A path across Canada Thirteen-year-old Kara Finch writes about The Great Trail - a footpath that
goes across Canada.
The Great Trail goes from one side of Canada to the other. At 24,000 km, it is the longest tral
in the world. The Great Trail project began in 1992 and took 25 years to complete. It opened
in 2017, exactly 150 years after Canada became one country.
The Great Trail is actually lots of paths joined together. You can cycle, walk or horse-ride on
most of it, but there are parts where the only way you can travel is by boat. And there are
others where the trail is part of the highway, which doesn't sound very safe to me.
My father and I spent a day walking along part of the Great Trail that was surprisingly busy.
We were told you don't usually see bears when there are lots of people, but we did. It was
moving through the trees, quite close to us, and I felt a little afraid. "I don't think it's hungry!'
laughed my dad.
At lunchtime, we talked to an old man on the trail. Dad asked him if he thought the path
was going to help Canadians learn more about their countryside. 'Not really,' he said.
"We've always loved to be outdoors. But it will bring us tourists from around the world,
which is important.'
In the future, the path will probably change, and new parts may open. We saw nothing to tel
us we were on the Great Trail, which is a shame. I know there's information on the website,
but it's good to know when you're walking on a special path. They need to add some signs,