Route: Bruce Trail (ON, Canada)

Location
Ontario, CA
Distance
890 km
Description

The Bruce Trail is a hiking trail in southern and central OntarioCanada from the Niagara River to the tip of Tobermory, Ontario. The main trail is more than 890 km (550 mi) long and there are over 400 km (250 mi) of associated side trails.[1]

In addition to the FKTs listed here, the Wild Bruce Chase, a team of 18 women, set the women's relay fastest known time on the Bruce Trail. The Wild Bruce Chase completed the continuous, end-to-end run in four days, one hour and 39 minutes. The trail's length was 901.5 kms due to trail closures. The Wild Bruce Chase started on July 1, 2016 at the North Terminus and ended on July 5, 2016 at the Southern Terminus. 

GPS Track

Comments

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Profile picture for user jamiesonhatt

I, Jamieson Hatt, am announcing my supported FKT attempt of the Bruce Trail!  Adam Burnett(current record holder) and I have been in contact via Facebook, and he is well aware of my plans.  He may even make it out on the trail and join me for a bit!  I am planning on starting in the early morning of September 11, 2018.  I am heading southbound(Tobermory to Queenston).  My crew are my parents Ken and Rose. They will be pulling a small camper with everything I need, meeting me as often as possible.  I have some friends that may come out and join for a day or two as well.  My friend Casey has made a Facebook page, which he may post some updates on. It's called "Jamieson and the Bruce".  I will be carrying a Delorme inreach.  Here's my link to live tracking https://share.garmin.com/JamiesonHatt  This is my first time attempting something of this magnitude.  Only one way to find out what will happen.  Let's go!

Update on Jamieson Hatt's FKT attempt.  Many thanks to Casey Thivierge for the updates along the way:

Jamieson completed the trail around 8pm on 9/23, in 12 days, 14 hours, 53 minutes! What a wild ride that was...especially the last 3 miles when we found it the map distances were wrong and we had a couple extra miles to cover. It's amazing what adrenaline can do! Seeing Jamieson run to the cairn in Queenston Heights with his father by his side and his mother waiting and cheering him on was a very special moment. It may not have been an FKT, however we feel it may have been the "Funnest Known Time". Thanks for giving us the opportunity to share Jamieson's journey. He may have came here looking for a possible FKT, but he left with a lot more than he could have ever wished for.

Day 1 (9/11) - Tobermory to Lions Head, 52 miles. Started 4:00am.  This is a remote section of the trail with little access and a rugged, technical route.

Day 2 (9/12) - Lions Head to Wiarton, 54 miles. Now out of the Peninsula portion of the Bruce.

Day 3 (9/13) - Left Wiarton very early with little sleep. Tried to make it to the KOA campground outside of Owen Sound, but came up short by about 6 miles. This Sydenham portion of the trail is considered the toughest by many.

Day 4 (9/14) - A major thunderstorm and buckets of rain delayed his start a couple hours in the morning, but the extra sleep was very much needed. Tough day on the trail with another long night left him about 15 miles short of Blantyre and remaining of the Sydenham portion of the trail.

Day 5 (9/15) - Better weather and the understanding of friends joining him on the trail today motivated Jamieson to an early start. It was a good day with solid motion and lots of smiles as he finished the day at 10:40pm near the southern point of the Beaver Valley Section.

Day 6 (9/16) - It was a good day for Jamieson. His spirits were high and his progress was solid as he was joined by the current male and female Bruce FKT record holders (Adam Burnett and Chantal Warriner) as well as fellow trail angel Cait Foisy and other friends. He trekked northbound towards the end of the Beaver Valley section of the trail. Tomorrow the plan is for an early rise to head into the Blue Mountains. He's covered about 275 miles of the trail thus far and the most difficult sections are now behind him.

Day 7 (Sept 17) - The day started early with a 3am rise and back on the trail to the conclusion of the Beaver Valley section of the Bruce and then north into the Blue Mountains near Collingwood. Around mid-day he concluded the last northbound section of the Bruce Trail and made the turn south which will lead him down toward Toronto and Hamilton. Jamieson finished the day at 7:44pm at the Nottawasaga Bluffs Conservation Area. This most likely means another early start tomorrow. 316 miles of trail are behind him and 14 miles remain of the Blue Mountain segment, which will then be followed by the Dufferin Hi-Land.

Day 8 (Sept 18) - Another early 3am start had Jamieson through the Blue Mountain segment and into the Dufferin Hi-Land. He was joined by current female FKT holder Chantal Warriner and they progressed consistently all day making their way within 4 miles of the end of the Dufferin section. Jamieson has thus far completed 350 miles of the Bruce Trail and has 206 miles remaining. He shut it down a few minutes past 7pm tonight just past Boyne Valley Provincial Park, which will most likely result in another 3am start tomorrow.

Day 9: (Sept 19), 6:20am (9d 2hr 20min) - The day concluded with Jamieson nearing the end of the Caledon Hills section of the trail. It was a day filled with trail angels and support as he was joined throughout the day by Chantal Warriner, Barb Campbell and once again by Adam Burnett (the male FKT record holder of the Bruce Trail). The icing on the cake was Cait Foisy spreading the word and having massage therapist Sonya Lee Reimer set up her table trail-side to give Jamieson a little tune-up Bruce Trail style. What an incredible journey this has been thus far!

Day  10 (Sept 20) - At 4am we're at 9 days done.  With 160+ miles remaining it seems the FKT of 9d21h14m is out of reach, but he's still going strong.  Jamieson was up at 2:30am and back on the trail this morning. He is currently going thru the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park.

Day 11 (Sept 21) - 10 days, 1 hour and 38 minutes after leaving the Northern Terminus of the Buce Trail in Tobermory, Jamieson has crossed under the 401 and is in the homestretch! It's a long homestretch with 78 miles of the Iroquoia section and 48 miles of the Niagara section remaining. It was an early start to the day as he hit the trail just prior to 3am...he likes his early mornings! With several friends and trail angels lined up to support him today and to the end, he is in great spirits and loving the camaraderie of the trail community. So far he has traveled 430 miles and ascended 55,600' of the 65,982' he is determined to complete. With 126 miles to the finish and his good friends joining him on the trail, the plan is minimal sleep from here on out and a wild ride to the Southern Terminus in Queenston Heights!

Day 12 (Sept 22) - 10 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes - After a 20 hour day yesterday Jamieson is back on the trail at 3:30am and into the final push. 84 miles stand between him and the Southern Terminus in Queenston. Friends and running buddies Gord, Patrick and Casey are with him until the end and the plan is to keep rolling continuous now with minimal sleep.

Day 13 (Sept 23) - 12d 4h 37m in and we have about 45km to go. I’m with Jamieson right now and we continue to push they the Niagara section of the Bruce Trail. My next and final update will be when we touch the southern terminus later today!
 

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Profile picture for user John Harrison Pockler

I am announcing my supported Bruce Trail FKT attempt. I am planning to start on September 11 at 6:00 am EST in Tobermory (north) heading towards Niagara Falls (south). My crew are Alexander Emeny and Connor Emeny who will be joining me for the entire trip as well as Jamie McDonell who will be supporting for the majority of the time with his car.

You can find my inReach tracker here: https://share.garmin.com/JohnHarrisonPockler

Live updates and news will be shared on www.brucetrailultra.com

Congrats John Harrison on an epic experience! Did you write a race report on your 9 day journey? If so, it would be super cool to read about your experience on how you prepared yourself, managed your nutrition plan, and strategically planned your stops. Thanks in advance, Mr. Nyjoe. 

I noticed an FKT pop up for the Niagara Club. I think this a good thing as the individual section times can be quite fast. I was wondering if the folks here with the overall FKT have their section times? It would be good to know when attempting a section FKT that you are not slower than someone who set the overall FKT. I haven't had much luck reverse engineering the times from people's posted data.

Hey everyone! I'm planning on taking a crack at the Bruce Trail FKT in June, this will be a supported attempt. I will be starting on June 11th and heading Northbound from Niagara to Tobermory. I'll have the help of my amazing crew - Jade McMeekin and Jen Smith.

For those interested in following along, I'll be tracking with a Garmin inReach and you can also follow along on our website.

inReach Tracking: https://share.garmin.com/stevekenny

Website: https://www.fearknowtrail.com/

~ Steve

Hello Everyone!

 

Well I completed the E2E Northbound - fell well short of the FKT, but was very happy to complete the entire trail. I'll follow up with a report for those that are interested along with my gpx file. But wanted to let everyone know that I did complete it! 12 Days, 13 Hours and 16 Min. 

~ Steve

 

I'm going to be making a supported Bruce Trail FKT attempt starting on Friday June 18th 2021 heading N -> S. Although the timing is coincidental, I hope to see Steve enroute.

Live tracking: https://share.garmin.com/KipBruceTrailFKT 

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Profile picture for user Karen Holland

I am announcing my supported Bruce Trail FKT attempt starting on the morning of September 3rd in Tobermory heading towards Niagara Falls (N -> S). 

Live Tracking here: https://share.garmin.com/hollandontherun

Hi, where can I get the GPX files for the End-To-End Trail? I am planning on attempting the FKT sometime next year. 

The bruce trail just launched a new app which is likely the best map source at this time due to all the trail changes over the years.

Awesome! Thanks so much Karen. I'll check it out. Congrats, too, on a successful FKT. :) 

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I, Jamieson Hatt, am announcing an unsupported FKT of the Bruce Trail. There is no unsupported FKT as of yet and only one self supported FKT. I'm planning on starting around mid April and I will be heading south to north. If anyone would like to follow along while I'm out on trail, I have a Facebook page called Jamieson & The Bruce where there will be updates posted on my behalf. I also have pics of my food/gear and some training updates leading up. Live tracker link and credentials will be given to the FKT site afterwards if completed. Let's go! https://www.facebook.com/groups/236098290546890

Almost forgot to follow up on here. I pulled the plug only 3.5 days in. Became really sick. Hoping it was just bad luck. I'm lucky enough to hopefully be able to give it another go. Take 2 should be end April or early May. As stated above, FB group will have details and updates if you'd like to follow along...

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Profile picture for user Elias Kibreab

Hi everyone, my name is Elias Kibreab and I would like to announce that I will be attempting a supported Bruce Trail FKT beginning on Saturday, May the 7th.  I will be running from North to South, starting in Tobermory and finishing in Queenston.  The start date and time will be May the 7th at 6:00 AM.  As the day gets closer I will post my live tracking system.

I, Jan Ritchie, am announcing a supported FKT attempt of the Bruce Trail. I'm planning on starting  September 1, 2022, at 6:00 AM.

I will be heading south to north. If anyone would like to follow along while I'm out on trail, I have a Facebook page called, Shkweweziwin Bimaptoong | Facebook. On the page, I will be posting daily as I prepare for the big event. 

I have a Garmin Tactix Delta Solar watch, so I will be letting my watch collect all data from start to ending. Before turning the watch off, I'll take a picture to show my time and distance to prove I completed. 

I am looking forward to the challenge and the experience. 

 

Jan 

 

I am announcing my supported Bruce Trail FKT attempt starting on May 6th 2023. 

Tobermory to Queenston. 

North to South.  

 

Live tracking: 

https://share.garmin.com/JasonWocks

I, Caleb Huard, am announcing a supported FKT attempt of the Bruce Trail. I will begin the morning of May 13th, 2023 beginning in Tobermory and heading south. Tracking info will be posted before the attempt.

I will be attempting a second supported try October 21st, 2023 going South to North

I was able to finish the end to end in about 10 days 10 hours. I let go of the FKT effort after about a week. Good thing as I finished with a couple snow days!! Amazing experience and amazing community of help on the trails. So many amazing memories.

If I ever try again for time I'll be more patient and stick to the proper time of year and go North to South. The leaf cover and short days are difficult. 

Happy to help anyone on a future attempt. Some of the bets trails in Ontario!

Unfortunately my Bruce Trail FKT attempt has ended on Day 3. 

After two great days on the trail, I've sustained an injury that I cannot run through. 

My hat is off with full respect to the current record holder Elias Kibreab, and all those who set the previous markers before him. 

I sincerely wish Caleb Huard the best of luck next week in his attempt. 

Thank you to my crew. I am so grateful to have each and everyone of you in my life. You're the best. 

Cheers all. See you down the trail...

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Profile picture for user codytaylorruns

I, Cody Taylor, will be attempting the Bruce Trail unsupported. I will be starting August 10th! here is my live tracker. 

https://share.garmin.com/QB6VS

I wanted to thank Jamieson Hatt for all the help leading up to this expedition, he currently has the FKT unsupported and he’s been nothing but a huge help. Really appreciate you brother, thank you again!

Cody TaylorÂ