If you’re in the Toronto area on vacation or live in the city and want to start mountain biking, you’re in luck. There are several areas that are designed for mountain biking. These sites also have great scenery, which helps you enjoy your ride even more. Mountain biking can serve as both light or intense exercise depending on your fitness goals, and these areas provide just the right environment for your mountain biking adventure.
The Don Valley
The Don Valley is a 10 km bike trail, which is actually a network of several trails. You can access the trail from several points and one of the entryways is the Pottery road railway crossing. Or, you can get onto the trail from the driveway south of Nesbitt which is on the Bayview Extension. There are also two longer trails within the network that are favourites among avid bikers.
The Don Valley is considered a ridge trail since it tracks all the way across the wall of the ravine. There are several off-camber features that a series of short, steep climbing structures. The difficulty level of the trail is between intermediate and expert. There are also a few technical sections of the trail but they’re not too difficult if you’ve been mountain biking for at least a few months.
The area also has a lower trail that is around the river and comes together with railway tracks. The lower trail is a faster track that is used by intense athletes. Since the trail is located mainly in railway areas, CN officials do crack down on bikers using the trail, so be careful. The trail also continues from Ernest Seaton Thompson Park into Sunnybrook if you hook up with the biking trail across the road from where the river trail ends.
Taylor Creek
Taylor Creek is 5 kilometres and is often viewed as an extension of the Don Valley biking trail system. Taylor Creek is a better choice for beginners, since it’s not as difficult as the Don Valley. If you’re already on the Don Valley and want to make your ride a little longer, Taylor Creek is a great choice. You can access both trails right after the bridge where the Don River trail ends.
Moore Park Ravine
This mountain biking trail is 5 kilometres long as well. Avid Toronto bikers may not think of Moore Park Ravine immediately when choosing places to bike. However, this trail is wonderful for beginners who want to get used to riding off-road. There aren’t many technical challenges on Moore Park Ravine and there are a few kilometres that are completely downhill if you enter the trail off of Moore Avenue.
Etobicoke Creek Area
This 15-kilometer trail may be a little difficult to find, especially if you’re not familiar with the city of Toronto. However, once you locate the trail, there are several single tracks on the trail for you to take advantage of. These tracks are close to Markland Woods and Centennial Park. Etobicoke Creek isn’t a very technical trail, but if you’ve ridden the Don River trail several times and want a change of scenery, this is a great choice.
Humber Valley
Finally, this Toronto biking trail is 25km and has a few technical spots but lots of biking trails. The best trail in Humber Valley is Thackery Park, which is a few minutes from Kipling, north of Steeles Avenue.