The Ivan Forrest Gardens and the Glen Stewart Ravine are conjoined so I decided to bring them together into the same post. Ivan Forrest is a small lovely garden that you enter from Queen Street East in the "Beaches' neighbourhood. A perfect spot to have your quick lunch or just relax on one of the three benches at street level or a few located closer to to the fountain below.Every spring the garden comes to life with perennials and fresh flowers newly planted.
The newly built pedestrian bridge takes you through the Glen Stewart Ravine, an 11-hectare ravine lined with red and oak and maples.
A couple of years ago, a project was aimed to restore many areas of the ravine. The City of Toronto along with Toronto's Conservation Authority were focusing on some major repairs which included the failing retaining walls and replacing the staircases and bridges as well as improving the trails. The flow of the water from the slopes of Ames Creek needed to increase so a boardwalk was built as well.
Features included new elevated boardwalks and pedestrian bridges over the wetland to keep people of the newly planted areas. The damaged walls were reinforced with sand bags along with newly
planted grasses and herbs. Many of the non native trees were taken down
like the the Norway and Manitoba Maple and replaced with the natives
species like red oak and Maple and Black Cherry. complex ecosystem while at the same time allowing safer and heightened public access. 
We used to hangout here and scramble up and down the slopes or wander along its muddy tracks, dangerous though it was, this is much safer and better for the environment now.
Sadly there are still some ravines that may not always get the care they deserve and are treated like dumping zones. It essential to any city to have public access to our ravines. Nothing beats a good dose of nature when you are consumed with sounds of traffic, construction and all the stresses of city life.
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