My friend, Trish, has been a member of Trakkers for a few years…read more Trakkers is a volunteer, non-profit, recreational ski club dedicated to the support and enjoyment of cross-country skiing and has been providing Sunday ski trips in luxury highway coaches to southern Ontario ski resorts for over 30 years. Trakkers welcomes members of all ages and all skill levels, from novice to the expert. Trakkers is the club for you if you want to learn to ski or improve your skills. Trish invited Gord and I to be her guests on today's trip to Hardwood Ski and Bike, just outside of Barrie. We caught the bus at 9am and were back in Toronto about 5:30pm. If today is any indication, Trakkers is a great club and no doubt we'll become members.

The resort is nice. I like the arrangement and set up. However, it is over priced compared to the…read morelocal ski lodge ( lakeridge ski resort) . I like the slopes set up. It was easy to access and view my younger skiers, on the magic carpet. I liked the renovations. The place was clean. They have good options for snacking and a bar. I would definitely take my kids here again. Update: Although, I did have a good experience with my group this visit, I met up with a family member who was injured on the slopes that day (something that you don't always want, but is understandable). The staff told him to wrap it. When I asked them for more information the staff said they experienced many injuries and that his hand was not sprained or fractured, just swollen. My friend ( who is a nurse) , disagreed. It was medically determined that his wrist was actually fractured. . I would encourage staff not to diagnosis, treat according to your skill level, providing all clients with care and concern regardless of how many injuries you have witnessed on the slopes.

I attended a Discovery ski lesson at Dagmar Ski Resort in February and was very disappointed with…read morethe overall experience. The front desk and rental staff were dismissive and unengaged, and the lesson itself felt disorganized. As a first-time skier, I expected clear, supportive instruction, but I had to repeatedly ask for clarification. Feedback was delivered in a way that felt discouraging, and the instructor used my mistakes as examples in front of the group. While I understand using examples can be helpful, the way it was done affected my confidence and made it harder to focus on learning. By the end of the lesson I felt defeated and was unable to use the remaining practice time included in the lesson because I didn't feel ready to proceed independently. After raising these concerns in an email, I received a voicemail from who I assume was a manager, referencing my "negative" email. They also told me they don't believe I didn't learn anything, and dismissed everything I was trying to explain about my experience and kept justifying the program and defending the instructors. The only resolution given was a future lesson, which I am not comfortable taking. They closed my case, and ignored my follow-up email asking for an alternative resolution. Overall, this program is not designed to help beginners learn and enjoy skiing. I would not recommend this program for first-time skiers seeking a supportive introduction.

Lakeridge Ski Resort is a nice place to enjoy winter fun close to the city. It's easily accessible…read moreby highway 407, 401 and 406. There's ample parking spots available in the parking lots. The hills are great for all levels, from beginners to more confident skiers and snowboarders. You can rent put ski equipment on-site and book lessons online prior to your visit. There's a chalet that you can you can use to keep your stuff dry or sit down and rest or enjoy a warm beverage or meal from the cafeteria. The staff are helpful and keep things running smoothly.

This was a fun girls night out activity. We visited for their weekday snow tubing $35 special for 2…read morehours and it was more than enough time to enjoy ourselves. Booking tickets in advance is recommended as walk up tickets are unavailable. Dress warm and be ready to pull the snow tube a bit as you have to walk from the bottom of the hill to the conveyor line.

While skiing on the black Bowl Hill run, a collision occurred between myself and a female skier who…read morefailed to yield to downhill traffic. As a result of the collision, the skier entered the brush area adjacent to the trail. My son, who was present at the time, and I immediately removed our skis and assisted the skier out of the brush. Several individuals riding the lift overhead called down to ask whether assistance was required. As a trained First Responder with Advanced First Aid and CPR certification, I advised them that there were no injuries and that assistance was not necessary. Despite this, additional comments continued to be shouted from the lift, at which point I reiterated that everything was under control. Shortly thereafter, members of the Brimacombe Ski School arrived and inquired about the situation. I again confirmed that I was a trained First Responder and that there were no injuries. I was advised that Ski Patrol had been contacted and was en route. I stated clearly that this was unnecessary, as the skier had already been assisted and had resumed skiing without issue. Despite this clarification, Ski Patrol personnel arrived and immediately addressed me in what I perceived to be an aggressive and accusatory manner. I was informed that I had been rude, though no explanation was provided. The interaction escalated unnecessarily. I advised the attending patroller that there was no ongoing incident and that I would not continue the conversation given the manner in which I was being addressed. I then left the scene and proceeded toward the Bowl Lift. Upon arriving at the Bowl Lift, I was informed by the lift operator that I was not permitted to board, as Ski Patrol had radioed ahead to restrict my access. Approximately five minutes later, two male Ski Patrol members arrived and continued questioning me in an aggressive tone. I was asked what school I was with; I replied that I was not affiliated with any school and was skiing with my son. I was then asked for my name and identification. I responded that I was not aware of any legal authority requiring me to provide identification under the circumstances. I was told, "Don't worry, we will find you." At this point, I wished to leave the premises. However, the only available exit route required boarding the Bowl Lift, skiing down the opposite side of the hill, and returning to the parking area. I was effectively prevented from leaving. I stood at the lift area for several minutes, in front of approximately 20-30 students, parents, guests, and my son, feeling embarrassed and distressed. I advised Ski Patrol personnel that I needed to board the lift in order to exit the property. I was then directed to surrender my 4-hour day pass. In the process of removing it, my ski jacket was damaged. After approximately ten additional minutes, I was finally permitted to board the lift and leave the area. The most concerning aspect of this incident is that I was prevented from exiting the resort. Denial of access to the only available egress point effectively detained me without lawful authority. Additionally, my ski pass was confiscated without explanation, justification, or due process. What I was responded with was: With no other witnesses other than my son and a family friend, it was stated that "I was the cause of the collision even though I had the right of way according to the "Alpine Rules". I was accused of using vulgar and profane language when "my" witnesses said I was calm, collective, and indicated only to the people in the lift above to "mind their own business.", not knowing they were employees as they never identified themselves. I blocked their staff from their 'First Aid assessment" even though as a First Responder, I assessed no injuries. I was told that, "We have no requirement to allow anyone to reload a ski lift once their pass has been removed, there is no place on the property that a person cannot walk back to their vehicle." However, this lift, to my knowledge was the only way back to the main area of the resort where I could obtain my private property and my vehicle. The only other way would be to walk up a ski hill which is dangerous and not advisable due to oncoming skiers. I was advised I was not being allowed to load the lift; however, the Operations Manager accused me of lying and said there was an "unrelated obstruction at the other end." When I was advised otherwise on why it was stopped. There was zero transparency, zero accountability, and zero investigation. This was all damage control on Brimacombes end as they have no experience in taking accountability for their actions and took it upon themselves to lay blame against a customer and breach my Charter of Rights by not letting me leave the premises.

Overpriced. Tiny chalet to change in but lots of space upstairs but if you want to eat, don't…read moreexpect a table. They are taken by parents with kids in lessons with their own packed food. On Monday January 26 they posted 4/5 lifts running. There were only 3. Conditions stated machine groomed powder and the hills were not groomed. Parking lot is filled with giant pot holes. Had vouchers and the last time we checked in at the parking lot, they told us to go to the main chalet. This time we went to the main chalet and the customer service person barked at us for going there. Terrible customer service and false info. My son's ticket (sticker) fell off (it's -20 today) and they would not replace even though we had proof of purchase. They claimed that we didn't put on the sticker correctly. Spend your money elsewhere.

Doesn't matter when I go in it's always a happy cheerful place to be. And the knowledge is…read moreuntouchable. It's the kind of place where once you leave you wait to go back.

They're just so real and friendly. It's like walking into a small village ski shop, you know the…read morequality service your getting and they're never going to be sneaky with pricing.

Customer service was very poor. Services are very expensive. The lake is very nice, but there is no…read morepublic access.

From the owner: McClintock's Ski School offers beginner through competitive water ski lessons, for all ages at…read morereasonable rates with Canada's top instructors. Never skied before? Our beginner lessons start with dry land instruction. Then you will go out on the lake beside the boat on the boom, which is a special training tool we use to teach beginners. After a bunch of starts on the boom, you move on to the short rope off the boom, then finally behind the boat. We are proud to have a 99% success rate with beginners! Competitively, we specialize in slalom, trick and jump. With our three slalom courses around the lake, we almost always have perfect ski conditions! We also offer beginner to intermediate wakeboard lessons all summer long and wake skate lessons during select times. Lessons are taught on the water, with one to one personalized instruction and lasts approximately fifteen minutes. Everyone learns at a different pace, so you don't have to feel pressured or uncomfortable with your lesson. Fifteen minutes doesn't seem very long, but we work you hard and you will be very TIRED when your lesson is complete. Lessons are taught by appointment only. To book your lesson, please visit skimcclintocks.com/book-now. Note: Pro Shop Hours are 9:00am-5:00pm Daily Ski School Hours are M-T 9:00am-9:00pm and F-S 9:00am-5:00pm

Level up on these slopes!…read more MSLM or Mt St. Louis Moonstone is where our family learned to ski and while it's an intermediate level hill, it does have some of the best snow conditions in Ontario. That's because MSLM features 36 slopes down two adjacent mountains, with plenty of snowmaking equipment and lifts. On the one hand, the slopes here can get packed with passholders depending on the time of week. However the slopes are generally wide and there are plenty of easy black diamond slopes to work your way down. These sometimes get icy and choppy after a long day but the slopes are usually well-groomed and you might find yourself skiing through the snow gun mist. On the positive, there are plenty of lifts including Ontario's first 8-seater chairlift equipped with heated seats and automatic safety bars. They also have lift gate entry RFID scans and cafeteria checkout for efficiency. There are moguls and two terrain parks, including a smaller one for beginners. One slope is colourfully lit. While the experience here isn't that of a sprawling ski village, you can tell the owners prided in the pure European skiing spirit. In the past decade MSLM added night skiing with plenty of lighting on over 20 slopes and we've always enjoyed this experience perhaps even more so than day skiing here due to the slightly smaller crowd. Note there tends to be many ski instructors and many demographics on the slopes due to the reputation for good snow conditions as outdoor recreation has boomed. A day here costs around double that of entry ski resorts. Location-wise, it is conveniently off of Hwy 400. Skip it or hit it? We'll be back again as it's one of the better options in Ontario.

Close range to Toronto, top tier snow machines, great runs…read more This is where I choose to frequent my winter snowboard season, as it's close enough for a 1.5 hour drive to get on the slopes. Their snow making machines are the top notch ones, they really spent a pretty penny for this and their investment shows since there's hardly ever any icy runs, mainly snowy ones. They're quick to start their snow machines early for the season to ensure they have a perfect snow base for the rest of the season - this is why they're always busy, because people know they have good runs here! Purchase your lift tickets online rather than in person, since it's about $15 cheaper even on the day of. The bonus here is the beaver tail cart at the base of Moonstone that you can get your sweet treat at at the end of the day.

If you're looking for an entry slope, Snow Valley could be it…read more We visited for the first time in years and were pleasantly surprised by the small crowd. It's a smaller venue for skiing with 20 generally short slopes ranging from green to blacks, plus a tubing terrain. The chalet is small with a good number of attendees at the ticket booth, equipment shop and 2nd floor restaurant that serves up basic meal bites with a weeknight deal. Tickets are checked manually at the lifts. Many blue & black slopes themselves are relatively narrow with a few runs that are frequented into soft chopped snow. One of the hills was cordoned off for downhill racing while other slopes had minimal skiers & snowboarders heading down beside us. The lifts moved at a brisk pace although there is a triple-lift with tight seating and a tight off-ramp that was more suited for doubles to avoid tripping. The level of difficulty on the black diamond slopes was low. There is also a freestyle terrain park with jumps on the east side beside the tubing terrain, and a patch of mogul bumps on a west side slope. Overall the resort is oriented towards beginners as a short 1 hr GTA drive near Barrie. Skip it or hit it? On the one hand I was intrigued by the short narrow slopes, on the other there are more challenging and better ski facilities a little further away. Not sure how often we'd come back.

It's been a while since I visited this place. I showed up during the coldest day in January 2026…read morewhich was absolute powder. I went in to redeem a 2 for 1 ticket from the ski and snowboard show a few months back. What's nice to see is the conveyor belt with their main base lift which moves the crowds fast. It's been a long time since I tried the other chair lifts and I hardly remember how fast they have the speed set here so you have minimal wait time- not that I had any competition because there were only 30 or so other patrons. The sad part about this place is the food- they used to have a burger made from scratch- not anymore so the patties seem to be just vanilla. The chalet / restaurant is cute log style with fire place so if you're abandoning any family it's a bit tolerable.

I took a couple of classes here. It's great. The students and the teachers are great. I'm…read morelooking forward to making sewing a thing in my life. I totally want to try the leather making classes. I did Fundamentals 1 and Fundamentals 2. Both were great. They spend time with you to make sure you're comfortable and show you step by step how to make things!

I absolutely love The Make Den. It is run by a extremely easy going, supportive, fun, and creative…read moregroup of girls. You feel like you're hanging out with friends and then all of a sudden you end up with an end product that you might have thought you'd need a critical and disciplined instructor to create. Nay! You can have fun learning to create and also be quite surprised at what you're capable of at The Make Den. I have done their macrame and leather fundamentals class, and was actually kind of drunk for the macrame class (wine was provided for my group due to the occasion) and still created a work of art. The format of their classes are great too, chunking up classes and projects. It flows nicely and you walk away feeling accomplished with lots of goods to show off. Thank you ladies for bringing some fun to my Tuesday nights! Can't wait for the next class =)