Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club pitches ‘Shelburne Day’ at council meeting

March 27, 2025 · 0 Comments

Written By PAULA BROWN

LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER

The Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club is looking to become more involved with the Shelburne community.

During their meeting on Monday (March 24), Shelburne Town Council received a presentation from Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club representatives Donald Stewart and John Dickason.

“Our purpose for requesting this meeting is to introduce who we are, but then explore ideas of how we can help you with your plans for Shelburne and the surrounding area,” explained Stewart, community outreach director for the Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club.

The Dufferin Hi-land Bruce Trail Club is one of nine member clubs that make up the Bruce Trail Conservancy.

The Dufferin Hi-Land Section of the Bruce Trail runs from Mono Centre in the south to Lavender in the north and covers a total distance of more than 56 kilometres. It passes through areas such as the Mono Cliffs Provincial Park, the Boyne Valley Provincial Park and the Pine River Fishing Area.

The goal of the groups is to conserve, restore and manage land along the Niagara Escarpment UNESCO World Biosphere to protect its ecosystems for the benefit of all.

“We’re wondering how do we become a better part of your community and what should we be doing to help you,” said Dickason.

Shelburne Mayor Wade Mills brought forward the idea of the Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club hosting a “Shelburne Day” on the trail. The idea was originally pitched by the local Bruce Trail Conservancy group to Shelburne Council in 2020 but never followed through due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The rationale behind that was that Shelburne has seen a lot of new residents move into the area, who may have some general awareness of the existence of the trail, but may not be as familiar with it as some of those of us who grew up here,” said Mills.

Denyse Morrissey, chief administrative officer (CAO) for the Town of Shelburne, noted that the Town is undergoing a redevelopment of Fiddle Park, and has roughly 30 acres of land not slated for redevelopment that could be explored by Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Club.

“There’s probably a lot of sensitivities with respect to the ecosystems of those parcels that we’ve never really had enough chance to examine and do research on, so that’s another partnership we could potentially look at,” said Morrissey.

Morrissey also pointed out that the Town of Shelburne has completed its Parks and Recreation Master Plan, which highlighted trail connectivity as a critical improvement.

“This is an exciting opportunity. Trails are so important for alternate transportation, outdoor recreation and a healthy community,” said Morrissey.

Shelburne Town staff will be following up with the Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club on potentially collaborating on future initiatives for the community.

To learn more about the Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club visit their website – www.dufferinbrucetrailclub.org.