14 Best Parks in Vaughan Ontario With Walking and Hiking Trails

Vaughan is a booming suburb north of Toronto and while most visitors and local residents will think about Vaughan Mills and Canada’s Wonderland but what a lot of people don’t know is that there’s an incredible wealth of green spaces, nature walks, and hiking trails nestled in the neighbourhood.

For anyone wanting to get a breath of fresh air and feel like you are hours up north when you’re only minutes around the corner, this is the definitive guide to the best parks in Vaughan with a spotlight on those with great walks and hiking trails.

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Looking for something specific in this guide on parks in Vaughan?  Jump to the park that you’re interested in.

14 Best Parks in Vaughan

Wrapped around the blocks of houses, strip malls, and commercial districts are a wealth of parks. There are easily hundreds of parks but which ones are worth a special trip out to explore? Here are my picks.

COVID-19 Notice
Currently, all City of Vaughan parks are open to varying degrees. I recommend that you check the latest news from the city and individual park listings that I have linked to.
As a whole, no facilities are open and that includes bathrooms.
OFFICIAL UPDATE

1. Bindertwine Park

At first this might seem like an inconspicuous neighbourhood park but this is one of those hidden gems that is a gateway to so much more.

Located in Kleinburg and right by Islington Avenue, this is first-and-foremost a great family park packed with features such as large open fields, baseball diamond, soccer field, and tennis courts.

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That’s just the tip of the iceberg as the park also is the start of a trail system called the William Granger Greenway that is well-maintained and follows a tumbling stream with plenty of green foliage.

This connects directly to the Canadian McMichael Art Collection and ends up in the next park on this list, Boyd Conservation Area. This is one portion of the Humber River Trail and itself is 5.7 kilometres long.

TIP: The McMichael Art Collection has paid parking ($7) so by starting off at Bindertwine Park and walking in, you can save a few bucks.

Along the way you’ll encounter numerous natural habitats, heritage resources, and cultural discoveries as this was an aboriginal trade route known as the Toronto Carrying-Place Trail.

2. Boyd Conservation Area

This is one of the most well-known green spaces in Vaughan. Located within the headwaters of the Don and Humber Rivers, this is a great park to get back to nature without having to go that far as it’s south of Rutherford Road.

Key highlights include a steep-sided Humber River Valley and big hill that gives you gorgeous view points of the Humber River. The park is great for picnics with quite a number of areas to set up which makes it great for families. You then have a great trail system that takes you into the woods and man-made rapids that is also part of the William Granger Greenway.

You also have a really good chance of spotting wildlife such as garter snakes, tadpoles, frogs, and birds.

3. Kortright Centre

Kortright Centre is one of my favourite parks in Vaughan because of it’s well-roundedness in terms of having large green space for activities like picnics but also having an abundance of trails to choose from, and an educational centre focused on sustainable technology.

In fact, Kortright Centre has Canada’s largest educational demonstrations of renewable energy and technologies. This can be seen firsthand by participating in their renewable energy workshop.

In addition, Kortright has a ton of different programs for children and adults alike. All you have to do is check out their calendar of events.

Not to be missed as well is the Sugarbush Maple Syrup Festival which happens every year from March to April.

4. Sonoma Heights District Park

At the south west corner of Islington Avenue and Major Mackenzie Drive West is community park that has all the sports fixings including baseball diamond, bocce field, basketball court, skateboard park, soccer field, tennis courts, and a water park. This makes it awesome for kids.

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What you might not know though is that there is a really beautiful and relaxing paved, easy, and loop walk that takes you from Sonoma Heights District Park all the way to Napa Valley Park in the south.

The trail goes under the hydro lines and is in between residential neighbourhoods but it makes for an easy walk and is also great for rollerblading, cycling, and running.

TIP: While you can start at Napa Valley Park, Sonoma Heights has a parking lot.

5. Mapes Park and Rainbow Creek Park

This is an awesome neighbourhood walk in Woodbridge just north of Highway 7.

Flanked by open green spaces, benches, and tall trees, you’ll love the meandering paved walkway and the flowing creek. The walk is easy with minimal inclines and great at all times in the day as it is well-lit as well.

Officially called Rainbow Creek Walk, this connects Mapes Park to the west and Rainbow Creek Park on the southern side.

To access the park, your best bet is the street parking is available at Mapes Park and Woodbridge Avenue. There is also a parking lot at Rainbow Creek Park.

6. Nort Johnson Park

This is a gorgeous loop trail that runs alongside the Humber River that’s called the Riverwalk.

The Riverwalk loop is well-maintained, paved, and lit. It’s an easy trail with moderate inclination.

This will soon be one of your favourites especially with the river and the wispy willow trees.

A neat little bonus bout this trail is that it is actually part of the Woodbridge TreeCaching Trail. This is a digital integration along a 1.5 km route that gives you an interactive way of identifying tree species through your phone through QR codes.

7. Giovanni Caboto Park

Just north of Highway 7 and Weston Road, is a hidden gem of a park that is packed with features that is perfect for kids and also many different walkways.

This is just the beginning though as there’s a trail known as Jersey Creek. Linking Jersey Creek Park with Chancellor District Park, and Giovanni Caboto Park, you’ll be able to stroll through a large part of the local neighbourhood and enjoy a comfortable linear walk.

I recommend starting at Giovanni Caboto Park because this is where the parking is.

Kids will love this walk because there’s a pretty awesome dinosaur-themed sandbox along this walking trail.

Note that to go between the parks, you will have to cross neighbourhood intersections.

8. Vellore Hall Park

Wrapped around two scenic ponds and 4 Vaughan parks including Vellore Hall Park is the Vellore neighbourhood walk.

This is one of those walks that isn’t an obvious path but you can easily start at Vellore Hall Park, through the woodlot, head up and around the dual ponds, make your way over to Starling Park, up to Hawstone Park before coming back around down through Matthew Park.

What you’ll appreciate about this hike is that you’ll be able to cross through a dynamic range of scenery that goes from domesticated neighbourhood paths to forested nature.

9. Mackenzie Glen District Park

Neighbouring Mackenzie Glen Public School is a vast green space that covers a portion of the Bartley Smith Greenway.

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This is a bit of a choose-your-own-adventure area. You can keep things easy by walking around the park itself which on its own is scenic especially with the view of the pond.

For those wanting to do an extended walk, there is a trail system that takes you north up to Teston Road and south towards McNaughton Road (passing by Melville Park along the way).

10. Pheasant Hollow Park

This hiking trail is less about the park itself but where it’s connected to. Belonging to a trail called the Peter Rupert, there’s an entire wilderness escape here that includes the Golden Forest Pond and Cook Woodlot.

While the park itself has the be one of the best groomed and extremely new, the woods across the street is where this walking trail really shines. Covering a large achrage of pristine woods of Sugar, Maple, Pine, Ash, Basswood, Bur Oak, Ironwood, and Elm, there are a ton of main and secondary paths to explore.

Once you get to the other end, you have the Golden Forest Pond which is a large reservoir of water but teeming with life.

Come here for a great opportunity to spot birds, and see scenic landscapes.

The trail that runs up to Golden Forest Pond is also great for cyclers as they have dedicated bike lanes here.

Note that to access Cook Woodlot, you’ll need to cross Peter Rupert Avenue.

11. Marita Payne Park

Between Highway 407 and Dufferin is another outdoor oasis that I’m sure you’ve passed by many times without noticing.

There are numerous linear and loop walking trails that take you around ponds, bridges, and creek. You also have the option of visiting the Glen Shields Park.

This hike is part of the Bartley Smith Greenway which means you can easily extend this hike north through the Highway 407 under-pass or south by following the creek.

This park is awesome because all the main parts of the trail making it great for bicycles. There’s a large pond and that’s always a hit with the kids with all the ducks and geese that hang out there. Lastly, there’s a nice dynamic change of scenery from your general walking path to the baseball diamond, the pond, bridge underpass, hydro lines, and the rumble of the highway.

12. Maple Nature Reserve

This is one of my favourite nature hikes in Vaughan and one that almost seems in the middle of nowhere.

Across from Eagle’s Nest are a couple of abandoned buildings that you’ll see on Dufferin but walk deeper in and you’ll discover a 35 hectare nature experience filled with flora and fauna.

With this nature walk, you’ll be able to do a circuit that connects a number of named trails that has you completely immersed in the forest of varying inclinations and mini-valleys.

I particularly appreciated how well marked the trails are with a full map at every single intersection.

In addition to the network of nature trails, you also have the day camping and picnic area which is great for large groups or if you literally want to set up tents.

13. Sugarbush Heritage Park

This heritage park is centred around the Historic Baker House which was built in 1953 and gives visitors a glimpse of Upper Canada when it settled when Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe put lots up along Yonge Street for sale.

Right next to the house is a large woodlot (Baker’s Woods) where you’ll often find dog walkers, hikers, and runners. In the woods you’ll find an inner and outer circuit that you can take.

With a spacious parking lot, washroom facilities, and resting areas, Sugarbush is an ideal park for all ages.

14. North Maple Regional Park

Vaughan’s newest park currently features 200 acres as part of Phase 1 and has plans to expand upwards to 900 acres in the future.

Located off Keele Street between Teston Road and Kirby Road, the highlight are the two groomed soccer fields and 5 kilometres of walking trails that are well-maintained, partially-paved, and lit.

This is a redevelopment area that is surrounded by the settings of the Oak Ridges Moraine and Don River.

While you may not be using the soccer fields, what I love about this park are the long meandering and incredibly wide trails that loop around the outer ring of the park and criss crosses with other trails. It’s a mixed gravel and paved road which makes some paths great for cycling/running or walking.

The most picturesque of this walk has to be the lake.

Another feature that makes this park worth coming to are the area surrounding the facilities. First of all you have brand new bathrooms and change rooms here. You also have these giant umbrellas that create the perfect shade for sitting or using of the picnic tables. There are also Muskoka chairs here as well for lounging and looking out into the wide open green space.

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Map of Top Vaughan Parks

TIP: Open this map in a new tab (maximize icon) and click on the 3 vertical dots in the menu to “Copy map” to your own account. This way you can use the Google Maps app to open it up on your phone. You will need data to access the map.

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Additional Vaughan Hiking Trail Resources

I’ll be the first to admit that the City of Vaughan doesn’t have the most friendly website and it’s not very clear who is the owner of information when it comes to parks, conservations, and trail systems.

The below is a list of resources that I’ve found helpful for more details and maps.

• City of Vaughan Trails – This is focused on the large trail systems in Vaughan including the Super Trail, Bartley Smith Greenway, and William Granger Greenway.
• York Region Trails – Vaughan belongs to the greater York Region and this page allows you to choose Vaughan and see specific trail maps.
• Toronto and Region Conservation Authority – This is the authority that runs all the conservations in the GTA and beyond. This is agreat starting point to discover other TRCA parks.
• Vaughan Cycling Map – A custom Google Map with all of the official cycling trails in the city.

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All Public Parks in Vaughan

For a full list of parks in Vaughan, I’ve compiled a handy table in Google Sheets to help you further sort and find the best park for you.

This is especially useful for anyone looking to find off-leash dog parks, ones with baseball diamonds, fitness stations, skating rinks, water parks, and more.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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As you can tell, there’s a plethora of options when it comes to parks in Vaughan that comes in all shapes and sizes. Now it’s time for you to go out and explore!