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travel / adventure zone
| The Adventure Zone |
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| Photo © iStockphoto.com |
Taming the Cold Hard Heart of Winter
In the Haliburton Highlands, learning to love the snowy season is job number one
By Tracy C. Read
The grassroots embrace of environmental stewardship has done its share of the heavy lifting in paving the way for the growing phenomenon that is eco-friendly tourism, and central Ontario’s Haliburton Highlands serves as an impressive example of the synergy that has emerged between the two movements. Across the region, entrepreneurial teams with longtime experience in caring for and teaching about the wonders of the natural world are rolling out year-round programs to engage the public.
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| Photo © iStockphoto.com |
At no time of year are these enticements more welcome than during the Canadian winter, when the inclination to snuggle up inside and wait out the cold is strong. Against a backdrop of some of the most beautiful wilderness landscapes in the country, however, Haliburton’s brilliant blue skies, frozen lakes, mixed forests and snowy trails beckon even the most stubborn inactivist.
At Yours Outdoors, owner-operator Barrie Martin draws on his rich experience in Ontario’s provincial parks and as an education specialist with the Ministry of Natural Resources to create day and multi-day trips for nature-eager participants. Co-founder of the Haliburton Highlands Trails and Tours Network, Martin is well placed to coordinate access to the region’s spectacular backcountry. He and his team work with small groups and employ a low-impact approach to avoid the negative social and ecological toll that historical tourist activities have too often taken.
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| Photo © iStockphoto.com |
This season’s Make Peace With Winter runs from Dec. 15–March 15 and is offered as a one-day trip or a three-day sampler. A fully guided outing that includes your choice of dogsledding, ice climbing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, skijoring, skating and tobogganing, the package is available with accommodation at lodgings that likewise fly the eco-friendly flag.
Also on tap for 2009/10, A Walk Into Winter, a half- or one-day expedition that starts off with an introduction to snowshoeing history and hands-on instruction on tips and techniques. Then it’s a walk into the wild, where you’ll learn about the ecology of winter and “the finer points of winter survival” over a hearty campfire lunch. The package is also offered as a three-day heritage adventure, featuring a journey into Canada’s past with a trek to a heritage log cabin led by an 18th-century fur trader.
For more information on how to get up and out this winter, visit www.yoursoutdoors.ca
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