Winter Fun Day is coming up!

Winter fun in the great outdoors is always the theme of the annual Winter Fun Day, hosted by Algonquin Outfitters, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2010. This free, family-oriented, event takes place at the Oxtongue Lake location, just west of Algonquin Park, on Hwy. 60, about 30 km east of Huntsville. Click here for Google Maps directions.

Winter Fun Day is designed to introduce people to self-propelled (or at least non-motorized) winter activities like snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, skate skiing, winter camping and dog sledding, as well as provide a host of opportunities to simply have fun in the snow.

This year’s event will pack a host of activities into a single day. You could drive a dog team, learn how to build a snow shelter, try skate skiing, go on a snowshoe hike, learn about winter camping, enter a snowshoe race (and hopefully finish!), play snow games and more! Representatives from MSR snowshoes will be here to talk about their latest models and let you try out a range of snowshoes and demonstrate new winter products. Lunch is always a highlight of any winter activity and barbeque fare, like hotdogs and sausages, will be available.

Equipment for all activities will be provided free of charge for Winter Fun Day participants and a heap of door prizes will be given away throughout the event.

For more information, please call the Oxtongue Lake store, 1-800-4694948 (705-635-2243).

Please note that there is a charge for dog sled rides and a family rate is available.

Here is a general overview of the day:

Saturday, Feb. 20, 2010:

9 am: Algonquin Outfitters opens

10 - 4 pm: dog sled rides - please sign up  at the dog truck to make sure you get a ride!

10 -12: morning program (x-c ski lesson, ski and snowshoes demos, snowshoe hike, quinzee building, dog sled rides, etc.)

12 - 2: lunch

1 - 5: afternoon program (skate ski lessons, ski and snowshoe demos, winter camping demo, etc.)

Sunday, Feb. 21:

10 - noon: 16th annual Ragged Falls Snowshoe Adventure Hike. This is a three-hour guided exploration of the Ragged Falls area. About half the trek is on packed trails and the rest is on unmarked, unpacked trails.

Advance registration is not required - simply show up! All events take place in the immediate area of our Oxtongue Lake store (except the Ragged Falls hike - car pooling req'd).

Dog sled rides are provided by Winterdance Dog Sled Tours.

Ski lessons are provided by Ski for Life.