thanks Chephy for the link. We will also consider Toogood pond as an option as well. Good picnicing and good paths. BTW, we have just found the York Regional Forests trail system. Some of them seem to fit the bill, however we have just been hiking them over the past week. Surprisingly, there are about 50 formal trail systems in York so we will be pretty busy in to the fall and maybe get out on the Cross country skies in the winter (have to find a way to cart the little one who loves the outdoors though).
Treker, shoulders here we are are pretty tight. You are correct that Ottawa is a great place but what else do you expect from the nations capital. We have considered moving there in the past but the stars have not aligned. We are originally from North Bay so the romantic notion of moving back up north is always in the back of our mind. Rural roads are typically narrow two laners here. Good for biking but not trailers. We lived in Milton for 4 years prior to moving here with our jobs. The hour commute got to us and as you are aware, we now have a little boy (2.5 years).
thanks for your input!!!