Just northeast of Gooderham, a short stretch of old road runs between Legacy Road and South Wilberforce Road and crosses a wetland on the way. A report prepared for Highlands East says this is part of the historic Burleigh colonization road, a municipal corridor in continuous public use for 140 years. It has also been closed since the fall of 2023. Blanding's turtles live in that wetland.
For most of those three years, the wait was on the province. That has changed. Ontario replaced its species-at-risk law this spring, and the township's own council reversed course in October. Together those two events moved the decision on how and when the Dillman Trail reopens out of a ministry inbox and onto a township agenda. The new Highlands East council takes office on Monday, November 16, and this file is waiting for it.
A Shortcut With a Long Memory
The Dillman Trail matters out of proportion to its length. In 2022, a petitioner told council the route saves trail users about six kilometres when they head for trails south of Highway 118. That same year, the Cheddar Road Organization for Trail Sustainability brought council a petition with 454 signatures asking for continued multi-use access. The reported users include snowmobilers, ATV riders, horse riders and walkers.
The wetland was the sticking point from the start. In 2019, nearby landowners objected to a proposed motorized trail there, raising consultation and environmental concerns, and one said residents had seen Blanding's turtles along the route. In the spring of 2022, a beaver dam on the route was disturbed. The Highlander reported worries from a neighbouring landowner that lower water in the wetland would open it to more ATV traffic. Ontario lists the Blanding's turtle as Threatened under its current protected-species regulation.
How the Waiting Worked Until March
Here is the sequence that kept the trail closed, as Cambium Inc., the consulting firm Highlands East hired, laid it out for council:
- September 15, 2023. The Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks issued a stop work order over a potential contravention of the Endangered Species Act, 2007.
- Through March 2025. Cambium consulted the ministry several times. Camden Jermey of Cambium said the ministry "continuously reiterated that permanent exclusion fencing and eco-passages were required on the trail, to support its reopening."
- Late August 2025. Cambium applied for a permit for the fencing and other mitigation work. The application was accepted as complete in September, but no permit came back.
- March 30, 2026. Cambium was notified that the Endangered Species Act had been repealed and replaced, which meant restarting the consultation work.
"Dealing with MECP has been a long, drawn out affair," Jermey told council, according to the Haliburton Echo.
What the New Law Changed for This Trail
The province's Environmental Registry notice confirms that the Species Conservation Act, 2025 came into force on March 30, 2026, and repealed the Endangered Species Act, 2007. The new law separates permit activities, which still need a ministry permit, from registrable activities, which go through registration. Registration requires a conservation plan prepared by qualified professionals, along with mitigation and monitoring measures. The full rules are in the statute itself.
Cambium told council the Dillman Trail work falls in the registrable category. Jermey described it as a "registration first approach" that the ministry can audit later, and said "in theory, the work could begin quite quickly." So the trail's next step no longer depends on a permit decision from Toronto. It depends on whether Highlands East adopts and registers a conservation plan.
The Plan Council Approved on September 8
Cambium brought that plan to council on September 8, 2026. It has two parts. The first is an eco-passage. Jermey recommended a two-sided concrete culvert with a grate on top, chosen to suit the wetland's water levels. As the Echo reported, he explained that the design lets in light:
"One of the requirements for these passages to be effective is that they need daylight to shine through or else wildlife won't go through them."
The second part is exclusion fencing. This is a low, buried barrier that guides turtles and other small animals away from the trail and toward the passage. The timing comes from the turtles. The ministry asked for the culvert to go in during the active turtle season, May through the end of October, and Cambium said the fencing could follow in November and December. "We don't really want to lose another year due to delays," Jermey said.
Cambium's preliminary cost estimate was $80,000 to $120,000. For monitoring, it suggested a lower-cost approach using municipal staff, some Cambium support and trail cameras. Asked about timing, Jermey said the work could be ready by the new year. He also said there was no guarantee the ministry would review the file at all.
Council weighed it carefully. Deputy Mayor Cecil Ryall questioned the cost and the pace. Treasurer Brittany McCaw said this year's budget included money because staff knew the item was coming, and she suggested a phased approach. Jermey said ATV users and turtle advocacy groups were aligned on the plan. Councillors Angela Lewis and Ruth Strong voted in favour, and the motion directed Cambium to submit and register the plan with the ministry.
Five Weeks Later, a Reconsideration
At its final regular meeting of the term on October 13, the outgoing council rescinded that September resolution, The Highlander reported. Councillor Lewis moved the reconsideration. She argued that more community consultation could produce a cheaper approach, and she cited Sections 27 and 33 of the Ontario Heritage Act in raising concerns about physical changes to the historic trail. Councillor Cam McKenzie seconded the motion.
Under the township's procedural bylaw, a motion to reconsider has to come from a councillor who voted for the original resolution. Mayor Dave Burton had not voted in September, so he could not move it. Before the final vote he said, "I believe the new council coming in will certainly make the right decisions and certainly work with the group."
The vote handed the choice of approach, and its cost, to the next council.
The Council That Takes It Up on November 16
Highlands East voters chose that council on October 26, voting by phone and internet. The township's certified results list these members:
- Mayor: Dave Burton, re-elected
- Ward 1, Bicroft: Andrew Martin
- Ward 2, Cardiff: Angela Lewis
- Ward 3, Glamorgan: Arlene Quinn
- Ward 4, Monmouth: Amy Toye
Burton won with 842 votes to Steven Kauffeldt's 786 in a five-way race. Lewis, who voted for September's approval and moved October's reconsideration, returns to council. Ruth Strong, the other September supporter, does not. Burton has said he plans an orientation session to gather everyone's views on the next four years before regular business begins.
According to the township's meeting schedule, the inaugural meeting is set for Monday, November 16, 2026, at 11 a.m. in Council Chambers, where the new members will be sworn in. From that point the Dillman Trail is theirs to settle. The work calendar Cambium described still applies, with turtle-season culvert work running May through October and fencing in November and December. Council agendas are posted on the same township meeting portal.
At Lakelands Real Estate Co., we follow decisions like this one across Haliburton County because they shape how the land around our lakes gets used. If you own property near Gooderham or anywhere in the Highlands and want to understand how local trail access and conservation decisions bear on its value, get your free home valuation and we'll go through it with you.
