features

Features

York Region covers 1,756 square kilometres and has lots of natural features, including farmlands, wetlands, kettle lakes, the Oak Ridges Moraine and more than 2,200 hectares (5,500 acres) of regional forest in 20 different tracts.

The York Regional Forest

The area covered by the York Regional Forest did not always have trees. The area was cleared for development before the land was bought by the Region in 1924.

Since that time, the forest has been restored. It continues to be protected by York Region, which works closely with the Ministry of Natural Resources to ensure that the forest remains for future generations to enjoy.
Picture of hardwood trees

Kettle Lakes

York Region also has over 500 square kilometres of kettle lakes. These lakes are not fed by any other waters. They were formed when glaciers retreated thousands of years ago and left deep holes in the ground. The melting ice filled these holes, forming the kettle lakes.

The Oak Ridges Moraine

As you can see from the green section of the map, the Oak Ridges Moraine covers a large part of Southern Ontario.

Here is some interesting information on the Oak Ridges Moraine:

The moraine is a ridge of primarily sand and gravel, deposited by advancing and retreating glaciers, approximately 12,000 years ago.
It extends 160 km across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), from the Ganaraska Forest in Durham Region in the east, to the Niagara Escarpment in the west. 90 km of the moraine are in the GTA, with a total coverage area of 1,250 square kilometres. The widest portion (24 km) and deepest portion (330 m) are in York Region.
The rolling terrain of the Oak Ridges Moraine sustains some of the most significant and distinctive woodlands and wetlands in the GTA.
The moraine contains most of the remaining natural areas in the GTA, including forests, wetlands, and animal and plant species.
The moraine affects with quality and amount of water for over 65 rivers and streams (36 in the GTA), including the Rouge, Don and Humber rivers.
The moraine is one of the last remaining continuous green corridors in southern Ontario.