Skating trail at The Forks partially opens this weekend

Get your skates sharpened Winnipeg, the Red River Mutual Trail is opening for the season.

Chelsea Thomson with The Forks North Portage Partnership says the first portion of the trail the two rinks at the port will officially open Saturday morning.

She says crews are already working on the next leg of the trail the Assiniboine River section from The Forks toward Osborne Village and that stretchis expected to open sometime before the new year.

As for events coming to the trail this year, Thomson says "all the favourites" will be returning, including Festival du Voyageur's Rendezvouson Ice and the Ironman Curling Bonspielboth coming to the ice in February.

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"That's as well as just a regular opportunity to skate up and down the trail and see Winnipeg from a completely different vantage point," said Thomson. "Then of course, we also have already opened our two skating rinks open on land, at Arctic Glacier Winter Park."

Thomson says a kilometre of skating and walking trails has also already openedthat leads through a "beautiful and magical light display" connecting the two rinks.

"We're making our own internal goal of making it the most 'Instagrammable' spot in Winnipeg," laughs Thomson.

Thomson says the port rinks were in "fair condition" as crews finished their work Friday, and she expects that to improve to "good condition" for Saturday's opening.

In the meantime, she said the rivers are freezing well.

"So far it's really good," she said. "The Assiniboine has frozen well this year because water levels are so low, so it looks promising for a nice trail on that river, and then we're still waiting on the Red."

Thomson says it's too soon to say exactly how long they'll be able to stretch out the trail this year but she addscrews are eyeing some new legs this winter.

"I don't want to give away everything yet, but we're hoping for some new extensions, maybe going to some new neighbourhoods in the new year," she said. "We'll just have to wait and see."