Harper Family Trail Story

Fall Ski Walking Program: Starting September 19, the 10-week program consists of one-hour sessions, on Sundays at 10:00 AM. Mountain Bike/Fat Bike Race: Saturday, October 16. Teams of three: men’s, women’s & mixed. Intro to ski waxing: November date to be announced. H.S. XC Ski Racing Program: Fall and winter sessions to be confirmed. Official Opening Day: Sunday, January 9. Free equipment rentals, etc. Jackrabbit Program: For kids aged 3 to 12. Fun and games on skis. January start. Learn to XC Ski: Beginner and intermediate levels. Classic and skate techniques. Winter sessions, 8-week program. Intro to Snowshoeing: One session only, in January. Basic info and on-trail session. Intro to Fat Biking: One session only, late January date to be announced. Technical aspects of fat biking (tire pressure, gear, bike models, etc.) and on-trail session. Snowshoe Race: Saturday, February 12. Men, women and master categories. Family Day Festivities: Monday, February 21. Fun for the whole family. Free equipment rentals, etc. XC Ski Fest: XC ski races for all levels and ages. March date to be announced. Contact Information: Visit the FOTST Website at www. summerstowntrails.com, or Email summerstowntrails@gmail. com or visit their Facebook page.

Dan Harper, a resident of South Glengarry. first heard that there were groomed skiing trails at the Summerstown Forest in 2014.

“I checked it out by renting skis one Saturday morning. I loved it, rented a few more times, and then outfitted the whole family (spouse Amanda, and daughters Annabelle, Lilly and Rosalie) with skis the next winter. The girls started with skis that velcroed onto their boots, then got better equipment when they got a little older. I used to pull them with a toboggan outfitted with pex water pipe for pulling them. Hazel joined us in 2020 and has enjoyed her outings at the trails, again pulled by dad in her new stroller. I volunteered for a while with the FOTST website and have volunteered with the girls at the annual Clean-up Day. The family goes whenever we have some free time, weekend, weeknight, and even early in the morning. Sometimes, we go as a whole family, and sometimes just one or two go. We mostly ski, but occasionally use the snowshoe trails, and we try to make it out to the moonlight activities whenever we can. Annabelle and Rosalie took the skate skiing course last winter and Annabelle took a ski instructor course and now

The Harper sisters Annabelle, Lilly, Rosalie and Hazel at an evening outing on the trails. helps out with the kids’ Jackrabbit program. As our family has grown up, we have also watched the trails and activities expand. This winter, we have a goal to try out the fat bikes! We are looking forward to the snow!”

ELCO ELECTRIC

SINCE 1927