A New Plaque Honouring Ken Bouchard for His Trail Building Work

Ken Bouchard (right) accepting plaque during our April 10th annual general meeting.

Today we honour a very important member of our trail building community. Ken Bouchard, former President of the Board of Directors for Sentiers Wakefield Trails — a true trail blazer. To honour Ken's legacy in helping Sentiers Wakefield Trails, we presented him with a plaque during our annual general meeting on April 10th, 2025. His work on our trails was instrumental in the history of Sentiers Wakefield Trails, and continues to inspire us to build our trails to new heights. As Ken retires from our board, we would like to extend our largest thanks for his work over the years.

To eternalize Ken and his work, we placed the plaque behind the SWT shed beside the trailhead that begins at the Community Centre (Centre Wakefield La Pêche).

Ken's passion and skill for building trails began in high school. He has contributed to the development of many trails in the Ottawa/Gatineau region over the years. In 2012 he turned his attention to Wakefield and the result is a network of trails connecting the village of Wakefield to the nearby Gatineau Park. He and a group of volunteers established Sentiers Wakefield Trails, a non profit organization, in 2016. Under Ken's leadership, Sentiers Wakefield Trails forged relationships with the public and private sector, donors, sponsors, landowners, and other trail clubs, including the Municipality of La Pêche and the Trans Canada Trail. These ongoing relationships allow us to carry on the work that Ken started, which is our gift and commitment back to him for his many years of service to trail users.