Fletcher Creek Ecological Preserve is a hidden gem located at the northern edge of the Hamilton watershed. With temperatures cooling off this time of year, it is the perfect time to walk, run or bike through the trails at the Fletcher Creek Ecological Preserve. The old quarry offers a unique piece of history that is tucked away amongst the trees and plants. The picturesque back drop of the quarry and crystal clear quarry ponds is fabulous for those who enjoy photography.
Once you hit the trails and start to explore you soon realize Fletcher Creek has more to offer then just trails. Fletcher Creek is the home to Hamilton’s’ only Fen. This one of a kind Eco System produces some really special plants. Two interesting carnivorous plants I happen to come across while I was exploring were: the Pitcher plant – (Sarracenia purpurea) and the round leaved Sundew - (Drosera rotundifolia)
Pitcher plant – (Sarracenia purpurea)
Round leaved Sundew - (Drosera rotundifolia
Fletcher Creek Ecological Preserve is a precious property that needs to be enjoyed, cherished and protected for many generations to come. Grab your sweater, hiking shoes and come enjoy a cool place on a cool day.
February 2nd isn’t just about groundhogs and
shadows. It’s also World Wetlands Day, the day the Convention on Wetlands was
adopted in 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian
Sea. To read more about Ramsar Convention of Wetlands, please click here.
World Wetlands Day 2013 focused on the relationship between
water and wetlands and reflected on the
interdependence between water and wetlands and the key role that wetlands play.
Wetlands - marshes, bogs, fens and swamps - are an essential part of the water
cycle and they play an important role in ensuring water quality. Wetlands are
places we want to protect as primary sources of vital drinking water.
Wetlands are also essential to our environment - they filter
pollutants from our water, help control floods, and provide habitat for
numerous wildlife species, including many on the endangered list. A total of 33
per cent of Ontario and 14 per cent of Canada is wetland. Unfortunately, as
much as 80 per cent of Ontario's wetlands have been lost to urbanization.
Here in Hamilton, we are fortunate to have one of the
largest – and relatively undisturbed - swamps in southwestern Ontario, the Beverly Swamp. Located in Flamborough, this
wetland is the source area for Spencer, Grindstone and Fairchild creeks and
features a rich diversity of plant and animal life, including some that are
rare to the Hamilton region.
We also are fortunate to have the Copetown Bog, a biologically
significant bog that contains plants representative of Arctic muskeg vegetation,
such as cranberries, pitcher plants, and sundew plants. "Summit Bog"
is a wetland containing an island of sphagnum moss floating atop a bed of peat.
Plants that prefer wet, acidic, and nutrient-poor conditions grow in and around
the area. Because of its sensitivity, public use is not encouraged. However,
the bog can be viewed from the Hamilton-to-Brantford Rail Trail, located just
east of Highway 52 at Copetown.
The Vinemount Swamp is the largest wetland in the east end
of the City of Hamilton and offers visitors a chance to see a wetland up close.
It encompasses the headwaters of both
Stoney Creek and Forty Mile Creek and provides a significant amount of
discharge to those streams. Although it does not rival the Beverly Swamp in
overall size, it does have many similar features. It’s definitely a place close to the City
where you can get away to the quiet and beauty of Nature in minutes.
So the next time you use water to brush your teeth, make
your coffee or shower in the morning, think about the wetland the water most
likely spent part of its life slowly filtering through. And imagine what your life would be like
without the abundance of water and wetlands that Hamilton has to offer.
"Hamilton Conservation Authority". When I first read those words as a recent university grad on a job hunt, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. To be honest I didn’t really know what a Conservation Authority was. And my thoughts of Hamilton most certainly weren’t that of Conservation.
I’d lived in Niagara nearly all of my life and really only knew of Hamilton as that place on the side of the QEW with all the smoke stacks. I will admit that it was a very limited perspective, but one I think many have while travelling over the Skyway bridge. It wasn’t until I started working at HCA that my view of the city (that I now call home) changed.
As part of my training as a new HCA employee, I was given a tour of our watershed which was a real eye opener for me. I learned that not only does Hamilton have trees, but there are lots of them! It also turns out that there are a lot of waterfalls here too! Those of us from Niagara Region are taught to believe that we have the most beautiful and unique spots across the NiagaraEscarpment. After all, it is the ‘Niagara’ Escarpment, but it became obvious rather quickly that Hamilton poses some pretty stiff competition.
Places like Christie Lake and Valens Conservation Areas showed me that it doesn’t take a 5 hour car ride to get out of the city and actually feel like you are out of the city. My drive to work in the Dundas Valley is certainly nothing to complain about either, and is quite a nice change from the hustle and bustle of downtown.
Every now and again people will crack jokes about Hamilton, and now I find that I am the first to defend my new home. Not many people can walk out the door of their workplace and onto a hiking trail. There’s really no better way to find out what’s out there until you get out and experience if for yourself... and until you do, you truly won’t know what you’re missing.
