Waterdown Trail

This trail winds, twists and turns over ravines as it descends into the Grindstone Creek valley. At first you look deeply into the ravines, from one ridge to another. It begins in the forest and leads toward the falls.



Halfway through, as you start to follow the creek, the landscape changes. The even ground becomes rugged with boulders jutting into the hills. The stairs on steep parts help you ascend to Smokey Hollow.

It's difficult to imagine that this quiet valley was a bustling industrial centre. Many chimneys dispatched smoke and steam and the valley earned the name Smokey Hollow. By early 1900s, as steam and electricity replaced water power, mill operators had to contend with declining markets and more efficient energy sources. Fire claimed several of the mills and the final blow came in 1912 when a railway was constructed through the valley.



A placard at the waterfall lookout displays a picture of railway construction in 1912, and, the industry that was around it. More spectacular than the scene at this overlook is the hidden waterfall that cascades down a distant hillside along the trail. Don't miss it! Highlight: Smokey Hollow Gorge, deep ravines.



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.

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