10 Best Halton Hills Hiking Trails: Amazing Hikes in Georgetown, Acton and More

Here are the top 10 Halton Hills hiking trails, including hiking trails in Georgetown, Limehouse and Acton. I’ve written about many other Halton region hiking trails, too. You can find the Ontario Hiking guides to the best trails in Burlington, best hiking trails in Milton, and the best hikes in Oakville.

Halton Hills is spoiled for choice when it comes to hiking trails and conservation areas. There are several beautiful conservation areas and preserved parks with many hiking trails within them. The Bruce Trail runs through several of these parks and even connects them, so you could technically hike from one park to the next.

I suggest checking out the conservation areas first (Limehouse Conservation Area, Terra Cotta Conservation Area, Scotsdale Farm and Silver Creek Conservation Area) and then moving on to the community trails. If you live in Georgetown or Acton, some of these community hiking trails are a convenient alternative to the farther away parks.

Halton Hills Hiking: Limehouse Conservation Area

Limehouse Conservation Area is home to some of the best Halton Hills hiking trails, including the Bruce Trail. There are unique rock formations and escarpment landscapes that you can explore. You can spot a pretty arched bridge across the river on your way to discovering a piece of local history: lime kilns, mill ruins, and an old powder house.

Go hiking on the Bruce Trail, the Black Creek Side Trail, and the Credit Valley Conservation Trail. Hike through the “Hole in the Wall”, a natural feature where you’ll climb down a ladder and hike through the rock formations themselves. All in all, this is a really memorable place to go hiking and you’ll spend a brilliant day in nature.

Halton Hills Hikes: Silver Creek Conservation Area

Silver Creek Conservation Area features top Halton Hills hiking trails, including the Bruce Trail. Silver Creek is the largest of all the Credit Valley Conservation Areas. You can easily spend the entire day there or explore the park over several visits. We loved visiting in the spring to see thousands of trilliums in bloom, but this park is fantastic all year round.

There are boardwalk trails, waterways to view, a beautiful lookout point, and paths that wind around the escarpment. Some of the hiking trails include the Bruce Trail, the Roberts Side Trail, the Irwin Quarry Side Trail, the Great Esker Side Trail, the Maureen Smith Side Trail, and the Walking Fern Side Trail. Silver Creek Conservation Area connects to the Scotsdale Farm trails and Terra Cotta Conservation Area.

Georgetown Hiking Trails: Hungry Hollow Trail

The Hungry Hollow Trail is a seriously underrated trail in Georgetown, Ontario. The locals definitely know about this one as it connects several surrounding neighbourhoods. However, I only stumbled upon the Hungry Hollow Trail once I moved to Georgetown, so I’m certain that it’s a hidden gem for most people outside of Georgetown.

There are several different paths that encompass the Hungry Hollow Trails. These lead up to various neighbourhoods and continue beneath the underpass of Mountainview Road on both sides. In total, these trails are 7km long and they’re described as a medium difficulty by the municipality of Halton Hills.

Halton Hills Hiking Trails: Terra Cotta Conservation Area

Terra Cotta Conservation Area is another protected greenspace where you’ll find some of the best Halton Hills hiking trails. It’s managed by Credit Valley Conservation, and it spans across 485 acres of the Niagara Escarpment. You’ll hike through mature forests, past streams and ponds, and around beautiful wetlands.

There are several short trails at Terra Cotta Conservation Area between 0.5km and 3km in length: McGregor Spring Trail, Vaughan Trail, Terra Cotta Lane, Wetland Trail, A.F. Coventry Trail, Escarpment Trail, Forest Meadow Lane, Graydon Trail, and the Forest Meadow Loop (a winter trail).

Terra Cotta Conservation Area hosts an annual maple syrup festival, Maple Syrup in the Park. This also takes place annually at Island Lake Conservation Area in Orangeville. You can stroll through the sugarbush, watch maple syrup demonstrations, and sample sweet maple taffy.

Speyside Resource Management Area

Speyside Resource Management Area is home to some amazing hikes in Halton Hills. Within the Speyside Resource Management Area, you can hike on the main Bruce Trail and the Al Shaw Side Trail.

If you continue north and through Speyside, the Bruce Trail continues. There are also several Bruce Trail side trails including the Vanderleck Side Trail, the Cliff Hatch Side Trail (formerly known as the Speyside North Side Trail), the Canada Goose Side Trail and the Brown Benton Side Trail. To the south, the Al Shaw Side Trail and the Vanderleck Side Trail connect with the Hilton Falls Side Trail.

Halton Hills Hiking: Scotsdale Farm

Scotsdale Farm is nestled right up against Silver Creek Conservation Area, making it a fantastic place to go hiking. You can hike at Scotsdale Farm on its own or continue to Silver Creek Conservation Area for a lengthier adventure. Scotsdale Farm is home to some of Ontario’s oldest trees, and it’s also a heritage farm property with an old barn and farm buildings.

The trails at Scotsdale Farm consist of the main Bruce Trail and several side trails: the Bennett Heritage Trail, the Maureen Smith Side Trail, the Great Esker Side Trail and the Duff Pit Side Trail. You may need to visit on a few occasions to hike all of the trails here (and Silver Creek Conservation Area). The scenery here is so beautiful in all seasons, as you’ll hike around pretty streams, across boardwalks, and you might even stumble upon a tiny cascading waterfall like we did.

Guelph Radial Trail (Acton to Limehouse)

The Guelph Radial Trail (or Guelph Radial Line Trail) follows an abandoned railway from Guelph past the Eramosa River, Blue Springs Creek and Black Creek to the Bruce Trail near Limehouse. Some of the trail is strictly for pedestrians, while other sections are suitable for cyclists, too.

While the Guelph Radial Trail starts in the city of Guelph, a portion of this walking path extends between Acton and Limehouse, putting it in Halton region. You can hike this section of the Guelph Radial Trail in Halton Hills or plan a grand adventure to walk the entire thing (nearly 40km long!).

Credit Valley Trail (Glen Williams & Georgetown)

The Credit Valley Trail is still a trail in the making. When it is completed, it will be a 100km pathway through the Credit Valley from Lake Ontario in Mississauga to Orangeville. A section of the Credit Valley Trail extends through Glen Williams and Georgetown.

This section is 5.6km long, so it’s definitely doable as a day hike. Other features on this portion of the Credit Valley Trail (Credit Valley Footpath) include the site of an old First Nation burial ground, an old paper mill and dam, an impressive CNR railway bridge, and the remains of an old hydro generating station (Barber Mill Dynamo).

Acton Hiking Trails: Prospect Park (Fairy Lake)

The Prospect Park Trail is an easy 1.8km walking path at Prospect Park (30 Park Avenue, Acton). The trail follows a section of Fairy Lake in Acton. Prospect Park is a fantastic outdoor space for families as it includes a picnic pavilion, leash free park, splash pad, tennis court, baseball diamond, playground, and pickleball, in addition to the trail.

You’ll find the Prospect Park trail listed on this Halton Hills trail map, which also includes several other trails in Georgetown and Acton. This includes even more beyond the ones that I’ve included in this blog post. As you can see, there are many more walking paths and parks in Halton Hills to explore.

The Bruce Trail

The Bruce Trail is a famous hiking trail in southern Ontario that runs for 900km between Tobermory and Niagara. A section of the Bruce Trail extends through Halton Hills, including several of its conservation areas that I mentioned above. This is considered to be the Toronto Club section of the Bruce Trail.

The Bruce Trail section in Halton Hills extends up from Milton on the south side, continues through Speyside, Limehouse Conservation, and up to Silver Creek Conservation Area. It also connects Silver Creek Conservation Area to Terra Cotta Conservation Area and ventures up to the Cheltenham Badlands and beyond. You’ll also discover several Bruce Trail side trails at Scotsdale Farm, Speyside Resource Management Area, Limehouse Conservation Area and Silver Creek Conservation Area.

More Hiking Trails in Halton Region

If you’re seeking more hiking trails beyond Burlington in Halton Region, we’ve got you covered! Here are some of the best trails in Halton:

• Hilton Falls Conservation Area in Milton
• Rattlesnake Point Conservation Area in Milton
• Crawford Lake Conservation Area in Milton
• Mountsberg Conservation Area in Milton
• Robert Edmondson Conservation Area in Milton
• Mount Nemo Conservation Area in Burlington
• Kerncliff Park in Burlington
• Bridle Trail Loop at the Royal Botanical Gardens
• Bronte Creek Provincial Park

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