Your 2025 Winter Bucket List Starts Here
Are you an intrepid explorer who is determined to get the most out of every season, including winter? Winter in Ontario’s Highlands is one of the best times of the year!
This is when locals get out to contemplate the frosty silence while jigging for fish or trekking remote snowy trails, or to feel their heart race as they fly over snowy terrain on a dogsled, climb a sheet of ice, or ride like the wind on a downhill course.
Ice climbing
Whaaat? You haven’t tried ice climbing before? This is a must for every outdoor lover looking for that one more experience for their bucket list. You don't have to be a rock climber to excel at this winter sport.
Where to do it:
In Ontario’s Highlands there are naturally occurring rock walls all across the region, which are handily tracked on this website. For newbies you can take an introductory to ice climbing with Yours Outdoors that will give you the experience you need to head out on your own.
This sport takes some outfitting, but a course at Yours Outdoors provides you with everything you need to know, or you can find equipment at Algonquin Outfitters.
Dog Sledding
This is one for anyone’s must-try list! A throwback to the days when travel by sled was a necessity in winter, dogsledding is fun for participants and the dogs who love to run, run, run all winter long. The place to try this experience is Winterdance in Haliburton Highlands. The folks here are professionals at planning
Where to do it:
Winterdance’s Siberian huskies take the lead pulling cozy, blanket-lined sleds through Haliburton Highlands' winter wonderland. They offer tours that range from a couple of hours to multiple days, and provide all food and beverages for the experience. They even offer heli-dogsledding!
Fat Biking
Fat biking is just what the name suggests – riding a bike with extra fat wheels to give riders more traction in snow. This is a hot new winter activity that is reinventing cycling in the off season. The low technical knowledge required for this activity means if you can ride a bike, you can fat bike.
Where to do it:
Cruise the six-kilometres of Forest Lea’s marked snowshoe trails for fat biking, or if you’re a little further south, Lennox & Addington’s Forest Trails have six kilometres of logging roads and single-track trails on 127 acres of forest. The K&P Trial in Frontenac County and the Cataraqui Trail from Smiths Falls both welcome fat bikers.
First timers who don’t own their own fat bike can rent one from Gearheads in Petawawa, Algonquin Outfitters in Haliburton, or Mad River Paddle Co. in Calabogie.
Winter Treks
A winter hike is worth braving the cold – the air is crisp and clear, the birdsong sweeter, and when you reach a lookout to drink in the sparkling snow and frost-laden evergreens spread out below you will never want to go back to summer hiking.
Where to do it:
Some great winter hiking trails can be found at Haliburton Forest & Wild Life Reserve – check out Chessel’s Pond, John’s Trail or the Wolf Centre Loop. In Lanark County, Blueberry Mountain is an out-and-back hike that is fairly level with a short climb at the end to a fabulous view. Frequent traffic means you likely won’t need snowshoes for this one.
If you are hiking at Haliburton Forest you can rent snowshoes straight from the Wolf Centre (and take a peek at the wolves at the same time).
Building Winter Skills
Have you dreamed of winter camping? Climbing a wall of ice? Learning primitive skills like building a fire from scratch and more? This is your year to learn it all so there will be no excuses for not making the most out of winter.
Where to do it:
In Haliburton Highlands, Yours Outdoors offers a wealth of winter workshops and programs focused on everything from learning how to identify animal tracks in snow, skijoring, ice fishing, ice climbing and more. In Harcourt, Algonquin Yeti Paddling are experts on winter survival and offer an excellent winter survival workshop, and winter camping experience that includes everything you will need to stay cozy.
