The Whitecourt Trailblazers Snowmobile Club had a very busy 2009/2010 winter. With about 1,500 hours of volunteer time, the club utilized funding from the National Trails Coalition (NTC) and did an extensive upgrade to some of their existing trails. In addition, the club added three new trails in the Whitecourt region and expanded the parking lot at the Eagle River staging area. All of the new trails are six metres wide and were designed for beginner, intermediate and advanced riders.
Dan Guenette, the vice-president of the Whitecourt Trailblazers, talked to Snoriders magazine about the region’s beautiful new trail system.
The Goodwin Lake Trail
Southwest of Whitecourt lies the Goodwin Lake Trail. Reaching a distance of 30 kilometres long, this trail loops off the Silver Summit Trail. It takes sledders by Goodwin Lake and it goes through hilly terrain with beautiful views.
“It is going to be an awesome trail,” said Guenette. “It will accommodate all types of riders and there is a stop-off at Goodwin Lake—we call it the Goodwin Lake Lookout as it overlooks the lake and there is a bathroom, a firepit and a picnic table.”
The Groat Creek Canyon Trail
The Whitecourt Trailblazers have also carved out a 15-kilometre snowmobile trail called the Groat Creek Canyon Trail; amenities include a bathroom and firepit. In addition, a new staging area has been built beside Highway 32 about 15 kilometres southwest of Whitecourt heading towards Edson.
“There is a lookout there too, overlooking Groat Creek Canyon,” said Guenette, “which is about 200 feet of vertical canyon looking down into the bottom of the creek valley.”
The Manweiler Trail
The Manweiler Trail takes sledders from the Silver Summit warm-up shelter to the Gundy rest area, which is located on the Golden Triangle Trail west of Whitecourt. By far the longest addition to Whitecourt’s trail system, the Manweiler Trail is 65 kilometres long.
Guenette said that this trail was named after one of the club’s founders, Alex Manweiler, who continues to be a hard-working volunteer. Manweiler joined the Whitecourt Trailblazers in 1979 when he, his wife, Karen, and their children moved to Whitecourt from Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan. Manweiler and two other members of the club have dedicated more than 500 hours of time this year, putting up new signage and generally helping out with the new trail system.
An important friendship
A modest man, Alex Manweiler was not happy when he originally heard that a trail in Whitecourt was going to be named after him.
“(The club members) mentioned (the possible name of the Manweiler Trail) last spring when we were talking about these new trails,” said Manweiler. “Dan (Guenette) said to me what they were thinking for the trail name and I said, ‘I’m not sure I like that.’ He said, ‘You’re not going to have much choice in this matter anyway,’ and they did name it (the Manweiler Trail).”
But things change, and Manweiler said that once he thought more about the trail name and the significance behind it, he was appreciative. The Manweiler Trail links to other trails in the area and leads sledders to the Gundy rest area, which was dedicated to Dale Gunderson, an avid club member and faithful volunteer for the Whitecourt Trailblazers. At the time of his passing, Gunderson was volunteering for the club, surveying and removing trees from the trail system in preparation for a snowmobile rally the club was holding in February 2007.
Manweiler and Gunderson were close friends and Manweiler sees the newly named Manweiler trail as an ever-lasting link to his friend.
“It hooks us back up again,” said Manweiler. “After I thought of that, I said to Dan, ‘Yeah, maybe it is the right thing to do because it hooks me back up with my friend Dale again.’ ”
Manweiler said that Gunderson was the type of person who wanted everything done perfectly. That attitude has been adopted by other members of the club, and Manweiler sees it reflected in the work that the Whitecourt Trailblazers are doing to improve their trail system.
“Everything had to be perfect (for Dale),” said Manweiler. “It will be about 104 kilometres of new trails that we put in. The trails will have new signs for directional instructions—every curve, every hazard, every hill will be marked with metal posts on proper signage just like you are driving down the highway.”
