Jenn M is from Toronto and has lived in the area all of her life.

She loves to be outside and in the bush, but makes time to train for running and triathlons. While Jenn M loves to canoe, you'll see her most doing hikes and backpacking trips - Jenn M loves to take out easier trips for people new to hiking (or who enjoy a more relaxed pace) as well as more advanced trips. On her own, she likes to challenge herself - this might mean finding out how far and fast she can go in one day, or an all-night hike in the bush, just because. Jenn M has two dogs who love to come out on the trails as well!

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Jenn M.

He spends most of his time in the club looking for adventure, fun, and friendly people

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Andrew F.

My interests are canoeing, hiking, camping and just about any other outdoor activity. I also like to slow down sometimes and work on miniature ship building, and build gadgets of one kind or another. Most don't work very well, but the fun is in the inventing. Once it is perfected, it's on to something else.

I found out about the club when I was googling for places to hike in the Toronto area. I joined in August 2010, and have already many events, and plan on attending (and coordinating) many more! I don't remember ever having so much fun in my life. I thought that l would like to volunteer to give back some of what l am getting from the club. I have met so many great people, and keep meeting more and more. I will, at least for now, coordinate day hikes and some urban hikes. Perhaps some sporting events too. After l have some experience, l may get more adventurous and coordinate some camping and canoeing events.
I work in Toronto as a carpenter.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Colin.

Ghanesh was born in Guyana, South America and has also lived in London, England.

He currently lives in Toronto and having studied fine arts and graphic design, is currently employed as a printing and graphic arts specialist.

His interest includes canoeing, kayaking, biking, hiking, swimming, yoga and cooking.

He joined the TOC because of the diversity of its membership, range of activities and he is willing to help out the club in graphics, fundraising, coordinating events and committee issues.

Ghanesh is a member of Paddle Canada and The Bruce Trail Club.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Ghanesh.

After coming to Toronto in 2004, she discovered the TOC and loved the opportunity this gave her to go camping, hiking and backpacking in Ontario with a great group of people. She enjoys backpacking the most and likes to be outdoors in all seasons.

Jessie is an active volunteer with Eva's Initiatives which runs shelters for homeless youth in Toronto. She is happiest imparting her love of cooking to the youth in life-skills workshops and projects.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Jessie.

Jenn moved to Toronto in the summer of 2004, fresh out of university and looking for a job. Introduced to the TOC by Google in the Spring of 2006, she figured it would be a great way to meet new people and return to some of the activities which had been neglected during her schooling. Born in Ottawa to an outdoorsy family, Jenn has been camping and canoeing for as long as she can remember. After moving to Saskatoon during high school, she continued to be active outdoors with her friends, exploring the northern Saskatchewan wilderness. It was during university at Queen’s in Kingston that Jenn took up cycling. Camping and Canoeing were never a possibility due to logistical circumstances, so after several years of longing for calm waters and campfires, the TOC seemed like the perfect way to get involved once again.

Alison's father was a keen hill-walker and mountaineer so she started hiking at a very young age - photos exist of a tired 5-year old in hiking boots, taken somewhere in Snowdonia... This early exposure continued into adult life, and she's hiked in Canada, UK, Switzerland, USA, France, Italy, Nepal and Tanzania.

Alison found the TOC back in 2005, using the same approach as most other members: by entering 'Toronto, outdoor, hiking' into a web browser. She saw an opportunity to meet like-minded people and do outdoor stuff with a friendly group (even though her first event was Texas Hold'em Poker in a Caribbean cafe). She became an Event Coordinator in 2006 and since then, has led groups astray on the Bruce Trail, to deepest, darkest Brampton, and even on occasion, across our southern border to New Hampshire's White Mountains.

She primarily leads hiking and cross-country ski events, with the occasional golf event thrown in for variety. She is currently working on the Bruce Trail end-to-end, heading north to Tobermory. She reckons to finish the Sydenham section this season and tackle the final, Peninsula section in 2012.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Alison.

Growing up in Mississauga, she found herself in fierce competition, year after year, with another girl for the shortest student in her grade class (as was always well evidenced on class photo day). So, in spite of having a marathoner / coach dad, she ended up shying away from gym class and athletics for a long time.

But ten years ago (and counting), a couple of different things happened in her life which sparked the interest in running. To help make it through the cold winters, she joined a gym; and that's when she rediscovered a passion for weight lifting. The running has always been a bit of a love-hate relationship, it's hard work to be sure! But as of this writing, she has a half-dozen half-marathons under her belt, and no plans to quit.

Despite being a "runner", though, if there has to be one defining thing about Stacy, it would have to be her love of nature. This simply touches all parts of her life; she's even the "National EcoCare Leader" at her work.

So it's no wonder that each of her interests revolve around one of both of these passions. They include: hiking (in the city or the woods), backpacking, gardening, photography, learning survival skills, and geocaching!

Stacy completed the Hike Leader Certification Course as provided by Hike Ontario as of 6 March 2011.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Stacy.

Chuck was born in Hong Kong and came to Toronto when he was 11. When he was 3, he took off with some older neighbors to a mountain stream for a swim, and didn’t tell his mother. That was when his love for the outdoors began. The first outdoor encounter in Canada was on a 6th grade week-long school trip to Boyne River Conservation Education Centre. He learned cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and orienteering. From that point on, he knew he was in love with the Canadian winter.

He has lead wilderness canoe trips to places including the Spanish River, French River, Killarney, Algonquin Park and Temagami. When he isn’t camping on summer weekends, Chuck is most likely rollerblading or biking. He also plays beach volleyball and tennis. In winter, he cross-country skis at least once a week. Snowboarding and downhill skiing on the bigger mountains outside of Ontario also nurture Chuck’s obsession for the outdoors.

A keen sense of extreme adventures has taken Chuck around the world. Among his favourites are trekking in the Himalayas; scuba diving with bull sharks in Belize; climbing an active volcano in Guatemala; solo backpacking among grizzly bears in Alaska; downhill skiing in Austria and Italy; white-water rafting in Honduras and Nepal; and surfing in Costa Rica.

In the city, he likes to go out with friends to dinner, dancing, movies and bars.

He is a volunteer for the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association (CASARA).

He is certified for First Aid and CPR since 1999

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Chuck.

After spending two years teaching English in South Korea, and ten years in the information technology industry, I decided to become a naturopathic doctor. I am currently enrolled in an intense four-year program to accomplish that dream. It's super-busy, but I still love being part of the TOC and it is my privilege to serve this remarkable community by being on its leadership team.

When I'm not learning about acupuncture, nutrition, pediatrics, how to draw blood, homeopathy, herbal medicine, etc., etc., etc., or nurturing my book addiction (ahem ...), I'm dreaming about car-camping and going for nature walks. I hope to share delicious omelettes, dappled trails, sun-kissed Lake Huron beaches, star-filled skies, and so many other wonders of Nature with you on future events!

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Cynthia B..

Fletcher is a torontonian, born and raised. He hales from a background playing sports, like soccer, hockey and football. Yet, he is not happier than when he hits Toronto's streets on his bike.

He joined the club in 2009 after looking for a summer of adventure and fun.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by FLETCHER.

He learned about the Bruce Trail Club while browsing through the Single Woman’s Guide to Toronto, and has been hiking ever since. In 2008 he switched from being one of the youngest guys on the Bruce Trail Club to one of the oldest on the TOC.

He tends to like faster, longer, hillier hikes. His favorite trips are long distance mountain treks, particularly on the great long distance mountain trails in the Italian Dolomites.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Daniel Parker.

He has travelled to many places in search of adventure and stayed in Japan for three years, mostly for the sushi. Darrel is game for any kind of play or adventure that comes along, when work doesn't get in the way, and is especially interested if it involves a frisbee (a permanent fixture on his backpack) or an impromtu game of shinny.

Now there's been some talk that Darrel might be a bit grumpy. Not true, not true! In fact, he was seen to smile once. It was on one of his fast D5 hikes and one of the participants, somewhere around the 35km mark asked, "Can we stop now?!"

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Darrel Nantais.

David has lived in Toronto all his life, except for 3 years traveling, studying and working in Europe. He heard about the TOC a few months ago, and liked what he saw on the Web site. David earns his keep by tutoring people to use their home computers and repairing them – that’s the computers not their users!

David enjoys "gentle" cross-country skiing, bicycling and car camping – that’s not camping in a car, rather near a car :-) - and he looks forward to organizing and leading these kinds of trips for the TOC. David is also willing to try other activities.

He is interested in organizing hiking, mountain biking, backpacking, and cross-country skiing events, often venturing south of the border.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Dima.

I stumbled on the Toronto Outdoor Club website when trying to organize a family outing and decided to join the club in 2010. What I love about the TOC are the variety of events that lead me to discover parts of Ontario and even my own GTA back yard that I would otherwise never have the opportunity to know. The friendly and interesting people that organize and/or partake in these events make these experiences particularly memorable and fun.

I enjoy curling and cross-country skiing in the winter and hiking, camping and canoeing in the other 3 seasons. Photography is one of my hobbies and at most events you will likely to see me with a camera around my neck. While I do appreciate occasional endurance/fitness level challenges (such as long hikes at moderate pace), I prefer slower pace activities where there are plenty of opportunities to pause and enjoy the surroundings.

Addictions: Dark chocolate and Starbucks
Future Plans: Getting a dog

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Galina.

Gina joined the TOC in the fall of 2010 and was happy to see how many different types of activities she could sign up for. After her first hike, she knew that she wanted to be a Volunteer and saw all the potential events she could run for people just like her! She's likes to be active but is not fanatical about it. Sweating is good she keeps reminding herself! She usually has a camera in hand and is known to stop and take photos now and again. Her favourite activities are hiking, cycling and camping.

Gina has worked in the Financial District her whole career...within one city block to be exact! Even though her days are filled with numbers, she is a part time artist and has dabbled in stained glass and painting.

In the Spring, Summer and Fall you'll find her cycling, hiking with her dogs, going to various social events in the city and sports if they don't involve crunching contact. In the Winter, she might be seen hiking with her dogs happily counting down the days until Spring :) She won't say she's a die hard hiker, but isn't afraid of a little inclement weather now and again. Her motto: "If you come prepared - the weather shouldn't really matter!"

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Gina J.

Jim grew up in rural Alberta, on a grain farm north of Edmonton. Since leaving Alberta in 1985, he has lived in British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and, finally, Ontario. He has a particular fondness for Nova Scotia and the Maritimes.

Jim enjoys hiking and biking, as well as winter activities such as snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. He is also interested in travel, literature, live concerts, movies, and theatre.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Jim O.

She was introduced to the joys of canoeing at a young age and she loves nothing more than being on the water. A kayak trip in Georgian Bay several years ago introduced her to the magic of kayaking, and one of her favourite wilderness moments was spotting dolphins while kayaking in Desolation Sound on the West Coast. Throw in some hiking, cycling, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing, and you have a good idea of how she likes to spend her weekends!

Judith is a Geographic Information Systems analyst, so finding the best maps and data for a trip is a bit of an obsession!

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Judith.

He likes hiking, backpacking, canoeing, biking, and pretty much any other outdoor activity. But he's especially fond of hiking and backpacking. When hiking, he likes to turn on the auto-pilot and let his mind go blank.
Besides outdoor stuff, he is also a big fan of video games.

Jun joined TOC in 2010 and will likely stick around for a long, long time. He will mostly lead day hikes outside of the city for now, and is looking to lead overnight trips in the future. He is an all weather hiker (but actually prefers hiking in the rain rather than the scorching sun.)
He believes if you dress properly, any weather can be enjoyable. He likes to hike in a steady pace without too many stops.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Jun.

Child: "Is that your Mum calling?
Kate:...listening..."Uh, no, it's my Dad."
Child:..."He sounds mad..."
Kate:...listening..."Yeah...hm..."

Teenage sisters (who had better things to do) were constantly being dispatched to find the errant child. Trails from one friend's house to another were followed, just not in time. Kate and her dog would eventually toddle home when they got hungry - both dirty from climbing under, over or up something and often the dog (and occasionally Kate) would not be allowed to come back inside because of it.

Not much has changed, really. Kate likes hiking above most things but loves fun and adventure of all kinds. If it requires that clothing be permanently ruined in the process - all the more rewarding!

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Kate.

Linda has been a member of the TOC since 2007 and has enjoyed a range of canoe, bike, hike and cross-country ski events but has often felt that she had to choose between interesting looking trips and spending time with her 12-year old son. She would like to offer similar trips of light to moderate effort that can include families. If you have any ideas for trips including children, she’d be happy to hear from you.

Linda has a generally busy life given that she is a single mom trying to maintain an old house and has a more than full-time job as a systems portfolio manager. People describe her as person that likes to cook but really she just likes to eat and sees cooking as the intermediate step.

Chuck has said that if Linda ever became a TOC volunteer her profile would have to say that drugs brought her to the TOC. She wants to clarify that she was never using them; she was looking for a crowd that got high on nature rather than her former canoeing friends who, well, we won’t go into the details.

Linda’s outdoor goal is to become strong enough to lift a canoe by herself.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Linda D.

She likes to go new places and try new things, whether it’s surfing in Nova Scotia or kayaking down canals in Holland, and closer to home, has been known to do acro yoga in Killarney Provincial Park and take a polar bear dip in Lake Ontario.

She joined the TOC in order to meet people who wanted to get out into the great outdoors and is always looking for new friends to laugh with.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Margaret N.

Many years have passed since that first canoe trip and Mark has gone on to develop a passion for backpacking, canoeing, kayaking, and hiking. This communing with nature stuff can be kinda cool. He's also been known to don on some running tights for a few kilometres of low profile running, and the occasional visit to yoga studios across the city. Send him your event suggestions.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Mark M.

Mat moved to Toronto in 2007. He took up running in 2010 and now frequents many of the parks and trails in the city on his running routes. His favorite 'local' outdoor experience to date was completing the 80 km La Cloche Silhouette Trail, a backpacking trail that does the full circumference of Killarney Provincial Park. Although he did his first TOC event in the winter of 2009, he truly discovered the TOC in the summer of 2011 as a great way to play team sports in the city.

Mat often merges his passion for the outdoors with his other passion, photography. He maintains a website, www.viewfound.ca, where he displays photos of his journeys for his family and friends. When he's forced to step indoors, Mat is a graduate student at the University of Toronto in the environmental sciences.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Mat M.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Mike K..

Pia was born in southern England where she lived until she was 8 years old. It has taken many years for Pia to develop an appreciation of Canadian winters (and summers too) since England has a much more temperate climate. While Pia spent many winters hibernating like many Canadians, these days she is constantly trying new winter sports to get the most out of the season. Otherwise, she says, you spend half a year inside wishing your life away while you wait for warmer temperatures. Look for Pia to set up hiking, climbing (indoor, rock and ice), cross country skiing, snow shoeing and some fun adventure trips as well.

Pia has recently traveled to Tanzania where she realized a long time dream to climb Kilimanjaro. She has also trekked to Everest Base Camp and followed the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. She recently climbed mount Washington with fellow TOCers on a trip down to New Hampshire.

Pia enjoys hiking, trekking, mountain climbing, rock climbing, photography, travel, reading and the movies. She can also be found at Good Life Fitness on a regular basis where she enjoys pump, step and flow classes. For relaxing times, Pia enjoys going to the spa, shopping (what girl doesn’t) dinner with friends and the movies. For not so relaxing times, she plays with her nieces and nephews who are full of energy and mischief.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by Pia.

In November, 2007, Stephanie decided to step aside and let a new generation of TOC volunteers takeover the day to day administration so she can spend more time with her husband, Dominic, and her daughter. As the founder she is always around and continues to coordinate events.

See Upcoming Events or Past Events being coordinated by LINZI.