Philip Gosling Side Trail
You begin at the southeast corner of the parking lot and follow the Philip Gosling Side Trail for 600 m to the white blazes of the main Trail. Philip Gosling was the first Trail Director of the Bruce Trail Association, and the man responsible more than 40 years ago for putting the Bruce Trail on the ground. He is recognized by the Bruce Trail Association as one of the four Founders.
When you reach the white blazes of the main Trail, turn right (south) and shortly before Campbellville Road, notice the plaque: “Near this spot the first blaze on the Bruce Trail was painted in July, 1962.” It “commemorate[s] 40 years of cooperation between the landowners and the volunteers of the Bruce Trail.” Now turn north (away from the road) and follow the white blazes uphill for 600 m. Then take the blue-blazed Hilton Falls Side Trail on your way to the falls. Just before the falls is a large pothole. Just after the glaciers retreated, this spot was part of a watercourse that carried the glacial torrents over the Escarpment.
Rocks rotating in the swirling waters gradually drilled large holes in the bedrock. Next you reach the Falls. They cascade over the rock face from a height of about 10 m. The best view is from the gorge below, reached by a flight of stairs that lead to a viewing platform. Across the creek are the ruins of a mill which dates back to 1835. After viewing the falls, simply take the Conservation Authority’s clearly marked trail back to the parking lot.
With file information from the Bruce Trail, for more information on this and other Bruce trails please purchase the Bruce Trail map and trail guidebook. The Bruce Trail is the oldest and longest marked hiking trail in Canada. It is 840 km long, with over 440 km of side trails. Every year more than 400,000 visits are made to the Trail as people walk, snowshoe, watch wildlife, take photographs and admire the glorious scenery of the Escarpment.
The Bruce Trail was instrumental in the Escarpment being named a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations in 1990 - one of only twelve such reserves in all of Canada. The Bruce Trail is a member of the Ontario Trails Council through affiliation with Hike Ontario.
Hilton Falls Conservation Trail - Bruce Trail
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