Lloydminster residents can find a new experience at Mount Joy Snow Resort as they add a few more upgrades to the hill ahead of the winter season.
Top Gear Contracting has donated their time and equipment to cut new trails through the trees on the hill to allow for “glade” skiing. Mount Joy President Chris Bogue says there will be four new narrower trails which will offer a backcountry skiing experience to visitors.
“Glading is cutting ski trails through thick forested areas and it offers a different feel. We don’t have massive amounts of snow or thick forested areas so by cutting these trails it offers that experience to anybody.”
He says the new trails will offer up a new challenge to the more experienced skiers in the area as well.
“We have a couple of new trail types and we will try to go from the intermediate to advanced which is essentially how these trails will pan out and it will attract more intermediate or advanced skiers to the hill.”
He adds the trails could also be used for mountain bikers in the summer which would allow the resort to stay open year-round.
The trails are in addition to some other upgrades put in place earlier this fall. In September, BPC Services Ltd. installed additional water lines and four risers to help with the snow making process and provide a better spread of snow over the winter.
“We wouldn’t be able to do it without the community support. Like a lot of things that we offer to the community itself, we need volunteers and companies like BPC and Top Gear to continue to support us and help us along with these projects.”
Bogue is expecting more visitors at Mount Joy this year as people take advantage of outdoor activities during the pandemic. Mount Joy’s board of directors is working with Canada West Ski Association to ensure all the proper COVID-19 guidelines are in place and they will be moving to more contactless services in the upcoming season.