Windsor Park welcomes skiers to trails with early opening made possible by man-made snow
Drier, warmer skiing seasons pushed venue to produce artificial snow for trail
Skiers at Windsor Park are gliding on trails made from artificial snow, a milestone for the cross-country skiing venue in making the winter sport more resilient to climate change.
The Windsor Park Nordic Centre's 2.5-kilometre loop opened for public use amid warmer-than-seasonal temperatures on Saturday. Skiers also got the chance to see some of the new snow-producing equipment the centre has.
"It is just a game-changer for us," said Laurie Penton, general manager of the Windsor Park Nordic Centre.
Over the last three weeks, the venue has spent about 70 hours to produce artificial snow after the temperature dropped beyond the freezing mark.
The snow settled on the trail is dusted from fans, also known as snowmaking guns that turn high-pressured water into fine droplets that change into flakes when shot into the air.
A crew of volunteers then scatters the white powder on the trail with heavy machinery, including skid steers and a manure spreader, leading up to the grand opening this weekend.
"We were able to have actual skiing when there's not a lot of skiable snow that's fallen naturally," Penton said. "It just marks such a huge milestone."
An alternative for warmer winters
The idea of manually constructing a ski trail started 15 years ago as a dream, Penton said. But drastic fluctuations in the weather underscored the value of having a skiing facility resilient to climate change, capable of withstanding drier and warmer winters.
"Last year, it didn't snow till mid-January, and then less than three weeks later it all melted, and there was nothing for about four weeks," Penton said.
Last season's irregular winter weather motivated Penton and his team to line up the missing equipment needed to fire up the snow-making system from the start of this season's cross-country ski season.
Artificial snow differs from natural snow in that it is denser and harder to melt, and it is expected to keep the trail in operation until spring.
But for skiers, the man-made snow "feels just like real snow" for the most part, Penton said, with slim technical variations that make it more challenging for those with a grip wax.
"It feels a little spongier," said Marco Kiriakakids, a skier at the trail on Saturday. "But that could just be the weather, too."
"We are very grateful to the volunteers who pulled this off. It's fabulous. They worked really hard and there's lots of smiles out here today," Heidi Rothemund, another skier at the trail said.
Excluding last season's milder winter, popularity at the venue has been soaring every season, with single-day visits two years ago reaching 65,000.
"What makes it a great golf course is what makes it a great ski area," Penton said. "The fact that it is in the middle of the city is very unique in the country."
The central location of Windsor Park in the Glenwood neighbourhood is an added bonus. It's reachable by public transit but also easily accessible to hundreds of residents who live near the trail.
"We fully expect to have this annual effort at the start of every season to create a ski trail," he said.
The venue has reached its snowmaking target for the season and has no further plans to plug in the fan guns.
But if warmer weather leads to a significant snow melt, the machines are ready to replenish the trail with snow.
"That underscores the value of this effort," Penton said. "We make something skiable that can remain and withstand [the] erratic weather we might encounter this year."
With files from Radio-Canada Antoine Brière and Riley Laychuk