Mary and Nancy’s Trans Canada Trail: A Family Connection to Active Living and the Outdoors
Written by Mary Charleson
I remember my mom, Nancy, calling me quite excited about a hiking trail project she was involved in. It was 1992, when Trans Canada Trail had just been formed, and the Discovery Routes Trails Organization was working with the Magnetawan Area Business Association and community members to fundraise. Their goal was linking Canada from coast to coast to coast, and she was contributing by “purchasing three metres of trail” on the Rosseau to Nipissing portion of Old Nipissing Road. The road, built in the 1840s as the only route to the north, ran through the main street of Magnetawan, Ontario, the town where my mom grew up. Magnetawan was also where we had vacationed as a family, where I returned every summer from Vancouver with my husband to our cottage on Ahmic Lake, and where we were married in 1991.
An annual ritual – and a rite of passage
Photo courtesy of Mary Charleson
Nancy had spent her youth hiking, skiing and recreating along this route, which would become part of the Trans Canada Trail. As a young teacher in her 20s, she travelled the Old Nipissing Road daily to the one-room schoolhouse in Spence Township. To say she was connected to the land that the trail would pass through was an understatement.
She proudly attended the July 6, 2002, unveiling ceremony of the Trans Canada Trail pavilion in Magnetawan, to honour the 700 named individuals and businesses on the plaque, who had supported the effort. That summer, we walked part of the trail together when I visited. It would become an annual ritual to view the pavilion and walk on the Trail each summer. And it became a rite of passage I continued with my daughter in 2017 after my mom passed away, when we attended a memorial for her in Magnetawan.
Inspired by my mom’s passion
Photo courtesy of Mary Charleson
Fundraising to support the building and maintenance of the trail network took place all across Canada. In the mid 1990s and early 2000s, inspired by my mom’s passion for the Trans Canada Trail project, and our mutual love of the outdoors, I jumped at the chance to support fundraising efforts where I lived in BC. So, I too contributed by “purchasing three metres of trail” as my mom had, which would later be commemorated at the Trans Canada Trail pavilion at Waterfront Park, North Vancouver, in 2003.
I remember phoning to tell her about it. “Mom, I bought three metres of the Trans Canada Trail, like you did, here in North Vancouver. We’re now linked in our support for the Trail and connected from Ontario to BC.”
The Trail connected her to her life in Ontario
Mom eventually moved out to West Vancouver in 2000, to be closer to her grandchildren and family. She continued to be active in her newly adopted community, both hiking and cross-country skiing Hollyburn Ridge, part of the Trans Canada Trail system on the North Shore. She truly loved the notion that the Trail was part of a route that connected to her life in Ontario.
I remember receiving a Trans Canada Trail backpack, as a gift for my contribution. I have hiked local trails proudly with that pack, and I’ve also taken it on adventures abroad — the most memorable being the hike to Machu Picchu in Peru. Mom sported Trans Canada Trail merchandise proudly too. She wore a Trans Canada Trail ballcap that she received in support for her 1992 fundraising efforts, pretty much down to UV damaged threads. And I found a Trans Canada Trail pin that she had saved in her jewellery box when I was clearing out her apartment after she passed.
A way of grounding the connection
Photo courtesy of Mary Charleson
Mom was active through her 80s, but into her early 90s she required assistance. Helping her hold on to her independence and dignity, we bought her hiking poles for walking and balance. They seemed much more fitting for a woman who had valued being active in the outdoors her whole life than a cane.
I kept those hiking poles and now use them myself when navigating challenging terrain. It’s a way of grounding the connection. They’re pictured here with me at the North Vancouver Trans Canada Trail pavilion.
I guess you could say we both valued what the Trans Canada Trail stood for — physically as an opportunity for everyone to be active in the outdoors, but also mindfully, connecting communities by a Trail that unites an entire country.
Mary Charleson is a travel journalist and founder of Carryonqueen.com, a site where she shares adventure travel writing inspiration for those over 50. Connect with her on Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube, or subscribe to her monthly newsletter.
