Red River Mutual Trail now open from The Forks to St. Vital

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 3/2/2015 (1773 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Grab your blades and hit the ice — the Red River Mutual Trail is now open from The Forks to St. Vital, a total length of 6.1 kilometres on which people can skate.

Along the skating trail, there are warming huts and river painting by local artist Kal Barteski.

"The Red River Mutual Trail has never extended this far down the Red River and we’re excited to connect those communities to Winnipeg’s downtown," said Paul Jordan, the chief executive officer of The Forks, in a media statement. "There is still a lot of winter ahead of us and it’s a great way for Winnipeggers to get outside and embrace it."

During the next few weeks there will be a number of winter events along and on the trail including the Subaru Canada Ironman Outdoor Curling Bonspiel, The Jack Frost Challenge, the Festival du Voyageur’s Rendez-vous on Ice and Manitoba Music On Ice among other events.

Jordan said the direction, length and timing of the Red River Mutual Trail change each year including the 2015 edition.

"This year we have not been able to get onto the Assiniboine River, but extending the portion down Red River has been a great alternative," he stated in the media release.

Crews are still working on adding additional access points, spreading out warming huts and putting up trees.

Skaters can find current access points at The Forks, the St. Boniface Cathedral, Balsam Place, Churchill Drive at the Manitoba Canoe and Kayak Centre, and the St. Vital Bridge.

No skates? No problem. There are skate rentals available at Iceland Skate Rentals located adjacent to the skate changing area. Rates are $3 for children and seniors and $5 for adults. Skate trainers are also available for $2.

All rinks and trails are groomed daily. For conditions or more information, go to the website www.theforks.com/rivertrail or @RRMTrail on Twitter.

For those who would rather not skate, there are a walking trail and a groomed cross country ski trail alongside the skating trails.

The trail is expected to be open until the end of February or beginning of March, weather permitting.

In the past, the trail has run along the Assiniboine and Red Rivers with two large skating rinks in The Forks Historic Port.