March 8 is International Women’s Day and there is no finer Toronto Bruce Trail volunteer to shine the spotlight on today than our very own Patti Guminny.

Patti is one of our spectacular volunteers that has been carrying out her duties quietly and without much fanfare, for 30 years.  That will change April 21, 2024 when she will be presented with a special certificate to honour her commitment in looking after a special side trail during that length of time as a trail captain.

At the club’s Annual General Meeting she will be recognized for looking after the Walking Fern Side Trail. The trail itself has some notoriety because it is the only place on the Toronto Section you can see the Walking Fern plant. Patti started hiking with the Club in 1991 and she joined in on a number of bus hikes and eventually she completed her End-to-End. By 1994 at the age of 32, she took on the trail captain responsibilities for the Walking Fern Trail, even though she was living in Whitby and working in Scarborough.

“I have always loved the outdoors from an early age and have a background in horticulture. Trail maintenance isn’t difficult, I enjoy doing it and seeing the trail as it transitions over the different seasons,” Patti says. “In the spring there are some beautiful wildflowers and of course the walking fern itself.” The trail has its rocky spots and is close to some swampy areas, but the valley comes alive in the fall with the change in colours.

Patti was an active participant in the Toronto club bus hikes, particularly in the 1990s but due to her proximity to the east end of the GTA, she now spends more time hiking in Whitby area, including the Durham Forest and Rouge Valley.

On her vacations she is still an active outdoors person, hiking, biking, kayaking and backpacking on every continent, including places like Baffin Island, Colorado, Vermont and swimming with whale sharks is Baja, California.