Timmins has a lot to offer the outdoor enthusiast! There are hundreds of kilometres of Northeastern Ontario wilderness trails to explore in and around their city - check out the list below! There are also incredible snowmobile trails and the Porcupine Ski Runners to check out for winter activity.
Archie’s Rock is an interesting geological formation that dates back to the last ice age when a number of huge boulders were deposited on top of one another and in the middle of a dense forest. Scientists have suggested that these rocks, and the rock formation itself, are directly related to melting glaciers. Leave your vehicle on Little Star Lake Road near Highway 101. Hiking or biking, the trip requires a 1-km walk to the rock formation.
Walkers can park their cars at Legion Drive and follow the trail as it enters a spruce/pine forest. A short distance off the trail, you will find evidence of early geological forces that shaped the landscape and produced the gold-bearing rock directly beneath your feet. The return trip can be made using residential roadways or connecting to the south loop of the Bart Thompson trail that winds around Porcupine Lake.
This trail follows the Mattagami River to the Lafleur Bridge on the west side and returns to Mattagami Park on the east side of the river. Exotic wildlife, such as elk, can be seen in fenced-off paddocks at Cedar Meadows Resort on Norman Street.
This trail will take the walker or cyclist around the periphery of the old town of Timmins.
The Gillies Lake Conservation Area is the location of the most popular walking trail in Timmins. It is well-lit at night and access is possible from many points around the lake. There are two available parking lots: off Brunette Road north of Highway 101 and off Highway 655 about 1 km north of Highway 101.
High Falls is a series of rapids and waterfalls with a total drop of about 40 metres. Grassy River was the site of river runs in the early days of the timber industry. Logs were floated down from Peterlong Lake further upstream to the mills in Timmins. The trail is often used by ATVs in the summer and snowmobiles in the winter.
This is an extensive trail system throughout the Hersey Lake Conservation Area with many branches that make every outing a new experience. In the summer there is good swimming at Hersey Lake, the central hub of the trail system. A picnic area and shelter along with washroom facilities can be found there.
Walk over ground that was once the bottom of Ivanhoe Lake and now exposes a quaking bog, viewable from a platform with an interpretive panel. Another trail leads up and over esker ridges, passes beaver lodges and follows the shore of Saw Lake.
The park is located about 37 km east of Timmins. The route is mainly through jack pine forest with stretches of poplar and birch trees. The trail is fairly flat with some gentle hills along the way. Side trips can be made through the campground roads. Island Lake Campground is a beautiful region with an excellent swimming beach.
Nickie’s Nature Trail is an interpretive trail with podiums along the way describing the flora and fauna, with periodic rest stops, two areas with comfort stations and picnic tables, and a gorgeous viewing platform at Sunset Bay. There are three trail loops of varying lengths to suit everyone’s walking pleasure. This trail was established for all of us to develop and enjoy in memory of the late Nicole Duciaume-Poan – a Timmins-area native. It is hoped that the same love and respect that Nickie had for nature and this trail, which she walked, will grow in each of us.
Part of the Bart Thompson Trail system. Access is from any point around the lake. Most of the trail is along a wooded path near the water although roads are incorporated at the north end through Porcupine and Pottsville. Along the trail is the Whitney Cemetery at Deadman’s Point, a historical point of interest where over 40 people were buried after the famous fire of 1911 wiped out the community.
This is a walking/bicycle trail that connects the two communities of Schumacher and South Porcupine. The trail wanders through a mixture of trees ranging from poplar to white spruce to black spruce and, in the higher elevations, jack pine. It is relatively flat with some hilly sections.
In the winter, this trail is used by walkers and skiers. In the spring, summer and fall, cyclists and walkers travel its pathways. The trail wanders through low-lying areas with marsh marigolds in the spring to higher spots that were once used for farming, and finally through a ravine opening onto College Street across from Denise Park. In the spring the cherry blossoms make for a beautiful display on the trail just east of the hospital.
This trail follows an old rail bed that once connected the downtown with local sawmills. Popular with walkers and cyclists, the trail ends at the river waterfront, part of the Mountjoy Historical Conservation Area that was set aside following the disastrous flood of 1960.
