By Steve Hubrecht 

[email protected]

Slip on the skates, snap on the nordic skis, or get set to otherwise walk, run, roll or move on ice — the Lake Windermere Whiteway is at long last open for the season.

The iconic ice skating and nordic skiing track (which is also open for many other forms of human-powered recreation) opened for ice skating on Saturday, Jan. 4. A nordic skate/ski track followed, and then on Saturday, Jan. 11, the Toby Creek Nordic Ski Club announced a classic skate/ski track has also been set.

The Whiteway holds a record as the world’s longest ice skating trail and is one of the most popular (if not the most popular) winter recreation amenities in the Columbia Valley. Locals and visitors alike eagerly await its opening each year. This year — thanks to Mother Nature — they had to a wait a little longer than in most winters.

“We’re way later than normal. I think this is the latest we’ve ever been,” Whiteway maintainer Brad Kitching told the Pioneer. “It’s just been too warm. There hasn’t been enough cold weather to get the lake ice thick enough.”

There needs to be at least eight inches of ice on Lake Windermere for Kitching to take out the lighter ATV and sweeper grooming equipment, and it needs to be 13.5 inches thick for the bigger Kubota tractor with plow and sweeper.

On January 2, the ice was still just seven inches thick, but soon thereafter grew to eight inches, allowing Kitching to create the skating and skiing trails with the ATV. It’s currently 11 inches thick.

“The ice started out really well. We initially had four inches and it was mirror smooth. But then we had a day at + 5 degrees Celsius. That unfortunately melted all the snow on top, which made the ice bumpy,” said Kitching. “So the ice is a bit rough. It’s okay for skating, but not super great. It’s excellent, though, for fat biking, walking and just getting out there.”

Kitching suspects it won’t be much longer before the ice grows to 13.5 inches and he can get the Kubota onto the lake.

“We just need some good minus 10 degrees weather. That should happen soon,” he said.

On smaller Lake Lillian, located between Invermere and Panorama Mountain Resort, the Lake Lillian Whiteway is also now open, with a nordic skate/ski track in place.