Celebrating Thirty Years of the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail
This past summer, the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail (GLWT) celebrated a milestone birthday: its 30th anniversary! Spanning over 3,600 kilometres, the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail connects 170 communities, villages and First Nations along the shores of four Great Lakes: Lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron and Superior are all connected along the GLWT.
Meghan Reddick, Trans Canada Trail’s Chief Communications & Marketing Officer, recently attended an anniversary celebration of the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail. “What an inspiring gathering at the Waterfront Regeneration Trust Partners Meeting, celebrating 30 years of collaboration, vision and impact behind the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail,” Meghan says. “Over two days, more than 80 partners, funders, municipal leaders, volunteers and tourism professionals came together to reflect on three decades of achievement. It was a pleasure to hear about the beginnings of this remarkable trail from key leaders such as the Honourable David Crombie and Honourable Pauline Browes, P.C. Under the incredible leadership of Marlaine Koehler and David Meyer, the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail has become a story of community transformation, ecological regeneration and partnership in action — connecting people and places along one of the world’s great freshwater treasures.”
Photo credit: Trevor Hunsberger
The largest group of freshwater lakes on earth
The Great Lakes Waterfront Trail is managed by the Waterfront Regeneration Trust, an organization that works to protect, connect and celebrate the world’s largest body of freshwater.
The organization’s stated goal is to ensure people have access to the largest group of freshwater lakes on the planet, which contain 21 per cent of the world’s surface freshwater. They believe that the trail “reconnects people to the water and is a catalyst for improvements in many of the communities it joins.”
Trail users of the GLWT can connect to four Great Lakes, five bi-national rivers and four UNESCO biospheres — in addition to 95 conservation areas, including protected wetlands, forests and meadows. The trail can be used both for quick day use — biking through Toronto or heading out with the whole family for a walk or cycle along the water — or as a multi-day destination.
Photo credit: Rudderless Travel
Over 800 kilometres of the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail on the Trans Canada Trail
Several sections of the GLWT are also part of the Trans Canada Trail — over 800 kilometres, in fact! In Toronto, the Waterfront Trail – Martin Goodman Trail takes trail users through the heart of downtown, before continuing southwest through Etobicoke, Mississauga, Burlington and beyond. Farther north, the Trail follows the GLWT from Sudbury to Sault Ste. Marie, linking back up again near Thunder Bay.
Trans Canada Trail has worked closely with the Waterfront Regeneration Trust on close to 200 trail improvement projects in the past decade, from trailhead signage design, installation and repair to cleanup and awareness-raising events, and much more.
Photo credit: Jennifer Mahon
A new tri-lakes route for the 2025 Great Waterfront Trail Adventure
In recognition of the GLWT’s 30th anniversary, the Waterfront Regeneration Trust’s flagship cycling event, the 2025 Great Waterfront Trail Adventure, debuted a brand-new signature route, taking cyclists on a 640-kilometre loop that connects Lakes Ontario, Huron and Erie. The new route is meant to represent the GLWT’s “three decades of collaboration, community-building and conservation,” according to a recent statement.
The new tri-lakes route also brought an estimated $285,000 in benefits to communities along the trail and featured over 44 local businesses.
“The Great Lakes Waterfront Trail exists because dedicated people and partners — like the Trans Canada Trail — believe in it,” says Marlaine Koehler, Executive Director of the Waterfront Regeneration Trust. “Our municipal and conservation partners show their commitment with every improvement they make. Inspired by those who loved the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River, the trail is our path to a better relationship with these waters. Get out there and be part of this incredible legacy!”
Find the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail throughout Ontario, on and off the Trans Canada Trail.
Explore our interactive map to learn more.
Main photo credit: Jennifer Mahon
