Vedder River Rotary Trail

The Vedder River Rotary Trail is a beautiful trail that follows the Vedder River for about 8km offering many scenic views. The trail is a popular walking, jogging, or cycling route and busy on the weekends with families and others out walking their dogs.

There are several parking lots located throughout the route and you can choose to do a shorter version of the trail. The route described below begins at Vedder Park and goes the entire route, ending at the North Dyke Trail.

From Vedder Park, walk past the playground towards the river and begin following the Vedder River Rotary Trail, walking alongside the river in the downstream direction. For the first 3.5km, the trail follows the river, offering scenic views of the surrounding landscape and wildlife, such as ducks, geese, eagles, and the occasional heron. On a nice day, there are often quite a few people fishing along the river.

After about 3.5km, the trail veers away from the river and reaches the junction with the Peach Creek Rotary Trail. Continue to follow the Vedder River Rotary Trail as it veers back towards the river. Further down river, cross the bridge over Peach Creek and continue to where the Hopedale parking lot area is. There are plenty of benches along the trail to stop and soak in the scenic views of the area.

The trail passes underneath a train bridge as it continues to make its way downstream. Eventually, you cross a small wooden bridge and reach the junction to the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve. The nature reserve has several trails and a viewing platform for bird watching throughout the area. There is also a building with educational displays and a gift shop.

Continue following the Rotary Trail as it crosses another wooden bridge, before passing through a forested area with the occasional view of the river. When it reaches a junction, go right and continue to the end of the trail to the metal gate marking the end of the trail.

To return, you can simply walk back the same way that you came or you can follow the North Dyke Trail at the metal gate. The North Dyke Trail returns to the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve and, if you didn't already stop, this is a great opportunity to do so. From the Nature Reserve, you can continue to follow the North Dyke Trail or return to the Rotary Trail via one of the nature reserve trails. Continue to make your way east back up the Vedder River until you reach Vedder Park where you began.