Episode 7 – First Club To Open Snowmobile Trails – Ride The 8

OntarioSnowmobiler.ca Podcast

Snowmobile Trails Opening All Over Ontario

This week on the #OntarioSnowmobiler.ca podcast we check in with Cheryl Reid, President of the Opengo Snowbirds Snowmobile club and find out how they were able to be the first club open this year. We also had the privilage of talking to Dave Emms and he tells us all about the Ride the 8 loop in District 8. All of this and more on this weeks episode.

SHOW NOTES

Introduction of Show

• Today we have two guests on the podcast
  • David Emms
    • Board of Directors from District 8
    • Representative of the Mid Ontario Snowmobile Trails (MOST)
    • Content Contributor for OntarioSnowmobiler.ca Podcast
  • Cheryl Reid
    • President of the Opeongo Snowbird Snowmobile Club
    • Lives in the District 6 Catchment Area (Barry’s Bay, Haliburton and Pembroke)

Listener Question Of the Week

• Question of the week is from Sue Chayer from Mementos in Ottawa who asked
• “Can you please remind riders that volunteers are doing their best in many cases to open trails. And I was wondering if you could remind riders about some of the reasons that some trails might take a bit longer to open even though there is snow on the ground?”
• Many areas have different reasons such as
  • Crops / Winter Wheat / Live Stock still in fields
  • Swamps have snow insulating them making them take longer to freeze
  • Ice conditions can be a factor when lakes or rivers are involved
  • Landowners and municipalities may impose restrictions
  • Signage may not have been completed on all snowmobile trails
  • Too much snow at one time can make it difficult to groom with hidden obstacles
  • Trees may be down in some areas which are not accessible until the swamps are frozen and snow is on the ground
  • Lack of volunteers in many clubs
  • Training of volunteers for Risk Management, Signage and Groomer Operators
  • Many crops are still drying in the fields on snowmobile trails
  • Keep the questions coming!
    • [e-mail]
    • Our Facebook Page
    • 1-855-561-4401
    • Thanks again to Sue for her question

Update on Crowd Source

• Shirts went out in the mail
• Stickers are delayed but will be sent as soon as they are available
• Thanks to every who supported us

Weather Report

• Last week lots of snow was spread across the province
• 12 inches in the Ottawa area with snowmobile trails starting to open
• Environment Canada has issued a weather statement for Southern Ontario
• More snow coming
• David Emms reported many small accumulations with have collected to around 12 inches on the ground
• Cheryl Reid reported quite a bit of snow in her area
• The have packed their snowmobile trails before the rain which has resulted in a 15-20 cm base on their trails with nice powder pack on top
• All snowmobile trails except one are open in her area
• Consistent temperatures being reported
• Frost is working itself in well which will help for late season riding

Ride The 8 In District 8

• Great article about Ride the 8’s
• #ridethe8
• Family oriented loop based about 1 hour’s drive north of Toronto
• Designed to showcase the trails of District 8 Snowmobile Trail Network
• Figure 8 shaped
• Simple and caters to many snowmobilers
• Eastern Segment of the figure 8 is 175-185 km
• Western Segment is 159 km
• Would be a pretty long day ride, recommend making it a two day trip to do both ends
• Many Hotels / Motels along the route
• Fuel is readily available
• Snowmobiler discounts at some of the hotels
• Plenty of restaurants along the snowmobile trails
• Couple of dealerships that are accessible by snowmobile trail
• Maps are the best resource and are available in many locations and at the District Office, just email [e-mail]
• District 8 includes Barry, Georgian Bay and Collingwood

Snowmobile Trails Opening

• Marni reports that 11 Districts have trails which ore opening or limited
• Check the OFSC Interactive Trail Guide for most up to date information
• Opeongo Snowbirds Snowmobile Club were the first to open their trails!

What Does It Take To Open Snowmobile Trails

• Snow obviously
• Hard work from volunteers
• Applied for grant money to improve snowmobile trails by adding gravel on trails, grading and bridging
• By smoothing out the trails they need less snow to fill those holes
• Opened 117 km of trail on the first day and are now over 200
• Hope to open more trail this weekend
• Barry’s Bay is about 2.5 hours from the Ottawa Airport and about 4 hours from Toronto
• Good Lodging
  • Spectactle Lake Lodge
  • Ash Grove Inn
  • Mountain View Inn
  • Pinewood Inn
  • Barry’s Bay Resort
  • The couple’s Resort (Whitney)
• Fuel Locations
  • Barry’s Bay (open until 10:00 PM)
  • Whitney
  • Spectacle Lake Lodge (Emergency Fuel)
  • All Star Resort (Emergency Fuel)
  • Emergency Fuel available at a few locations this year in case of snowmobilers running into problems with not enough gas
• Staging Areas
  • Barry’s Bay – Large parking lot behind the Avro Arrow Monument
  • Barry’s Bay – Near water tower, huge parking lot
  • Madawaska – Arena / Community Center
  • Whitney – Mad Musher has a large parking lot
  • Whitney – Township Yard

  Krusty’s Recommendations of Great Places To Eat

  • Wilno Tavern (Polish Restaurant / Perogies)
  • Mad Musher (Hamburger)
  • Visitor Center in Barry’s Bay will be open all winter this year
  • District 6 Map includes all sorts of information including Cheryl’s conact info
  • Facebook Page for Snow Country and for Opeongo Snowbirds
  • Snowcountry SCSA

The post Episode 7 – First Club To Open Snowmobile Trails – Ride The 8 appeared first on OntarioSnowmobiler.ca Podcast.