relatively snow-free, the majority of this month’s days were whiter than had been seen in over a decade. Two storms, one of snow and another of ice, came to define the landscape for the last days of autumn and the first days of winter proper.

Also this month saw a major upgrade to my camera equipment, from the Canon SX260 HS super-zoom point-and-shoot camera to a Panasonic Lumix FZ70 ultra-zoom bridge camera. The difference was quite striking.

Tallgrass slowly consuming the ghost road formerly known as the Valley Inn Road. Whilst signs, pavement, and railings remain, only cyclists and hikers have traversed this short connecting path between Burlington’s Woodland Cemetery and York Boulevard in the last two years.

A freezing day along Lake Ontario at the Fifty Point Conservation Area’s marina entrance and lighthouse.

Only a few days in, the snows returned. Pictured is the Ravine Road trail in Westdale.

Clay bluffs found between the Sulphur Creek Trail and Hamilton-Brantford Rail Trail. These bluffs are likely manmade, from dumped clay dug up to carve the original T H & B rail line that ran between Hamilton and Brantford nearly 100 years ago.

A week later at the Sulphur Creek Trail, conditions were quite different!

Sunrise on the Thornapple Loop at the RBG’s Berry Tract north of Dundas.

What will likely be remembered as the “ice storm of 2013" left ice-coated landscapes throughout the region. Pictured is an open field along the Bruce Trail near King Road, Waterdown.

Many mature Staghorn Sumac stands were damaged in the icestorm, many either began to lean or fell completely. This was the aftermath along the Glen Fergunson Side Trail in the Spencer Gorge Wildlife Area.

Panoramic view of the abandoned quarry which has been converted into a new wetland, specifically a fen. Found at Fletcher Creek Ecological Preserve, on the border of Hamilton and Puslinch Township.

A view over Hamilton and Dundas from Dundas Peak in late December.

View over Lake Ontario, with Fifty Point in the distance. Picture taken from public beach near the Waterfront Trail in Stoney Creek.

Please feel free to post comments on photos (click the “+” that appears beside photos) or leave a comment here at the end. You can also follow me on Twitter, where forthcoming parts will be announced.