GVTA > resources > history > take-a-hike 20
Raymond Lowes went for a walk one day. An invitation of an editor of the Toronto Telegram, a newspaper once very prominent in that city. "Ray" was a metallurgist by trade and a naturalist as well. With the editor and five other nature lovers he hiked from Limehouse to Craigleith, a seven member squad spending seven days on a trek of 185 km probing the feasibility of a Bruce Trail project, an idea promoted by the Federation of Ontario Naturalists and the Conservation Council of Ontario. The purpose was "to help blaze a trail for a walking revival which will help Canadians out of their physical fitness slump." Conservation of a splendid natural resource in the Golden Horseshoe was not a distant second to that idea. Both ideas have fared well and 5 years after this walk the Bruce Trail was officially opened in 1967. The hiking movement gained momentum.
Jack Masters went out for a walk one day. No particular invitation. But Jack had an interest. He was a member of the Kitchener-Waterloo Hiking Club. He combined his interest with his job and, as an employee of Greb Shoes, he went to carry out an idea many folks have jokingly expressed: "Take a walk across the country". Only he was serious about it and meant to popularize hiking and promote Greb boots. The CBC was soon on his trail. The hiking movement gained some more momentum.
Betty Schneider went on a flight one day. The result of an invitation by the Provincial Government to be on the Board of the newly formed Grand River Conservation Authority. The Board surveyed their new responsibility from the air. This got Betty thinking: Would it not be nice to view it at ground level.....ya........why not walk it..."the thing is, if you're going to have greenbelts, people don't know they're there unless they can walk on them, see them and appreciate them". She was on the GRCA's Conservation Foundation Committee which organized a meeting. Ray Lowes attended, Greb Shoes, the K-W Hiking Club (Jack Masters, President), the K-W Field Naturalists, the Chicopee Ski Club, the Cameron Heights Collegiate Outdoor Club, all and sundry. Then and there they formed the Grand Valley Trails Association under a steering committee.One year later (1973) incorporation followed. More momentum for the hiking movement.
Dr.Tom East moved into trail work one day. He went to work with topographic maps and produced the first Bruce Trail guide. He also met a lady on one of his hikes and married her. Ray Lowes was best man. Tom and Isabel became a powerful couple for the hiking movement. Isabel was acquainted with Lois Magee. This attracted Tom into the the GVTA. He went to work on giving the hiking movement more shape by organizing trail parties, clearing trail himself and improving it. Tom's First Edition BT guide (1967) is nicely followed up on by Ron Nero's similar GVTA's First Edition maps (1986). The latter started at km 92.3 since no mapping of the Southern section had been completed yet. It terminated at Elora (km 211.9). Another 57 km (to Alton) were added in 1987 and a supplement to the First Edition issued. Membership had grown from 100 to over 600. One year 4 bridges were built. The momentum was enormous.
The threads came together, were woven into a strong fabric. Now the BTA and GVTA are well established organizations. More strands are being added these days. The BTA is financially able to buy land; has been proclaimed a UNESCO World Bio Reserve because of the Escarpment's outstanding geological/ecological features; hundreds hike the trail; look after trail maintenance, improvements , and so on. However, much work remains to be done particularly in the pol(itical)arena. As Canadians we're still not in really good physical shape. The car, computer and television have us seat - rather than outward bound. A drop of rain can still keep some of us home.
The ecological efforts have been strenghtened but with increasing population, much, much more remains to be done in this respect, especially in the (again!!) polarena. Also here, one still reads too much lip service.
The GVTA has remained a total volunteer organization. Its physical features are argueably less spectacular than the Bruce trail's. Its membership has not increased in the same manner nor its financial status. We have no political power (the BTA has some!!)
With these articles I have tried to add a strand for the GVTA. Whether this added strand is tiny or large matters little. I decided to forward a human history that is unique in this world and, in my opinion, could become one of our significant assets. In this valley we find diversity like nowhere else beginning with the First Nations. After the American Revolution they were joined here by the United Empire Loyalists and Mennonites. They were "endowed" with large tracts of land. Soon "divvied up" into parcels for all the newcomers:the English shopkeepers, the Scottish masons, Dutch market gardeners, Italian contracters and so on. The etceteras have become an almost endless variety.
With the above overview and the wish that further action will be taken, I'm therefore ending the Take a Hike series:
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Updated 2007 OCTOBER 03
Hamilton, October 2004