Hike #23 Davidson Boulevard to Sydenham St, Dundas

 

Davidson Boulevard to Sydenham


We started today on Davidson Boulevard in Dundas. We parked our second car at the Sydenham Lookout as the Rock Chapel Parking Lot (where we had planned to park) was closed for the season.  There is free parking but no facilities at either location.



Due to a detour, this section of the Bruce Trail is mostly on the road as you go through Dundas. This detour was not shown on the most recent Bruce Trail Map, version 30.3, that we had printed off the Bruce Trail Website. The detour is due to construction on King Street and adds about 2kms. We will revisit this section of the trail when it reopens. If a wooded trail is what you are looking for this detoured section of the Bruce Trail is certainly not the hike for you!


The detour starts by going through newer subdivisions in Dundas. 


After turning onto MacDougall Drive we went along a footpath that ran through Veterans Memorial Park. 


Footpath to Veterans Memorial Park

Playground in Veterans Memorial Park 

View of Dundas Water Tower (to the south) from Veterans Memorial Park




Footpath connecting Huntingwood Ave to Sullivan's Lane


Larraine Ave begins the climb out of Old Dundas and up the escarpment as it passes older row houses. 


Playground at the top of Larraine Ave

We had never walked through Old Dundas before and really enjoyed seeing all the older homes. 
Collection of interesting houses viewed in old Dundas


The Dundas Side Trail takes you to the  Bruce Trail Conservancy Head Office. We would have liked to stop in; however, they were closed. 


Spencer Creek



When we reached the end of the detour in the Bruce Trail we could see the ongoing construction at the base of King Street - i.e. the reason for the detour. 

King Street Construction (reason for the detour)

While the detour ends at Melville Street, the Bruce Trail does continue on the road for about another 2 kilometres.


The reason the cactus is the symbol for Dundas is due to Ben Veldhuis, a Dutch immigrant, who ran a large greenhouse specializing in internationally recognized cacti.


Collection of Churches in Old Dundas






A section of Sydenham St that climbs the escarpment towards the Sydenham lookout.


View of Dundas Driving Park from Sydenham Road (south and east)

Section of CN railway that runs under Syndenham St.

The last kilometre of our trek today was in the woods alongside the escarpment, east of Sydenham St between the road and the CN railroad tracks.  The trail switches back on itself as it climbs the escarpment.  The trail reconnects with the road about 80 meters north of the Syndenham Lookout.



One of several pedestrian bridges encountered in the woods alongside Sydenham St.





A small waterfall formed by runoff from Sydenham St just north of the Sydenham Lookout.

Staircase climbing the escarpment just north of the Sydenham Lookout.
The railings at the edge of the Sydenham Lookout can be seen in the picture

Up the escarpment to the top of the opposite side of Dundas Valley from where we started we reached the sign announcing the start of Flamborough, where we will start our next hike. 

Flamborough (a district of Hamilton) and the beginning of our next journey.

A short 80 metre Sydenham Lookout Side Trail (heading south) lead us to where we left our parked car. 


View Dundas from Sydenham Lookout


Hike #23

Date:                       Dec 26th, 2021

Start:                       Davidson Boulevard   

Finish:                     Sydenham Lookout

Distance:                6.97 km 

Time:                       1 hour 39 minutes

Difficulty:               Easy (in town and on roads)

Trail Use:                Multi-purpose 

Total kms hiked:    143.1 kms

Kms remaining:     768.8 kms


Points of Interest in the Area: The Bruce Trail along Melville Street runs parallel to the Dundas Downtown. Points of interest incude the Thirsty Cactus Pub, Carnegie Gallery, and the Downtown Dundas shopping district. There are also a few festivals that take place downtown such as the Cactus Festival and Buskerfest. We plan on checking out the Bruce Trail Conservancy Head Office on our next hike. 



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