Top 6 Places for Fall Foliage

Experience Carolinian forest in its colourful fall cloak along Royal Botanical Gardens 27 kilometres of walking trails that include over 20 lookouts, 7 boardwalks and 21 stream crossings. You’ll want to hike both in the Arboretum and along the nature trails. Although leaf viewing choices here are almost endless, don’t miss the Rock Garden in autumn. This unique spot for uncommon perennials, flowering conifers, Japanese maples, ornamental flowering trees and water features displays remarkable fall colours and fantastic textures in the form of berries, seed heads and the colourful foliage of trees and shrubs.

A different type of colour adorns the garden beds at Laking Garden, where irises pop up on the Lower Terrace and autumn crocus and lily-of-the-field make their way out of the ground, marking the borders of the garden in pink and yellow. Vines, trees and perennials also provide fabulous interest in Hendrie Park. RBG posts fall colour reports and provides a blooms calendar on its website to help you time your visit.

Explore some of the hiking trails along the Niagara Escarpment to discover fall waterfall wonders surrounded by beautiful changing foliage. Through November, Spencer Gorge Conservation Area, which is home to Tew Falls and Webster Falls and the stunning Dundas Peak, will offer reservations for two-hour hiking windows. Reservations must be made online in advance. Not too far away, you can find Hilton Falls Conservation Area in Burlington, which is home to another spectacular waterfall. Online reservations are also required here for fall visits.

These picturesque towns boast quiet, tree-lined streets that merge into driver-pleasing countryside, with cafés, gourmet shops and farms beckoning along the way. Take Snake Road, a winding, tree-canopied dream for drivers and cyclists that starts in Burlington and leads you to Waterdown.

Consider a stop at Dyments, a pumpkin patch and farm market in Dundas that sits just past the crest of Sydenham Hill with epic views from the top of the Niagara Escarpment. If you need a warm-up from the autumn chill, Detour Café offers great brunches and the city’s best coffee, located in the heart of Dundas’s quaint retail strip. Read our Fall For Dundas and Ancaster article for more stop suggestions.

Fall-coloured trees make a walk on the Bruce Trail and Niagara Escarpment extra enjoyable. The conservation areas of Halton and the Credit Valley are perfect spots to access these famous natural wonders.

Experience the Niagara Escarpment’s cultural heritage at Limehouse Conservation Area in Halton Hills. Seeing the vibrant red, yellow and orange leaves in one of the last old-growth forests in Ontario is a “natural.” The Bruce Trail and its side trails here take visitors through a variety of Escarpment landscapes. Head to its geological heart at an area known as the “Hole in the Wall,” where ladders cut through fissures in the Escarpment rock.

Terra Cotta Conservation Area is a trail lover’s paradise with a variety of trails that run through the forests, fields, lakes and ponds of the Niagara Escarpment’s surroundings and let you experience natural settings close to urban and rural developments.

Spanning roughly one hundred square kilometres across and near the Niagara Escarpment, Rattlesnake Point has bold-faced cliffs, 13 kilometres of trails, and lots of scenic views and lookout points to populate your Instagram account with fall foliage photos.

If you’re looking for an exciting natural adventure on your hunt for fall foliage, head to Eramosa Karst Conservation Area. Filled with underground caves and streams, meadows and forest, it is also home to what is believed to be the largest number of unique karst features in any protected area in the province. Trails, boardwalks and bridges encourage exploration of unique geological formations, including a natural dolomitic limestone bridge and Ontario’s tenth-largest cave. On the outskirts of Stoney Creek, this special watershed area has four kilometres of trails to explore this autumn.

Canoe, kayak, or raft the Grand River and enjoy the fall-painted leaves of the surrounding Carolinian forest. Grand Experiences and Grand River Rafting are all great local outfitters that will provide your group with the expert guidance and gear you need for a memorable trip.

The 2-kilometre Six Nations of the Grand River Nature Trail in Ohsweken takes hikers on a journey through Carolinian forests and is an excellent option for young hikers. Interpretative signs along the route help create an appreciation for the largest single block of Carolinian woodland in Canada.