The top 5 winter hiking trails in Toronto

Winter hiking trails in Toronto are not the same as places you might choose to go snowshoeing. On the contrary, if you're going to be out exploring in your boots, it's important to select trails that are known to be low on the snow accumulation scale. Fortunately, this city is blessed with plenty options that won't force you to trudge through three feet of powder.

Here are my picks for the top winter hiking trails in Toronto.

Sun Valley Loop (Crothers Woods)
Much of the Don Valley is a beautiful place to hike for three seasons of the year (careful of the mud during spring, though), but once the snow has fallen, I find the double-track loop around Sun Valley the perfect destination. The terrain is gorgeous but not overly challenging, and if it's not too slippery, you can branch off to the various ridge trails of Crothers' Woods.

High Park Trails
High Park is another trail network that comes into its own in the winter. At other times of the year, one can find more challenging and visually interesting routes elsewhere (save for spring during Cherry Blossoms season), but the trails along the west side of the park are ideal in the snow. Take the ravine route off of West Rd. for a short backwoods experience, otherwise meander down to Grenadier Pond.

Leslie Street Spit
While you will likely be pounded by strong winds during parts of this walk/hike, Tommy Thompson Park is majestic in the winter, complete with wild ice formations that build up along the shore. On a miserable day, the landscape can feel almost lunar, but that's rather compelling if you can believe it. Bonus: you might walk for a few kilometres without seeing another soul.

Cedarvale Ravine and the Belt Line
Too many people know about Cedarvale Ravine to characterize it as a hidden gem, but it's still under-appreciated for both its beauty and walkability. Should you feel ambitious after exploring here, you can always walk a few blocks and hook up with the Belt Line Trail, which is also a beauty in the winter -- there's a lovely tree canopy, and it's easy to walk.

Moore Park Ravine and Don Valley Brick Works
Probably one of the nicest winter hikes one could do in Toronto is to walk south from the top of Moore Park Ravine down to the Brick Works. It's an easy downhill jaunt (at least on your way out), the ravine is majestic when snow-covered, and you can warm up with coffee/hot chocolate once you get to the Brick Works. After you've regained feeling in your extremities, you can explore the old quarry.

What did I miss? Add your favourite winter hiking trails in the comments.

Photo by Tony Mo in the blogTO Flickr pool.

by Derek Flack via blogTO