Click here for a map of our nature sanctuaries and trailheads. COOTES PARADISE Cootes Paradise is an 840-hectare wildlife sanctuary containing a 250-hectare coastal wetland located at the west end of Hamilton Harbour, a natural bay at the west end of Lake Ontario. The sanctuary supports a wide variety of plants and animals including rare and threatened species. Its 30,000-hectare drainage basin acts as the catchment for three main waterways: Spencer Creek, Borer’s Creek and Chedoke Creek. Several smaller streams including Westdale Creek, Long Valley Brook, Hickory Brook and Highland Creek flow into the marsh as well. The Dundas Sewage Treatment Plant and several Combined Sewage Overflows also discharge into Cootes Paradise. Located at the crest of the Golden Horseshoe between two major yet largely fragmented biomes—the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Life Zone and the Carolinian Life Zone—Cootes Paradise is surrounded by agricultural, residential, industrial, commercial and recreational lands. Its urban location makes this sanctuary a vital link to other conservation areas in the region including Spencer Gorge, Iroquois Heights and Borer’s Fall’s/Rock Chapel—part of the Bruce Trail and the Niagara Escarpment UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. Cootes Paradise Marsh is considered one of the most important waterfowl staging habitats on the lower Great Lakes and the largest nursery habitat for fish in the region. The Government of Ontario has designated Cootes Paradise as a Provincially Significant Class 1 Wetland and an Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI). It also is listed as an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) in the Hamilton Region. Back To Top HENDRIE VALLEY/GRINDSTONE CREEK Virtual Tours Tour Hendrie Valley and garden areas. Click here for a map of our nature sanctuaries and trailheads. Grindstone Creek originates above the Niagara Escarpment in Flamborough. It drains an area of 90 square kilometres making it one of the main tributaries discharging into the northwest-end of Hamilton Harbour. The Waterdown Sewage Treatment Plant discharges into the creek in Waterdown, upstream from lower Grindstone. A 50-hectare marsh lies in Hendrie Valley where the lower portion of Grindstone Creek flows. This highly productive, shallow wetland, northeast of Cootes Paradise, provides crucial spawning, nursery and adult habitat for many native fish as well as food and shelter for a variety of birds, mammals, amphibians and insects. The slopes of Hendrie Valley are comprised of mixed deciduous forest. Its sheltered, southerly exposure provides a reasonably warm, dry microclimate, creating a unique habitat that is home to several rare and uncommon plants and animals including many Carolinian species. The Province of Ontario has classified Grindstone Creek as an Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI) and the Municipality of Halton has listed the creek as an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA). Carroll's Bay Back To Top ESCARPMENT PROPERTIES Click here for a map of our nature sanctuaries and trailheads. Rock Chapel, a 72-hectare nature sanctuary located on the Flamborough-Dundas municipal boundary along the Niagara Escarpment, is part of the Niagara Escarpment UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. This south-facing forested habitat features Borer’s Falls and the escarpment valley. The escarpment and its wooded areas are home to a diverse range of rare and uncommon plants and birds. The escarpment edge supports a rare eastern white cedar old growth forest community. The Province of Ontario has listed Borer’s Falls-Rock Chapel as an Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI). It is also listed as an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) within the Hamilton Region. Berry Tract lies to the east of Rock Chapel and is also part of the Niagara Escarpment UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. This area has more than 30 hectares of gently rolling topography and vegetation in various stages of secondary succession dominated by shrubs, small trees and grasses. Berry Tract is part of an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) within the Hamilton Region. The Bruce Trail runs through Rock Chapel and Berry Tract. Back to top Science contacts Ask our science staff a question about the science and conservation program. Science fact sheets Download a fact sheet and learn about our restoration projects. The Fishway Find out how we keep carp out of Cootes Paradise and how you can see native fish up close. Project Paradise Learn about one of the largest habitat restoration projects in North America. Directions Click here to see how easy we are to find. Local weather Find out what the forecast is before you head out!
About Science and Conservation Nature Sanctuaries and Trails Conservation and Biodiversity Research Information Resources Related Sites