8°c Variably cloudy
8°c Light rain
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Too nice to be on the ice?
Officials ready to shut trails
TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Enlarge Image
Skaters enjoy an afternoon glide on the Assiniboine River Monday.
WINNIPEG -- Plans for one last skate on the river trail could fall through the ice this week.
An above-normal February, coupled with a downright balmy start to March, has officials at The Forks preparing to shut the popular skating and walking trails on the Assiniboine and Red rivers.
Conditions have been so spring-like over the last week crews started removing the warming huts from the ice Monday, just to get a jump on the coming thaw.
As Paul Jordan, the chief operating officer at The Forks, explains, there is no set expiration date on the winding ice trail.
"Put it this way: any time that we get into March is a bonus," he said.
As for when the trail will officially limit public access, Jordan believes all signs point to Thursday.
Today, clear skies are forecast once the fog clears early this morning and a high of -2 C is expected. On Wednesday morning, expect more of the same. Environment Canada is calling for more early morning fog followed by sunshine and a high of -3 C.
Temperatures are expected to reach 3 C by Thursday with sunshine and highs hovering around 0 C through the weekend.
With Friday and the weekend looking equally as pleasant (the extended forecast calls for temperatures above or near the freezing mark), people need to warm up to the idea the skating season could be over.
"It's harder and harder to bring the ice back," Jordan said. "After this last weekend, where our counts showed about 30,000 people skating, it took us all day to get it back -- and it's still pretty soft.
"Think about it: That's 60,000 skate blades carving up some soft ice. We've been out there with the Zamboni and the water truck, but it's just not ideal freezing conditions anymore."
If you thought last month was rather pleasant, you've got a good feel for our climate.
February saw an average high temperature of 8.7 C, which was only slightly warmer than the seasonal average. Of the 28 days in the month, only eight daytime temps dipped into double-digit figures.
The conditions were ideal for outdoor winter activities, making the skating trail an ideal recreation destination.
"Using our door cameras, we'll see 180,000 come through the market in a typical February," Jordan said.
"This time around, we did 250,000. We're doing summer numbers in the winter, which is terrific."
Jordan reminds people to check The Forks website (theforks.com) for updates on the skating and walking river trails.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition March 2, 2010 A2
More Life & Style
- Back to Top
- Return to Life & Style
Poll
Proudly brought to you by:
Most Popular Life & Style
- 'You look fantastic,' Ellen DeGeneres tells beaming Helene Campbell
- New book details Obama's fondness for weed while a Hawaiian high school student
- Hot spots keep Kirkland Lake on high alert as forest fires fought in Ontario
- Space station astronauts enter world's 1st commercial supply ship, the historic Dragon
- Private Dragon capsule makes history with space station docking: 'First of many to come'
- Person struck by lightning and apartment building damaged in Ottawa storm
- Wolf in Newfoundland probably made it to island on ice, experts say
- Clouds of smoke, ash from forest fire lead to state of emergency in Timmins
- Muslim-Canadian leader Aziz Khaki remembered as leader, educator, activist
- 'Angry Birds Space' top paid iPhone app in Canada
- 'You look fantastic,' Ellen DeGeneres tells beaming Helene Campbell
- Bonding or bondage?
- Facebook stock slide deepens on 3rd day after IPO as investors reassess company potential
- Look fabulous at 40
- Man who beheaded fellow bus passenger thought victim was an alien: supporter
- Wolf in Newfoundland probably made it to island on ice, experts say
- Tanning-salon restrictions take effect June 15
- 'Angry Birds Space' top paid iPhone app in Canada
- Pour it on: Coffee drinkers live longer
- Festival, parade celebrate strides GLBTTQ community has made over last quarter-century
- Victoria woman photographs octopus as it devoured a struggling seagull
- North End treasure
- Father pulls son from Nova Scotia school at centre of Jesus T-shirt controversy
- 'You look fantastic,' Ellen DeGeneres tells beaming Helene Campbell
- Report finds poor diet remains recipe for disaster as Canadians get older
- Bonding or bondage?
- Look fabulous at 40
- RIM chief executive says BlackBerry needed to trim down to compete
- Tories admit to closing enviro research group because they disliked results
- Facebook stock slide deepens on 3rd day after IPO as investors reassess company potential
- Hot spots keep Kirkland Lake on high alert as forest fires fought in Ontario
- Hundreds of thousands must check, fix computers or lose Internet in July due to hacker case
- Adopting out retired 'enviropigs' a non-starter due to risks, Guelph school says
- Vatican bank chief ousted with no-confidence vote, failed to do job Vatican said
- Synagogue to honour longtime Torah reader
- Hundreds of thousands must check, fix computers or lose Internet in July due to hacker case
- Festival, parade celebrate strides GLBTTQ community has made over last quarter-century
- Pour it on: Coffee drinkers live longer
- New biography celebrates first female ordained minister
- The healthy plate: Recipe for creamy potato salad with artichokes and herbs
- Facebook stock sinks below IPO price, in 2nd day of trading as public company
- Born to run barefoot? Unshod trend is no panacea in avoiding injuries: experts
- 'Angry Birds Space' top paid iPhone app in Canada
- Red River cereal returning after label change
- North End treasure
- The mind grind
- Pros and cons of pacifiers can leave parents pondering what's best for baby
- Synagogue to honour longtime Torah reader
- Hundreds of thousands must check, fix computers or lose Internet in July due to hacker case
- Report finds poor diet remains recipe for disaster as Canadians get older
- Victoria woman photographs octopus as it devoured a struggling seagull
- Suspended Nova Scotia student says he'll return to class wearing Jesus T-shirt
- Important to find out reason for fatigue
- Festival, parade celebrate strides GLBTTQ community has made over last quarter-century
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010; View the changes. New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.