After years of yo-yoing temperatures, last winter felt like a godsend for Ian Dunbar.
It was a winter chock full of snow, which meant brisk business at snowmobile retailer Tri City Cycle, when Dunbar works.
With the mercury staying below zero for six weeks and counting, this winter is shaping up just as nicely.
“As soon as the snow starts falling, it’s like money coming down from the sky,” he says.
Warmer winters mean snowmobilers have to trek farther to find usable trails, Dunbar says – which keeps more casual drivers at home.
This year, that’s not the case at all.
Ice fishing, another traditional winter activity, is also enjoying a booming season.
Noel Johnson of the Grand River Conservation Authority says ice huts at GRCA parks have been booked solid on weekends – and while the season is traditionally over by early March, huts will likely stay open until March 15.
Snowshoe and ski rentals will continue even past that date, likely until the end of March Break.
All in all, the frigid winter has meant a 30 per cent increase in membership sales for the GRCA.
“Hopefully this is a trend that’ll keep up,” Johnson says.
It’s also been a great winter at the Sail outdoor sports store in Cambridge.
“We’ve been selling lots of cross-country skis, lots of snowshoes,” says James Meagher.
“I never thought that we would sell a wall of snowshoes, but we’ve sold a wall of snowshoes many times over.”
