'There's no major city like it': Toronto's unique ravine system under threat

Leyland Cecco
Fri 21 Dec 2018 02.30 EST Last modified on Fri 21 Dec 2018 02.32 EST

It can be difficult to keep up with Lawrence Warriner while walking; running, it’s next to impossible. Many of the trails that weave through the ravines near his house in Toronto are well groomed, but for Warriner – a decorated trail runner and coach – the more exciting ones are off the beaten path, tracks only faintly visible to the eye.

He has come to these forests, which rise along the sides of the river valleys that snake through the city, ever since he was a child. He has discovered a secret communal stone grill next to a sandy beach, hidden by trees; he has watched awestruck as a dozen white-tail deer crossed a bridge. He has also seen things he can’t explain, such as a parade of men, women and children, clad in period clothing, walking the woods at dusk with antique rifles slung over their shoulders.

“You wouldn’t believe what you’ll find here,” he says.

The thickly forested valleys of Toronto’s ravine system are peerless: no major urban centre in the world comes close to its steep, voluminous corridors of woodlands. In total, the dramatic formations measure more than 30 times New York’s Central Park, earning Toronto the nickname “the city within a park”.

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/dec/21/theres-no-major-city-like-it-toronto-unique-ravine-system-under-threat