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The Nestaweya River Trail has officially closed for the season.
Late last week, The Forks announced they were closing a section of the trail to begin necessary maintenance work on the Historic Rail Bridge at the Forks.
On Wednesday, they announced that warmer temperatures and rising river levels have made it unsafe to maintain the Red and Assiniboine River sections of the trail, which are now closed.
This year, the trail stretched more than six kilometres from Churchill Drive on the Red River to the Hugo Docks on the Assiniboine River, remaining open for 62 days, just six days short of the 2025 season.
The longest the trail has remained open was in 2019, when visitors were able to walk and skate for 76 days. The shortest was nine days in 2024, except for 2020, when it didn’t open at all due to poor freezing conditions.
This closure also marks the end of this year’s Trail Together adopt-a-metre fundraising campaign. Through the campaign, members of the community adopted 1,270 metres of trail, helping support the care and work that makes skating on the rivers possible each winter.
“The Nestaweya River Trail is something the community has truly taken ownership of,” said Sara Stasiuk, President and CEO of The Forks. “Through Trail Together, people stepped forward to adopt 1,270 metres of trail this winter. It’s a reminder that the trail belongs to the people who skate it, walk it, and return to it year after year. Thank you all for loving the trail as much as we do.”
While the river trail has closed, visitors to The Forks can still enjoy skating on The Canopy Rink and the Upper Trails.
Current skating and trail conditions can always be found at theforks.com/skate.
