The Fort Nelson Snowmobile Club is a proactive group. Since Wayne Wheeler took over as Club President in 2014, the trail system in Fort Nelson has expanded in size and the amenities offered therein.
The first of the considerable upgrades was transforming the existing trail into a loop.
“Over the years, we received some help from our local council and we put a new trail around the community with help from grants,” Wheeler said. “From there, we mulched an existing line out by Parker Lake in order to make our trail system a complete loop that we can now groom.”
Next on the agenda was changing the Polaris Lake Shelter to solar power and building two more shelters to go along with the revamped trail system.
“Within no time, we were building another shelter for a location on the northwest side of town called Poplar Hills,” said Wheeler. “With a shelter up there and new trails in that area complete this year, we added our final and last shelter at Evie Lake. Now all three shelters are equipped with solar power, outhouses, picnic tables and fire pits.”
Thanks to the dedicated efforts of all involved within the Fort Nelson Snowmobile Club, the area now has over 100 kilometres of groomed trails along with its three shelters. There are also a number of rest areas along the way to stop warm up.
“Our rest areas have fire pits and tables and two of them are equipped with outhouses,” said Wheeler. “Our trails are well signed so that it’s easy riding and you can find your way to each shelter.”
Sled dogs
As impressive as the new trail system is for snowmobiles, that’s not the only form of transportation that traverses the groomed snow.
“Our club works close with our local sled dog team, Streeper Kennels,” said Wheeler. “World champion Bud Streeper uses our trails each year to host the Canadian Open Sled Dog Race.”
Search and Rescue
In keeping with the Fort Nelson Snowmobile Club’s enterprising attitude, they recently ran mock search and rescue drills. The local Search and Rescue team carried out drills with volunteer Annyka Nunes to ensure that the Club’s safety protocols were sufficient, which they were.
“Our club has thrived on safety and working with the community to provide riding and a place to go as a family in the winter to any of our three shelters,” said Wheeler.
Take a look at the Fort Nelson Snowmobile Club Profile to find out more.
