Most runners in the Greater Toronto Area head north or west when they want dirt under their feet. Durham Region sits east, and it gets overlooked for that reason alone. The trails here run across the Oak Ridges Moraine, through deep hardwood forests, and along creek valleys where the footing changes every few hundred metres. You can put together a 5K recovery run or a 50K training day without driving more than 40 minutes from Oshawa. The terrain is honest. Rooty, hilly, soft in spring, fast in fall. If you have not run here before, you have been missing good ground.
Durham Regional Forest Main Tract
The Main Tract sits in Uxbridge on top of the Oak Ridges Moraine. It covers 596 hectares, and there are over 16 km of trails broken into 4 marked loops. The soil is sandy in sections, packed hard in others, and the canopy overhead keeps things cool on summer mornings.
The route that gets the most attention from runners is the Red Oak Trail, combined with The Maze, Ogre and Out, and the White Pine Trail. AllTrails rates this loop at 4.5 stars. It runs 6.4 miles with about 1,394 ft of elevation gain, which is a lot of climbing for southern Ontario. The hills come in waves, and the footing on the Ogre section will test your ankles. This is a proper trail run, not a groomed path through a park.
Shorter loops work well for weekday sessions. You can run the Red Oak loop on its own in about 35 to 40 minutes at a moderate pace, or stack loops together to build distance.
What to Carry on Longer Durham Runs
Runs through Glen Major or the full Red Oak Trail loop at Durham Regional Forest can stretch well past an hour, and the terrain on the Oak Ridges Moraine adds sustained effort on top of that. Packing a small hydration vest with water, electrolyte tabs, and energy gels for runners makes a practical difference on those back-to-back climbs. A few salt chews or a banana stuffed in a pocket works too. The point is to plan for the distance before you start, not halfway through when your legs stop cooperating.
Glen Major Forest and Walker Woods
These 2 properties are managed by the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority and they connect to form a single massive trail network. Together, they cover more than 3,700 acres with roughly 47 km of trails running through them.
The terrain here has more variety than the Main Tract. You will find rocky single track, wide forest roads, creek crossings, and steep, short climbs where the moraine drops off. Some sections stay muddy well into June. Trail markers exist, but the network is large enough that carrying a downloaded map on your phone is a good idea, especially if you are piecing together a longer route for the first time.
For a training run in the 15 to 20 km range, this is one of the best options in the region. You can stay on the rolling single track for the full distance without repeating a section.
Seaton Trail
The Seaton Trail is a different kind of run. It follows the West Duffins Creek through Pickering, and the route covers 9.4 miles with 616 ft of elevation gain. AllTrails lists it as moderate. The grade is gentler than the moraine trails, and the path is wider in most spots, which makes it a solid option for runners building their base or recovering from a hard week.
The trail works well as a point-to-point run if you can arrange a pickup, or you can do an out-and-back on any section. Spring is particularly good here because the creek valley fills up and the trail stays firm enough to run on without sinking into mud.
Heber Down Conservation Area
Heber Down sits in Whitby and covers 284 hectares along the Lynde Creek valley. The trail system offers over 5 km of running, and the routes wind through mature forest with some steep sections down toward the creek.
This is where the Durham Trail Runners hold their Tuesday evening group runs. Saturday mornings, the group meets at various trailheads across the region. If you are new to trail running in Durham and want to learn the routes from people who know them well, showing up to a Tuesday run at Heber Down is the simplest way to do that.https://durhampost.ca/help-police-find-this-missing-girl-from-oshawa
Parking and Access
Uxbridge trailheads operate under a paid permit parking system through the Trail Sustainability Fund. Hours run from 5 AM to 11 PM daily. Uxbridge residents park free. Visitors pay for a day pass or an annual pass. Check the township site for current pricing before you go so you are not scrambling at the trailhead.
Races Worth Knowing About
Two trail races anchor the Durham calendar. The Seaton Scramble Trail Race takes place on May 9, 2026, with distances from 1K up to 50K. The Long Sault Trail Race and Ultra is scheduled for October 17, 2026, offering 7K, 14K, 21K, and a 6-hour option. Both events draw runners from across Ontario and serve as good goal races for anyone training on these trails throughout the year.
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