| Final Trails Report Summary |
In October 2007 the Trails Working Group of Headwaters Communities in Action hosted a workshop that invited participants to join in creating a strategy for a regional network of trails. Clear direction for trails development was provided by 70 participating trails enthusiasts. Below is a summary of the five priorities for trails development for the Headwaters region identified in the workshop:
- Develop and begin implementation on a network of Bike Lanes on County Roads within Dufferin and roads in the town of Caledon
- Complete the Island Lake Trail (including both bridges & perimeter trail)
- Connect Island Lake Trails to Orangeville
- Develop a trail on the rail line between Orangeville and Shelburne
- Develop a trail to connect Island Lake/Orangeville with Forks of the Credit Provincial Park and on to Terra Cotta
Imagine being able to use your bike safely within a network of connecting trails within Dufferin and Caledon. Or, how about being able to get to Island Lake Trail from Orangeville without having to drive anywhere? What if we could cycle from Orangeville to attend Shelburne's annual Fiddlefest? Exciting ideas and all from various groups of people interested in seeing it done.
HCIA will continue to act in its role as a "catalyst and coordinator" to support the implementation of these priorities. HCIA plans to establish Project teams or "leads" for each of the trail development priorities identified above. These teams will work with interested community members to access the information and resources needed to implement the trails priorities.
Workshop participants said that they want to be kept informed and engaged in the emerging plans. To this end HCIA will continue to hold meetings of interested stakeholders and use our website and other resources to facilitate the sharing of information. Also, a data base of all interested volunteers, including their skills and interests is being compiled. We will use this list to identify potential project team members, and people who can act as resources. Are you on a list yet? Sign up by emailing action@headwaterscommunities.ca.
For the full scope of the workshop results please see Final Trails Report 2007.
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Trails Video on YouTube
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 And just to prove that we're on the cutting edge -- check out this YouTube video of some of the attendees at the October workshop. It will make you want to be a part of this initiative even more.
View the Video!
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| Walking Sticks Program |
The Town of Mono's Recreation Director, Kim Perryman recently shared the details of their newly adopted Walking Sticks Program. Up and running since October 2007, the program has been a "phenomenal success", says Perryman. The impetus for the program was as a result of efforts by both the Mono's in motion campaign and funding from the national Heart and Stroke foundation. This funding allowed the Town of Mono to purchase 500 broom handles. Yes, broom handles. That's when the clients of Community Living Dufferin pitched in. Working under a tight deadline, their contribution was to sand the sticks down, varnish them and add leather loops to turn the broomsticks into perfectly functioning Walking Sticks. Now that the Town had the sticks, they decorated them with decals featuring the sponsors who made the program a reality.
 How does the program work?
You may think, as I did, that you pick up a stick when you're anticipating a walk along one of our many trails in the area and then drop it back to the Town when you've finished your outing. But you would be wrong. Perryman told me that the sticks, when you pick them up at the Town of Mono offices, are yours for as long as you want to use them. And as an incentive to use them a lot, the Town will continue to put new decals on your stick every year. You just have to go back to the office to get them. The number of decals on your stick represents the amount of walking you're doing; hence more decals lead to more bragging rights.
Perryman said that there are only 300 sticks left. This response is outstanding when you consider the weather we've had since October and that news of the program is only getting out by articles such as this one and word of mouth. This is truly a community initiative whose very success depended upon community organizations to get it up and running and continues to depend upon community relationships to get the word out so it will flourish. The success of the program is testament to the power of community. I suggest you go get your stick now.
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Keep in Touch
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Headwaters Communities in Action is led by a vibrant Steering Committee, and
supported by many active volunteers from our community.
If you are interested in becoming a volunteer or finding out more connect with us.
Headwaters Communities in Action
www.headwaterscommunities.ca
action@headwaterscommunities.ca
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