Laughter and squeals of joy could be heard everywhere you stood at The Ridge on Monday.
China Ridge Trails, the Town of Princeton and Cooper’s Foods combined their efforts to provide residents with a free Family Fun Day to celebrate B.C. Family Day this year.
Members of China Ridge Trails, president Bob Coyne and groomer extraordinaire Rod Dixon spent all day Sunday grooming the trails and preparing for the area for Family Day.
Bob, Kelley, Vic, Johanna, Kevin, Colleen, Tip, Sharon and Nadine (all members of China Ridge Trails) took turns taking adults and kids out on the trails, teaching them to ski, snowshoe or both.
Children, teens and adults all enjoyed the toboggan hill.
Myrt and Tom McLaren, locals who are 78 and 80 years young respectively, went out on snowshoes for the first time. They said they enjoyed themselves a great deal. “It was great,” said Myrt, “I may even buy some!”
All ski and snowshoe equipment was provided free of charge by China Ridge Trails and the Bridge School—loaned 10 pair of snowshoes for the day.
Princeton Ground Search and Rescue (GSAR) attended to provide first aid if needed. Residents were provided an up close view of the Ranger, the newest addition to GSAR’s rescue equipment. As an added bonus to the day, a few of the GSAR members got to try out their own snowshoes while up at The Ridge.
Players from the Princeton Posse Hockey Junior Hockey Team joined in on the fun and had an absolute blast celebrating Family Day with all the kids.
Cooper’s Foods not only donated the barbecue lunch, Valentine Cookies, and hot chocolate—Cooper’s employees manned the barbecue and hot chocolate stations for the day as well.
Combined efforts within the community provided a day for families to be together and enjoy various forms of outdoor recreation all within the beauty of our local area.
Kudos to the Town of Princeton, Cooper’s Foods, The Bridge, China Ridge Trails and to the volunteers who made such a great day happen.
China Ridge Trails is located just under 10 km from downtown Princeton. It is a venue that provides year round recreation for all ages and is maintained by a volunteer association. For more information please visit www.chinaridgetrails.com.