The Scout Rock Trail is getting a makeover this summer, thanks to the Wintergreen Fund for Conservation.

This year, Wintergreen is supporting work on rejuvenating and upgrading the Scout Rock Trail by providing close to $10,000 in equipment, materials, and staff wages. The extra funding and support from summer staff will help rejuvenate the trails and keep up the trail system conservation.

Wintergreen also contributed $1,500 to a high school bursary that was given to Willow Walton, from Timmins High Vocational School last month.

Kees Pols, a volunteer for Wintergreen, says the organization is happy to support the trail systems in Timmins and encourages people to use them.

“Wintergreen is continuing to participate,” Pols said, “encourage the community to come out, use the trail system, use the outdoors. And we certainly look forward to continued support from the community when we go out to fund raise and ask for support from the people using the trails as well as any businesses we might approach in the coming months and the coming years.”

City Councillor Mike Doody was at the Scout Rock Trail on Tuesday for the funding announcement, and he says Timmins’ trail system is one of a kind and worth preserving.

“There is no municipality in Ontario that has a trail system like Timmins,” Doody said. “Technically today, you can circle the city of Timmins and our trail system. And you’d be amazed how many people do that; how many people use our trail system.”

Doody went on to talk about the humble beginnings of the MRCA and how fast it’s grown.

“Our trails are in good shape and we invite the public to use it, which they are doing,” he said. “When you think that we just started, really, with a trail around Gillies Lake and a couple of other places, we’ve come a long way.”

The Scout Rock Trail runs from the corner of 655 and Ross all the way over to Denise Park. The funds from Wintergreen will help the Mattagami Region Conservation Authority put in new culverts, and put down new material on the trail itself. The trail is about 2.5 kilometers, so the extra funds for wages for summer staff comes in handy too.

Dave Vallier, Mattagami Region Conservation Authority Manager, says the MRCA has a limited budget that covers the conservation of lots of trail systems in the area. The MRCA takes care of about 55-60 kilometers of trails within the city, and that’s not including the park spaces. The MRCA owns about 100 properties, some smaller than others.

“It benefits the MRC to have Wintergreen as their charitable arm,” Vallier said, “So this was a partnership this year to allow us to buy trail material and also allow us to pay for some summer student wages through Wintergreen as well.”

In the past, Wintergreen has helped the MRCA with equipment and material purchases. But, Vallier says, without the partnerships, people wouldn’t be able to enjoy the trails the way they do now.

“Without the partnerships, it would be hard for us at the Mattagami Region to do the things that we do in the city,” he said. “And people would not be able to enjoy the trail systems in some of the park space that we have without these partnerships. And we just want to thank Wintergreen for entertaining that option this year and [we] look forward to this continued partnership going forward.”

 

–With files from Timmins Today