Ken Whillans Conservation Area is located at 16026 Hurontario St., in Caledon, Ontario. The park straddles two ponds, the Caledon Trailway, and the Credit River. The park is notable as you may have unknowingly driven by and noticed the big blue bridge across Highway 10, a part of this park. We visited in April 2023.
Ken Whillans Conservation Area was founded in 1954 atop the Kidd Property (hence the name of the pond). Nearby is the historic Sligo Hill and hamlet, see the image right. I couldn't find too much information online, but this link has a good summary.
Ken Whillans was the 46th mayor of Brampton, from 1982 to 1990, when he drowned in Prince Edward Island.
Ken Whillans offers:
- birding for all of these kinds of birds
- Harvest Pond offers stocked trout and pike
- Kidd Pond offers naturally sources smallmouth
- paddling on the two ponds
- numerous docks (like the one on the left)
There are 4 trails at Ken Whillans, and they are:
Caledon Trailway - 35km, flat terrain but difficult
Although this trail isn't entirely inside Ken Whillans, be sure to do part of it, especially the bridge.
Harvest Trail - 1km, easy
Going across the northside of Harvest Pond is the trail of the same name. Great birding area especially near the farms and the river.
Credit Valley Trail - 1.4km, easy
The other half of the Harvest Trail finishes the loop, but makes sure to pass around the Kidd Pond before returning.
Fisherman's Walk - 0.4km, easy
A shortcut. Lots of this trail is bridge and boardwalk, including the newly constructed one at the southern terminus.
Drive in, park, and hike.
Note that the photos in this section are not explicitly from this park, they are good photos of species that live here.
Beavers
Staghorn sumac
Smallmouth bass
Coniferous trees
Don't go in winter, it's closed. Didn't realize until after we hiked.
Make sure to at least climb across the bridge. It is a cool view.
Day trip here if you live in Toronto.
As previously mentioned, there's a bridge across Highway 10. Although the bridge is relatively standard, the view and the highway it is atop is not. Look northward and you'll see a big hill. This hill leads towards Devil's Pulpit, and Escarpment Sideroad. This road is colloquially called "Magnetic Hill" as it gives the illusion of you going up when you're actually going down. Look south and you'll have a good view of the Toronto skyline (on a clear day). The view south is better if you drive north on Highway 10, and look in your rearview. You'll see straight to Lake Ontario.
The newly constructed bridge on Fisherman's Walk as viewed from Credit Valley Trail.
Come here for the day. Should this be a bucket-list, must-see park? Absolutely not. Come for a picnic and leave. 4/10.
