Meadow Trail of the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park (Cataract Falls)

One of the prettiest areas near Toronto definitely has to be the Caledon region.  For cyclists it's an astronomical challenge with enormous hills and valleys. Caledon is in the region of the Oak Moraines and the Chedleton Badlands and has gorgeous vistas which makes it a paradise for day trippers.

The Forks of Credit Provincial Park is a part of the Bruce trail and streams the Credit River all the way through it.  It is home to an abundance of nature trails including the Meadow trail which leads you to an old historical mill and a cataract waterfall.

The mill was purchased by John Deagle back in 1820 and features a cascading waterfall.  John converted the mill into an electric generating station which dammed the credit river that created Cataract Lake.

The generating station was later sold and purchased by Ontario Hydro but was shut down in the mid 40s.

There is evidence today of the dam that was destroyed.  Today it is riddled with destruction and graffiti, although the ruins of the mill and the powerhouse are still in the park.  The stairs and bridge leading to the mill have been closed off due to erosion and construction this summer.

We as well as others found a way to venture closer to the waterfall.    It's a shame that people had destroyed the ruins of the Deagle mill with spray paint, as it's a reminder of the history there.  It's far to

o dangerous to try to clean it up now. 

The Meadow trail as a I mentioned earlier is a part of the Bruce trail and is about 4 km long.  There are several entry points, but I refused to pay $6.80 per head just to visit a trail, so we found a paid parking lot which only cost $2.00 by meter for 2 hours.

Provincial parks are becoming increasingly expensive, but in this case I really feel it's the principle of the matter.  For example if you drive your car into the park, you will be charged $6.80/per person in the vehicle, which I think is ridiculous.

We had a great time as I had before seen the Belfountain waterfall but never knew there was another waterfall located in the same park.  If you decide to come, I would suggest either pooling your money to go through the park from the main gates or entering from Meadow trail.  The trail is simple, and very steep at times but it's really good workout and to be honest it was a slow incline coming back out of the park so I never really noticed it.