I rebelled against the path that was built along the river behind
my house for quite a while. It disrupted the wildlife when it was
started and sat for a very long time before it was put in a state
that made it of any benefit to anyone. Last year the finishing touches
were added and it now gets quite a bit of use.
I'll mostly let the pictures tell the story of why. I live near the
south end of the path, but will show photos from the extreme north
end. The trail is actually extended both north and south into other
towns where it has a very different character. The totems mark the
portion of the path in Newmarket. I like to ride along it on my
Greenspeed trike.
The North Marker
The north most marker identifies the town limit. The trail is paved
to the next road way where it goes under the road and then continues
through the woods as a more natural trail. I wrote about it last year
as The Unpaved Path.
The Heron Totem
Totems are nominally 1 kilometer markers. Herons can be seen along
the river so the totem fits perfectly.
The Bear Totem
I haven't actually seen bears along this river either when I lived
in the area as a child or since I moved back in 1990. I'm sure they
were in the area once upon a time.
The Owl Totem
There are owls along the river, though they are harder to find since
the path was developed.
The Fish Totem
I found this totem a bit obscure, perhaps because the fish in this
part of the river are pretty tiny so I couldn't relate to what I saw
on the totem. It is placed by Fairy Lake by where it is common to see
people sitting in the weeds passing time with a fishing rod.
The Frog And Turtle Totem
This is one of my favourites, in part because this is where we went
to listen to and watch for frogs when my daughters were little enough
to be taken there in my bicycle trailer. Turtles are also frequently
found near the path and can be about the size of a dinner plate.
The Rabbit Totem
This is another one that I found a bit obscure. Its placement is
fitting being near the bottom of my back yard which almost always
has a rabbit in it.
The Indian Totem
This is at the top of the only elevation on the trail. The native
Americans are no longer obvious in the area, but they were here first.
The Bug Totem
This is the most intricate totem on the trail and the only one you
really have to look at from all angles to fully appreciate. Conveniently
the path takes a little loop around it. It is located at the practical
end of the Newmarket portion of the trail and joggers either head out
to Yonge Street, continue south to Aurora or head back north.
The South Marker
This is only about 100 meters from the bug totem and marks the south
end of town. The path is now gravel and continues through a bird
sanctuary.
Playgrounds
It's great to be able to take kids to visit a bit of nature, but
just in case they need to burn off some energy, there are a couple
of playgrounds along the way. These are on either side of the downtown
area where there is quite a bit of convenient parking.
The Market
The trail gets much of its traffics on the weekend. What better way
to end a walk than to stop off at the farmer's market to pick up something
fresh for a snack? This is across the road from Fairy Lake, one block
east of Main Street.