DUCK MOUNTAIN PROV. PARK, SASK. -- A new snow maze at Duck Mountain Provincial Park is giving families a fun outdoor winter activity to do, while also highlighting the park's attractions.
Park staff and volunteers spent two weeks in the bitter cold building the new 60 by 60squarefoot maze made entirely of snow.
Greg Podovinnikoff, park manager, said the maze was designed to be safe and fun.
"We've had extremely cold temperatures, but we're still having 50 [to] 60 people a day coming out and enjoying the maze," he said.
Jamue Herle and her daughters, Katey and Mary, spent hours at the snow maze during their four day trip from Saskatoon.
"It was nice to have extra things to do, we love tobogganing and skating, but the snow maze was awesome," said Herle, adding they come down often as they have a cabin in the area.
Katey and Mary both made it through the maze and said it was a lot of fun, which is the general consensus of visitors to the park.
Visitors to the area can also sit by the fire and roast marshmallows, or make what they call a fairy castle out of the provided coloured blocks of ice.
The maze is free to any one with a valid park pass and there is no timeslot scheduling making it available for visitors to drop by whenever.
Visitors are being asked to follow public health orders by keeping your distance, wearing a mask and respecting the safety of others.
The interior walls stand at four feet tall because of COVID-19, and the area also has hand sanitizer available and a capacity limit at the picnic tables.
With the pandemic, SaskParks wanted to highlight their four season facilities.
"This is just an addition to everything else we have going on at Duck Mountain," said Podovinnikoff.
The park has many other family oriented activities such as crokicurl, skating and tobogganing. Winter-loving visitors can also head out on a walking trail, go snowshoeing or cross country skiing.
Already looking ahead to next year, Podovinnikoff said the park is looking to make the maze on an even bigger footprint with taller walls.
