As the number of trails has grown so has the number of people who have taken up the sport of cycling whether it be recreational or competitive. On some weeknight's and weekends the old train bridge downtown can become quite congested with bicyclists testifying to the fact of the growing popularity of cycling here in the city. In early May, on one of the first nice days of spring, I counted well over 100 cyclists out enjoying the city trails on their bike's. In the past(pre-1990) you would be lucky if you saw 20 cyclists out biking along the city's streets, but that has all changed now with the huge amount of trail construction taking place over the past few years. Besides increasing the quality of life here in the capital all the trail development in the city has aided the tourism industry as more and more tourists find out about the city's extensive trail network and hence they stop and spend a few more day's here exploring the trails and parks in turn spending more money in the city. And this will only grow as eco-tourism grows and more and more people find out about Fredericton.

In terms of popularity some of the more popular trails in the city include the river front Green-Salamanca trail on the Southside and the Gibson-Nashwaak trail on the north. In the early morning it is commonplace to see deer, red foxes, squirrels and other wildlife out along the Gibson trail, even sighting a Moose would not be an uncommon occurrence. On one occasion I nearly ran over a grass snake on the trail not realizing till it was almost too late that it was a living thing and not a twig. For the early risers out there, when conditions are right, seeing the morning fog slowly rise off the river and the land can add a dramatic eerie effect to your morning ride. If it's sunsets and sunrises you want to see a great place to view them is along the Northside trail in the Douglas area near Currie's Mountain. This trail section offers a really nice vantage point in which to witness the sun rising or setting over the Saint John River Valley and the many river islands located upon it. Another good vantage point for this is at top of the Springhill road off the TCH near the cow pasture above the Hartt Island Campground.

The city is continuing to develop trails on the northside, the latest piece being a new side trail from Carleton Park over to the old Trail Bridge and the building of a trail around Killarney Lake that will eventually be linked up to the Northside trail and the new Leo Hayes High School sometime in the future. Another trail that's almost finished is from the new Nashwaaksis Commons along the Nash'sis stream to the Riverfront Pathway that now runs in back of the Loyalist Club and along Devonshire Drive. A few nice "must" rides I would like to point out to your readers in which to bike too includes a ride up to the Penniac bridge along the scenic Nashwaak River. It's a really nice trip to take especially in the fall with the leaves start to change colour, plus now you have the option of taking the road out and returning on one of the trails back into town.

Another nice ride is out the Northside trail up towards the Mouth of Keswick that offers some fine views of the many islands in the Saint John River. For those who like a challenge, a hill climb up Keswick Ridge is rewarded with some fine views of the river valley from the top of the ridge and along route 616. A little longer bike ride to take is out the Royal Road. First head out and up Mcleod Hill and then over to Hamtown Corner, which is especially nice now with the newly paved route 620. Take route 617 over to the Kingsley road to return to town. As it's almost all downhill on the way back you can pretty much coast down the road with minimal pedaling. With the completion of the new toll highway from Longs Creek to Oromocto slated to open this fall, a ride up to the Mactaquac Dam on the old Trans-Canada will be a lot safer for cyclists to take as of now the tourist and truck traffic makes it quite dangerous to travel on in summertime.

As the number of trails continues to grow here in the city so does the number of people participating in the recreational sport of cycling, not only does this make people more fit but makes the quality of life here in Fredericton second to none.