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Xtreme hike finale for Toronto Trails fest TheStar.com - News - Xtreme hike finale for Toronto Trails fest
Celebration of hiking over 6 weekends is about `enjoying the journey,' says founder
Transportation Reporter
Tom Fiore is a man who walks the talk when it comes to celebrating Toronto's natural treasures.
The founder of the Toronto Trails Festival greets most days with a brisk tour of the Cedarvale Ravine near his Spadina and St. Clair Ave.-area home.
"With Toronto's ravines everything is connected," says Fiore, referring to the geographical connections of ravine trails and parks.
But the spiritual and environmental connections of walking in Toronto are inescapable. "You can't save the world if you can't save yourself," says the 55-year-old Italian-born enthusiast. "There's no guarantee that walking is going to make you live forever but at least you're enjoying the journey."
Fiore, who hopes to spread the festival to Mississauga, Markham and Oakville next year, began his own walking journey about a decade ago with a trip to England, where he discovered the delights of walking between towns and hamlets with no other set destination than a stool at the nearest pub. He cites coffee shops as the modern Toronto equivalent.
"I got the love for it. In Toronto I started walking in the mornings. I just got to the point where I realized this was doing me such a world of good. I'm not different from most other people, and I said, `I've got to spread the word.'
"I started promoting walking and started to put together this Toronto Trails Festival. We've gone from a one-day event to six weekends, twice a weekend," he said.
In the early years, Fiore says he would often find himself alone on the trails and ravines, but now there's plenty of traffic, particularly groups of women walking for exercise and new Canadians exploring their adopted home. He's also got a loyal group of friends who share his journey most days.
The festival has high-profile supporters in Mayor David Miller and many councillors, but financial support comes from sponsors Fiore persuaded to get on board.
The festival culminates in Sunday's Xtreme 2.5-hour walk through the ravines of Forest Hill and Rosedale – not for the faint of heart or ill-prepared, but the numbers grow every year, to more than 100 last year, says Fiore.
