Winter, Bite Me
Embrace the chilly winter temperatures at The Forks
The frigid January temperatures don’t mean that Winnipeggers have to spend the rest of the winter months hibernating in their homes. The Forks offers a number of outdoor activities to get people outside and active during the frosty winter days and nights.
“Winnipeggers have embraced the idea of winter and playing in winter,” said Clare MacKay, the vice president of marketing and communications for The Forks North Portage Partnership.
And the citizens of Winnipeg are coming out in droves to enjoy these activities, said Mackay.
“Last year February was looking more like July in terms of traffic, and in the last three years we’ve seen a definite spike in the number of people coming down in the winter. Families and people of all ages are embracing this.”
MacKay said the main winter attraction at The Forks is Arctic Glacier Winter Park. The park features 1.2 kilometres of skating trails that connect an artificially cooled skating rink under the canopy, along with an Olympic-size rink by Scotiabank Stage.
“The skating trail is lit and speakers play music while you skate. It is just beautiful,” said MacKay. The Olympic-size rink has ice that is maintained daily and features hockey nets and warm-up shacks.
Arctic Glacier Winter Park also includes The Snowboard Fun Park, a professionally designed snowboard facility featuring rails, table tops, and jumps. For six consecutive Sundays starting in January, The Forks will offer free snowboard lessons to beginners of all ages.
The snowboard park also features a drop-in ramp that allows more advanced snowboarders to drop into the facility with extra speed. For those who like to toboggan, The Forks Toboggan Run lets riders glide down a small hill right into Festival Park.
The Assiniboine Credit Union River Trail, which currently holds the Guinness World Record as the world’s longest naturally frozen river trail, plans to open in January, weather permitting. The trail allows skaters to glide along both the Red and Assiniboine Rivers.
North Kildonan resident Kathy Ikonen says the skating trail at the Forks is a great way to keep her two daughters active during the winter. “I don’t want them spending the whole winter on the computer or playing video games,” said Ikonen. “It’s nice that the kids have something fun to do outside when it’s cold.”
All winter activities at The Forks are free of charge and skate rentals are available at a cost of $4.50 for adults and $2.50 for children and seniors.
For more information on outdoor activities at The Forks visit its website at www.theforks.com.
