Bushwacking 101

If you can’t see a trail for the trees at your cottage, cut a private path

For Norma Carter, it all started with a funny-looking maple tree her kids referred to as “the horse.” She’d often take them back into the bush behind her Diamond Lake camp and marvel at its equine shape. Problem was, their route was densely wooded. “I wanted to make it easier to get back there, and enjoy that part of my property more,” Carter recalls. So, mindful of the forest life, she began building a walking trail and, five years later, she’s still at it. Trail-building is now her cottage passion.

Anyone with a bit of cottage bush they’d like to make more passable can become a trailblazer with some basic knowledge and simple hand tools. First, make sure your land isn’t home to one of Ontario’s endangered species, or designated as environmentally fragile. You can check this out by calling your municipal office and your district Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) office. The MNR’s databases relate mainly to Crown lands, but the information will likely be relevant to nearby private lands.

When building a low-impact trail, it’s really a matter of “less is more,” notes Allen MacPherson, a former Ontario Provincial Parks superin-tendent who taught trail design and construction at Fleming College in Lindsay. One way to get started, he says, is to simply follow an existing deer trail. Although the path may appear to wander somewhat, usually the animals pick the best route. There could be some displacement of the wildlife, he warns, though a lightly used private trail shouldn’t create any big problems.

Before you begin clearing, walk the path in late fall or early spring, when you can see the lay of the land, noticing features such as running water or swampy areas. Once you’re sure of your route, cut a swath about half a metre wide for a modest, single-file trail. You don’t need much beyond an axe, a pruning saw, long-handled loppers, and a sturdy swede saw. “No chainsaws,” urges MacPherson. Where you’ve taken out snags and small trees, cut the stumps to ground level so they don’t trip you up. Watch for places that are vulnerable to erosion; run your trail along the side of a hill rather than straight down, and consider “sidelogging,” i.e., laying a sturdy log along the low side of a sloping path to minimize runoff. Higher and drier is always best, not just for your comfort but to avoid damage to boggy habitats. If the trail crosses a wet area, build a simple bridge or, even easier, reroute the course. “It makes the path more interesting anyway,” he says.

Carter’s trail is now about a kilometre long, but she devotes only a few hours a weekend to it. “With more time, it would have been easy to clear in a summer.” Like any cottage project, it’s a work in progress. 

- Michelle Kelly

Published in the September/October 2005 issue of Cottage Life magazine.
Copyright © 2005 by Cottage Life. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any article, photograph, or artwork, for other than personal use, in whole or in part, without the written permission of the publisher is strictly forbidden.