Highland Creek
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Highland Creek is a river in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. It is home to several species of fish including trout, carp, and bass. It empties into Lake Ontario south of Lawrence Avenue between Beechgrove Avenue and Port Union Road at the extreme eastern end of the Scarborough Bluffs. It is a meandering river which, like most rivers in Toronto (including the Don River and Humber River), travels through a glacial ravine formed after the last Ice Age. It and its tributaries are almost entirely within the old City of Scarborough, and it provides the watershed for most of the central part of the city.
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[edit] Tributaries of Highland Creek
- Southwest Highland Creek
- West Highland Creek
[edit] Threats from Development
Due to development in Scarborough, which has substantially increased the amount of water that historically travelled through the river, there are a number of artificial diversions to decrease erosion and guide the river past obstacles. For example, there are a large number of areas where the river is lined with rock cages. There are small dams to even out the flow in areas where upstream storage reservoirs are possible, increasing its depth. The river travels through culverts under some major streets. In addition, many of the city's storm sewers exit into the river. Highland Creek forms a large number of interconnected parks which have a system of paved bike and walking paths. As a result of these numerous channel modification projects, mostly implemented in the 1960s and 1970s, much of the creek does not follows its natural path. This is in contrast to the Rouge River, which has fewer in-stream barriers and extensive riparian and floodplain vegetation, and where a wider variety of wildlife, including some climax forest species, can be found.
Highland Creek historically formed a natural barrier to transportation in the eastern part of Scarborough, blocking the eastern sections of Lawrence Avenue East (at two locations), Morningside Avenue, and Kingston Road until the construction of longer-span bridges in the 1940s (Kingston Road) through the early 1970s (Lawrence Avenue East). Although the creek itself is rarely more than 20 meters wide, the ravine it runs through commonly is over 100 meters wide and 30 meters deep. During the early part of the 20th century, it blocked the progression of the Toronto and Scarborough Street Railway, which was unable to negotiate the grade into the creek where it met Kingston Road.
[edit] Community along the creek
Highland Creek is also the name of a neighbourhood in the east end of Scarborough on the east side of the river along Kingston Road. As it is along the original highway now renamed 'Old Kingston' road between Toronto and Kingston, Ontario, it is home to some of the oldest buildings in Scarborough. Additionally, a significant stretch of the creek flows through land that is part of the University of Toronto's Scarborough Campus. The valley surrounding the creek behind the campus is home to a soccer field, tennis courts, and the Dean's Residence, amongst other things.
Highland Creek also is part of the name of the Village newspaper that has been in existence since 1978
citation : External Link to Highland Creek Community Website Highland Creek Community Website
The community sponsors an annual Festival and Parade of which, the latest, the 2006 Session was billed as the 'Biggest Little Parade' in the city.
citation : see Heritage Festival Link
[edit] See also
- Bellamy Ravine Creek - small creek in southeast Scarborough, Ontario
- Glenabbey Ravine - small creek in southeast Scarborough, Ontario
Black Creek · Don River · Castle Frank Brook · Etobicoke Creek · Garrison Creek · German Mills Creek · Highland Creek · Humber River · Keating Channel · Mimico Creek · Rouge River · Russell Creek · Taylor-Massey Creek
