The Wellend Canal Trail Mission Report

A group of us went out to The Welland Canal today in search of a Mythic Trail based around rumour, inuendo, and various cave-drawings that Jay had stumbled across.

Jen got me up after I hit the snooze button. Luckily she had set the alarm on both her watch and her phone as well. We were in bed by 11:00, so I got a pretty decend night's sleep for a change. I met up with Jay in Etobicoke, and we headed for Joel's in Burlington.

The Scooby Gang consisting of Jay, Joel, Stephen, Carla and myself piled into "The Mystery Machine" (Joel's Van) and headed off to the unexplored wilds of the Niagara Wine Region.

I'm happy to report back that there is 42km of skatable trail that is mostly wonderful to skate. However, there are a few portions that are a bit more technical, including sections where gravel is scattered intermittently on otherwise smooth prestine asphalt. There are also quite a few hills including some that require an extra bit of maneuverability. The descent down the escarpment might give some folks trouble. Gates, Railway Tracks, bridges, heavily trafficked intersections, small children, convenience store domestic disputes, and Tourists were all obstacles we encountered along the way. Street Skating skills are highly recommended if you are to undertake the entire trail, however there are smaller sections that are ideal for those who are looking for a skate similar to the Toronto MGT.

The best part of the Welland Canal Trail is the fact that it links up with the Friendship Trail, which adds another 24km of smooth paved surface to skate on.

As for the skate itself, what a wonderful experience it was. According to my GPS, we managed to log in about 106km today. A bit more than our anticipated 84km due to the fact that we decided to add on a portion of The Friendship Trail to the skate at Joel's suggestion to up our mileage to 100km. It turned out to be an excellent idea given how nice the Friendship Trail is. It is built on on old railway bed and is a pleasure to skate given how smooth it is. The only drawback is that there is generally a road cutting across every km or two. I seem to recall most of the Wellend Trail being quite flat other than a few sections, including a steep climb up the escarpment, which led to a quick descent on the way down. We opted to take the road which had a good roll out.

There were a variety of technical challenges which kept it interesting, but you can't beat the scenary on a skate like this. There was suprisingly little traffic along most of our journey given how nice a Trail it was. Luckily we are all skaters of similar ability, so the pack stayed together quite well for the most part. The Gravel was a bit of an issue as well, but no luckily no one fell despite some stumbles. As a group of experienced skaters, I think we were all pretty good about calling the obstacles, and luckily Joel was familiar with the sections along Port Colburn.

We found a couple of nice places to stop... Port Colburn had a Food Basic and 7-11 that we used to fill up our water supply and eat some bananas. We also had a quick break in Thorold for the best Freezie Pop I've ever eaten, just before fun descent down the escarpment.

We were caught out in the rain for the final 10km or so, but it wasn't really that bad. Most of us are experienced at skating in the rain, and it wasn't too heavy.

Upon examination of the Bicycle Map we picked up at the Information Centre, we think it might be possible to do a 130+km loop that would take us down from the start of the Welland Canal to Niagara on the lake, through Niagara Falls, out to Fort Erie (a route I skated back in the days before they cancelled the Casino Niagara Marathon), up the Friendship trail and the final leg would be the 42km of the Wellend Canal.

Again, we'd be undertaking this with the same degree of exploration and wonder that Chris Columbus set out with to discover an Eastern Shipping route to the Orient. I'd imagine the roughest stretch would be the Niagara Parkway between the Falls and Fort Erie, although the short route between Welland and Niagara on the Lake is the major X-Factor at this point.

I'm very much looking forward to our next adventure as we undertake the Niagara Circle Skate!

WHAT I ATE TODAY
Vector and Nature's Path Zen Cereal in Soy Milk. Strawberries and Yogurt. Vanilla Cliff Shot. Cliff Blocks. Freezie Pop. Banana. Apple. Coke. Brownies. half a banana. 2 Lick's Gobbler's with all the fixin's. Frozen Mango/Peach/Pineapple, Greens, Soy Milk, ecchinacia, vitimin D, Soy Milk Smoothie.