'It would’ve taken us years': Trail to link Watrous and Manitou Beach ready for traffic
A long-awaited trail linking the town of Watrous to nearby Manitou Beach is now open to the public, but the meaning behind this simple gravel path goes much further than meets the eye.
The safe passageway from Watrous to the resort village was a long-time dream of Ronald Ediger and his late wife Melissa.
“We had a dream to join the two communities,” Ediger told CTV News.
The safe passageway from Watrous to the resort village was a long-time dream of Ronald Ediger and his late wife Melissa. (Carla Shynkaruk / CTV News)
He got a sign made that will be placed on each end of the three kilometer gravel path — Memory Trail. It’s a tribute to his wife who died three years ago. Ediger says it’s also for others who use the trail and have a connection to this place.
“It kind of means memories of the past and making new memories,” he says.
Ediger owns a construction and gravel business, which made this project possible.
“I have the ability and manpower to put it all together — not everybody can do that,” he says.
The Rotary Club in Watrous started a walking path which extends around the community of Watrous and stops at the northern outskirts.
“He got it done in one year, where it would’ve taken us years and years to get it done. So now people can enjoy it,” Ron Morningstar with the Watrous Rotary Club told CTV News.
It was quite a process to ensure the trail met all legal requirements. Ediger got the OK from the Ministry of Highways as well as area landowners, one of which has a portion of the path on their land.
“The big concern is the safety on the highway. Get them off the highway; walkers and everything else, bikers. This way it’s a lot safer for folks,” Ediger says.
Safety has been on the minds of town council for years, as well.
“Because there’s been so many close calls with people on bikes, and all of a sudden Ron, out of the blue, said, you want that trail, I’m the man, I can get it done,” said Poppy Petersen, Mayor of the Resort Village of Manitou Beach.
While this path is a physical connection between Watrous and Manitou, they say it also represents a symbolic connection between the two.
“I think in this world we have to be in unison and make it better for folks,” Ediger says.
He admits that the two areas haven’t always been on the same path over the years, but he’s hopeful that the trail may change that in some small way.
Thousands of people are expected to hit this trail and Ediger is committed to it year-round. He’s even planning on bringing his snow plow out here in the winter for as long as he is physically able, adding that when he takes something on, he will make sure it succeeds.
“I don’t give up real easy.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
BREAKING Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 mm among weather alerts in effect for 7 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres, air quality advisories and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
A fight to protect the dignity of Michelangelo's David raises questions about freedom of expression
Michelangelo's David has been a towering figure in Italian culture since its completion in 1504. But in the current era of the quick buck, curators worry the marble statue's religious and political significance is being diminished.
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.
What new auto insurance reforms will mean for Ontarians, if they get introduced
Ontario has among the highest rates for auto insurance premiums in Canada -- just below Alberta and Nova Scotia -- however, the introduction of an insurance reform in the provincial budget could soon lower prices.