Short Hills Provincial Park — Attraction in Thorold

Great variety of trails for all to enjoy! I have done some running and hiking in short hills and it never disappoints me.

With kids: I love the variety of trails here and I can always find ones that are easy enough for my kids to do during our hikes. I would recommend bringing kids here to enjoy but know there are some hills which may be hard for some littles. My kids like some hilly, uneven terrain, so I don't usually worry much about the hills. Some trails are wider then others, just depends which ones you take. There are some bigger trees they can climb safely and streams to play in.

With dogs: trails are dog friendly and I always see lots of people bringing their dogs. My dog enjoys being off leash but because this is a busier trail, I never let him off the leash. My pup loves to walk here and enjoys playing in the streams.

Running: I always enjoy doing a run at shorthills. It's very flat where I live, so I love that I can be in the trails and get a little elevation. In the winter, some of the trails can get pretty slippery with ice and wet rocks but it's definitely still runnable all the times I went. I'd recommend a trip out here for a run!

It's beautiful whether you are running or hiking but it can get very busy and the parking lot gets full quick so I'd recommend getting out there early,...

Just an overall great place to hike or just go for a walk. There are quite a few trails of varying lengths and difficulty for all to experience. There arw all kinds of wildlife, flowers, waterfalls and scenic view throught out the park. It can often be muddy and some of the trails have lots of roots and rocks along the path so proper footwear is required. Bringing water is highly recommended. Bug spray is a good idea too as the mosquitoes can get quite bothersome at certain times of the year. There are some washrooms at some of the entrances but I believe they are closed due to the COVID pandemic. Some trails are also available for mountain bikes and horseback riding. Dogs are allowed but they MUST be leashed. Weekends are always busier than during the week so I recommend getting there early as there isn't a lot of parking. We arrived at 7am on a Saturday and there was only one other car. There hours later when we returned to the car, cars were lined up and parked on both sides of the road leading to the parking area. Lastly, you should do a thorough check for ticks. We both found a couple ticks on us after the hike, but we had been going through some tall...

After hearing from multiple friends who enjoy hiking that Short Hills Provincial Park is the best place to go, I finally decided to visit last year. Unfortunately, Apple Maps led us to the middle of a road. After driving around for a while, we gave up and went to a familiar spot instead. Determined to try again, we revisited Short Hills last week. When the same thing happened, I checked Google Maps and quickly realized the issue: I hadn’t entered the correct parking lot. Once I entered ‘Parking Lot A’ into my device, we arrived without any trouble.

Despite the initial setbacks, I am extremely disappointed with all the potential hikes I missed out on over the past year. Short Hills is undoubtedly the best place for avid hikers in the area, not crowded with tourists like some other popular hiking spots. With an abundance of trails, you can use the AllTrails app to decide the distance and route of your hike (follow me on AllTrails, Scooter Nagy). I highly recommend giving Short Hills Provincial Park a visit; you won’t be disappointed by the beautiful trails and serene...