Winters like these are few and far between and I can’t quite remember having as much snow in a winter since I was a kid. I have to say, it’s awesome! I love living in Southern Ontario and experiencing the great outdoors in all four seasons.
If given the choice, I’d much rather have a winter with snow than without – maybe because apartment living means no shoveling, but maybe it’s because there’s nothing quite like seeing the trees with a fresh coating of snow and feeling as if someone has just shaken up the snow globe. A winter with snow allows for some pretty awesome winter sport opportunities.
Working within the heart of the Dundas Valley, lunchtime hikes are a regular occurrence (I know –I’m lucky!). It’s amazing how a quick 15 or 20 minute hike can clear your head and not to mention, burn a few calories! I love hiking in the winter, seeing all the fresh tracks and figuring out what wildlife has recently trekked through the same spot - sweating less is a bonus too!
I even tried cross country skiing this year for the first time after a little (or a lot) of convincing. Having only downhill skied in the past, I couldn’t understand why anyone would want to just glide around but hitting the trails at Christie Lake helped me realize what all the hype was about. I fell over a few times, had some good laughs and a ton of fun.
I’m looking forward to having my first ice fishing experience at Valens Lake next month for the Ice Fishing Derby. Maybe I’ll even catch a big one and you can look forward to reading my next blog on that time I caught a fish that was thiiiiiiis big!
Having so many winter sports waiting at your doorstep, there’s no need to bundle up and hibernate all winter (well ok maybe just on those -40C…or even -30C days). Whether it’s a hike, skiing, snowshoeing or even fishing, you better hurry up and get outside before all that white stuff melts away…
Brittany Berlinghoff
Hamilton Conservation Authority
