The 92.5% of residents who reported hiking as
forming part of their “top three” activities hike the
trails 7.3 days each month. Cross-country biking is the
second favourite trail activity, with 55.7% of
respondents citing it as one of their three most preferred
activities. Horseback riding is least popular, as
only 13.2% of respondents consider it part of their top
three activities. While hiking is considered the most
popular trail activity, dogwalkers are the most frequent
participants in their activity. The 42% of respondents
listing dogwalking amongst their top three activities
walk their dogs on the trails 9.6 days each month. In
order to differentiate between different users in our
analysis, a cluster analysis using the Ward method was
performed to identify groups of respondents who are
most similar in pursuit of their recreation activities.
The responses to the frequency of participation were
recoded to never, occasionally (= 1-3 times a month),
and regularly (= more than 4 times a month. A highly
interpretable three cluster solution (see Figure 2)
showed that hiking and dog walking were enjoyed
about equally by all three groups. On the other hand,
participation rates in jogging and mountain biking
differed significantly, with members of Cluster 2