Ontario Trails News - February 23, 2017

• Trail Management • Trailhead Events • Membership Drive    • Donate to Trails Today • Member News • Activity Updates

We need your help! In 2015 we secured 101 respondents to our "The Value of Trails - Measuring the Economic Impact of Trails Survey."  We've added 12 more to the 2017 updates. We have a ways to go. Below you will see the OTC is presenting to the Canadian Parks and Recreation Conference March 10, and to Parks and Recreation Ontario March 28. On both occasions we are speaking to trails tourism and the economic impact of trails. Click through the screen capture below to access the survey. There are many metrics to measure in determining the economic impact of trails, and tourism in just one factor. In order to accurately represent a closer economic impact of trails we are requesting your speedy response to our Call to Action for Your Input to our Value of Trails 2017 survey. With your help we will make an even stronger case for trails and the supports you require to provide a top notch experience at each of your trail destinations. We are also accepting new responses! Many Thanks! Warm Weather closing Snowmobile Trails - from CTV Barrie SLED SAFE - watch ice and water conditions! The once snow packed trails are losing the battle against Mother Nature a little early than expected. Wet, thick mud and puddles covered trails across the region on Wednesday. This spat of warm weather has closed more than 1,000 km of snowmobile trails. Trails from as far south as Innisfil, to Midland in the north have been affected. Rider safety is the driving force behind the closures. More snow further north! We encourage you to complete our Trails Tourism Survey We continue to work on gathering information in order provide Regional Tourism Organizations with an action plan for integration of trails, tourism, and marketing products, including changes to our award winning OTC Website. In order to make recommendations we need your input. To date we have reached out to over 115 RTO/DMO/DMP partners. Please get back to us. We are trying to complete our analysis and we want your input as opposed to a gap, unfortunately gaps will be noted. Contact Patrick at execdir@ontariotrails.ca or call him 613-484-1140, thanks. Trailhead Hastings! Trailhead North Nipigon!Join us in Nipigon as we present another symposium with enriched and regional content geared to the north! Trailhead Headwaters in Development - May 2017! Trailhead Mountain Bike - in development!   Trails Supported in Prince Edward County Big plans for Millennium Trail Officials in Prince Edward County have some big plans to make the Millennium Trail more user-friendly. The municipality and the Prince Edward Trails Committee have committed to upgrading the multi-use recreational facility, which is used by snowmobilers, hikers, cyclists, ATV riders and cross country skiers. A majority of the trail, except for eleven kilometres improved in recent years by the Wellington Rotary Club, has a gravel or uneven dirt surface, and there is little or no directional signage. The trails group began fundraising for $80,000 late last year, and already has $28,000 in pledges, and the county will provide $370,000 over three years, for a total of $450,000. The work will include grading and resurfacing the trail with crushed limestone and installing kilometre markers and way-finding signage to guide users to nearby points of interest. Story from http://inquinte.ca/story/big-plans-for-millennium-trail N.B.The Ontario Trails Council is very pleased to have supported Barry Davidson and the work of the Prince Edward County Trail Committee for over 8 years. PEC is a municipal member of the provincial trails council. In 2006 we visited Shire Hall and reviewed the original masterplan with staffs and we have participated in funding different trail initiatives in the County; such as Friends of Sandbanks Provincial Park in 2009-11 and 2014-16. We appreciate the support of the County and the various departments engaged over the years who are now supporting the PEC Trails Committee and the great partnership that has developed. Since 2007 we have assisted in the development of over 50 trail committees throughout Ontario in order to make trails more useable, affordable and safe for all. For more information on our work see http://ontariotrails.ca Join us March 1st in Bancroft for Trailhead Hastings. http://trailheadhastings.com Ontario Trails E.D. and OTC Board Member Paul Ronan Presenting at CPRA Conference 2017 Canadian Parks Conference: Parks, Protected Areas, Open Spaces and Public Places March 8-11, 2017 The Banff Centre Banff, Alberta The Conference Brochure has just been released! Click here to see details on our engaging keynotes, educational break-out sessions and exciting social events! ARPA is excited to announce that we will be hosting a national parks conference in 2017! This networking, professional development and social event will inspire and challenge contemporary thinking about parks, protected areas, open spaces and public places. The conference will include six keynote speakers, over 45 breakout session, and pre-conference workshops and tours. The 2017 Canadian Parks Conference will build off of the momentum and outcomes of the 2016 Canadian Parks Summit, and include speakers and topics of interest on themes, opportunities and issues discussed at the Summit. Join us in our country's first-ever national park to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday and renew a vision for Canada's parks! Ontario Trails E.D. Presenting at PRO Conference PRO Educational Forum and Trade Show March 28 - 31, 2017        SPONSORSHIP, ADVERTISING & EXHIBITOR OPPORTUNITIES Parks and Recreation Ontario is delighted to invite sponsors, advertisers and trade show exhibitors to the PRO Educational Forum and Trade Show at Deerhurst Conference Centre from March 28 - 31, 2017. Come to introduce your product/service, increase visibility for your brand, and engage with more than 600 parks and recreation professionals from across Ontario and beyond. Please complete our Value of Trails 2017 Survey by March 1 - your input will shape our CPRA and PRO Presentations Trailhead Canada - Celebration Poster On-Line!Below you'll see our first poster for the event. Click through to the main website to find 7 pages of topics we are planning to explore over the event. Remember to Donate!   Membership Renewals - Thank-you for your Support!We wish to thank the organizations that have already completed their membership for 2017. We couldn't do our work without your continued support. Many thanks!    "The OTC provides us with the ability to communicate and collaborate with industry stakeholders, professionals and advocates. It also provides us with the tools to develop our own capacities, skills and networks. As well, it is important to back to the OTC and trail communities in our province. Being an OTC member allows us to benefit from the knowledge of other members through education and professional development opportunities such as the Trailhead Ontario conference, and through professional networking. The OTC is the influential body that will help guide and shape the political, professional and physical landscape of trails in Ontario. Joining the OTC provides an opportunity to be part of this process: to both contribute and gain knowledge in a community of passionate, like-minded individuals and organizations."  - Damian Bradley, Cycling advocate and Developer Guelph Regional Trails Council Membership Benefits INFORMATION AND FUNDING OTC Trails and Event page representation Representation on OTC trails maps Social Media represents you to 60,000+ people Fund Development through grant writing, grant support ACCESS AND INFLUENCE Connectivity to the Ministry of Tourism Culture and Sport Leadership at the Ontario Trails Coordinating Committee Office services and networking support BEST PRACTICES Partnership Support and Knowledge exchange Access to Professional Development sessions Tourism Practices, Trails Tort Reform, Trail Workshops TRAIL IMPROVEMENTS Access to Trail Insurance Broker Option on registration in Trillium Trail Network Local, regional or provincial User conflict resolution 2017 MEMBERSHIP FORM - PDF     2017 MEMBERSHIP FORM - WORD DOC CATEGORIES Become a "Friend of Trails" Savings on conference/seminar registration Monthly e-bulletins Access to OTC trails database Great gift price! Savings on trail literature/maps $26.52 + $3.45 = $29.97 (includes 13% HST) Benefits to Student Editions of the OTC newsletter Trailwise Access to OTC trails information Conference and selected literature savings * must provide student verification $21.21 + $2.75 = $23.96 (includes 13% HST) Our members include municipalities, conservation authorities, parks, trail management groups, trail clubs, trail user groups, health units and other trail-related supporting organizations.   Base HST Total Small Non-profit, Small Organizations $109.27 $14.20 $123.47 Conservation Authorities, Medium Municipalities, Counties, Regional Tourism Organizations $273.18 $35.51 $308.69 Municipalities, Provincial Level Organizations >5000 users $819.54 $106.54 $926.0