By Chad Ingram

Winter’s late arrival in Haliburton County this year is not having much of an impact for the Haliburton County Snowmobile Association.

While the snow may have come late it all came at once the county blanketed by a snow storm Dec. 29.

HCSA president Paul Gaudin says the season is on track and that the association is ahead with its work the Haliburton County Rail Trail opening to sledders a week earlier than it did last year.
As for the rest of the trail network in the county at press time association members had travelled about 80 per cent of the trails performing grooming.
“We’ve been out packing making a base” Gaudin says.

There  are 370 kilometres of snowmobile trails in Haliburton County.

Gaudin was optimistic that with a bit more of the white stuff and temperatures staying below freezing most of the trails in the county would be open before long.
Trails are typically open by mid-January the season lasting through March – weather-dependent of course.
Gaudin warned snowmobilers to stay off waterbodies some of which still have open water.
“There is no safe ice in Haliburton County right now” Gaudin says adding that when ice is safely passable it is staked by the association. “If it’s not staked stay off.”

The HCSA typically sells about 2000 permits per season and throughout Ontario some 111000 permits are sold.
Snowmobilers can keep an eye on trail availability by visiting www.hcsa.ca.