North Bay Snowmobile President Shawn Flindall has confirmed to BayToday.ca this morning that all snowmobile trails in the area will be closed effective this afternoon.
The closures include South Shore, West Nipissing, Bonfield and North Bay area trails.
“There’s too much water running and there’s too much slush on swamps and it’s going to be a mess down there,” stated Flindall.
“We had a pretty good base on the trails as you know, rocks are getting exposed, there’s a lot of dirt on the trails and anywhere the trails are running. This is a lot of rain, and a lot of mild temperatures and it’s not good for sledders. It’s certainly not good for all the businesses that rely on sledding.
"Conditions are deteriorating so rapidly that the only safe and practical solution is to close and gate trails."
Flindall says the odds are slim that the trails will open again.
“It will take a miracle, probably a lot of cold weather to freeze up the slush and water and a lot of snow to groom,” said Flindall.
Flindall says that gives the region only a five-week snowmobile season in the area when the normal season is about 10 weeks long.
It's been a bad day for winter sports in the area as the city has closed all the outdoor rinks for the season today.
