One-Tank Trip for
Jan. 4/20
(c) By Jim Fox
Postmedia Network/Sun newspapers
Happy new year –
take a hike, it’s good for you.
That’s the message
from Ontario Parks for people resolving to get more exercise in the great
outdoors.
Parks dotting the
province don’t go into hibernation at this time of year as 31 are open and
offering snowy fun, including skiing, skating and snowshoeing.
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| Taking a hike at MacGregor park. (Ontario Parks photos) |
You can also spend
the night in “warm and cozy” heated yurts, cabins and cottages.
Many parks have cross-country
ski trails while others have groomed or track-set trails.
There are
designated snowshoe trails in many parks and some have skating and tubing, too.
You will also find ski
loppets and special events to savour winter.
That stroll in nature
comes with “proven benefits, including a lowered risk of heart disease,
high blood pressure and stroke,” said Jeff Brown of Ontario Parks.
“Winter in Ontario
Parks is quiet, pristine, and absolutely beautiful,” he added.
To stay current on
weather and snow conditions on the trails, Ontario Parks posts updates all
season at: ontarioparks.com/skireport
Each provincial
park submits updates summarizing the conditions within the park and the status
of their trails.
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|
A snowy hike at
Frontenac Provincial Park.
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Lots of fun
Ongoing activities
include a step back in time to the year 1900 at Bronte Creek Provincial Park in
Oakville.
Visitors can tour the
elegantly decorated Spruce Lane farmhouse and barn through Sunday (Jan. 5).
Skating is a cool winter
pursuit, gliding through the woods on a pair of blades.
Arrowhead in
Muskoka has “Fire and Ice” skating through the woods in the East River campground.
That’s for skating
by tiki torch and there’s also cross- country skiing beside the skating trail.
There are warming
fires available for toasting hot dogs and marshmallows.
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| Enjoying
torch-lighted skating at Arrowhead park.
|
The park often reaches
capacity and has to turn away eager visitors, Brown said.
Visitors can check ahead
the “guide to winter at Arrowhead” with alternate trip locations at ontarioparks.com/parksblog
Every winter, park
staff flood campground loops at Arrowhead and MacGregor Point in Port Elgin to
create ice trails.
Lighted skating is available
on weekends at MacGregor and overnight stays can be arranged there in a yurt or
in an Arrowhead cabin.
Algonquin, Pinery in
Grand Bend and Bronte Creek are among others with outdoor rinks and many parks offer
skate rentals.
Bronte Creek also
has a toboggan hill and five kilometres of cross-country ski trails that loop
throughout the park.
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Ontario Parks offer
groomed snowshoeing trails.
|
Snowshoeing is one
of the fastest-growing winter sports at Ontario Parks.
Among those offering
snowshoe rentals are Arrowhead, Killarney, Pinery and Wasaga Beach.
For more
information and reservations: ontarioparks.com;
1-888-ONT-PARK
Camping star
Willow Lake
Campground and RV Park in Woodstock has won the Campers Choice Provincial Award
for best customer service from Camping in Ontario.
It was acknowledged
as “the little campground that can” and in 2017 was named “best small
campground in Ontario.”
Operated by Mark
and Melanie Jaycock, campers from across Canada, the U.S. and Europe voted for
their most-recent award.
“This speaks to the
incredible draw our beautiful province of Ontario has for campers from around
the world,” they said.
Their motto is: “Helping
families create lifetime memories, one campfire at a time.”
The 2020 camping
season begins on April 24 with reservations now available at willowlakecampground.ca
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Jim Fox can be reached at onetanktrips@hotmail.com
For more One-Tank Trips: http://1tanktrips.blogspot.ca
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