While other parts of the province face poor trail conditions, snowmobiling in the Orillia and Lake Country area is off to a strong start this winter — drawing Snowmobiler TV to profile the area’s trails this week for an upcoming episode.
“This is probably the best area because this is the only area with the yellow trails and green trails in southern Ontario and most of Northern Ontario, as well. This is the spot,” said Bryar Legris, Snowmobiler TV co-host.
Legris said poor trail conditions prevented the show from featuring Orillia and Lake Country’s snowmobile trails over the past couple seasons, but this year’s colder weather and consistent snowfall have led to a substantial number of the area’s trails opening up for snowmobilers.
With over 200 kilometres of trails in the region — spanning across lakes, rolling hills, and forests — local officials say even more trails will be open by this weekend, and welcomed the opportunity to have local trails featured on TV.
“I think any kind of exposure is good exposure for all of us, for the area, so it’s great,” said Rob Love, president of the Orillia District Snowmobile Club.
“We're doing quite well. We're one of the only clubs that actually have most of our trails actually open in the area,” he said. “We're kind of blessed with that, and that's just due to the incredible hours that the volunteers have put in in order to do that.”
Although relatively balmy winters have caused trail issues over the past several years, Orillia and Lake Country Tourism’s Kris Puhvel said the region still generally fares better than others to the south and west, and — this year — it’s looking better than much of Northern Ontario, as well.
“Judging by the forecast, it looks like we’re in for a banner January at the very least, and hopefully beyond that,” he said. “Right now, everything looks like a winter wonderland out there.”
With a strong season so far, snowmobiling can be a boon for the local economy, Puhvel said.
“We really like to market this region as a four-season destination. We have all those great summer activities, but come winter time we have a lot to offer here,” he said.
“From our ski hills to our snowshoeing to ice fishing, but snowmobiling definitely is an important activity for us because it really does draw people from all over," said Puhvel.
“Whether it's a local or a visitor, it definitely has an impact on a wide variety of our businesses in a positive way.”
Though cold and snowy conditions have helped, Puhvel thanked the Orillia District Snowmobile Club for all of its volunteer efforts to get the region’s trails up and running.
“These guys are awesome. They're all volunteers, right?” he said. “They're doing all of this work, hard work, getting the trails cleared and groomed and ready for us. It's pretty amazing what they do here in the region.”
Legris said the region's Snowmobiler TV episode will be aired in the coming weeks, and will be available on CityTV, RedTV, Wild TV, and YouTube.
