SASKATOON -- Longtime Saskatchewan residents likely remember the history of Mount Blackstrap. Also referred to as the Pimple on the Prairie, it was built for the Canada winter games in 1971.
It is said to be one of only a few man-made mountains in the world.
Mount Blackstrap operated as a ski hill until 2008 when visits declined. Since then, it's sat as a slowly fading monument to the area's ski past.
The hill's chalet burned down in 2009. The ski lift tower was dismantled earlier this year.
Now, Blackstrap Provincial Park which encompasses the mountain and surrounding area, is looking to the future and trying to reinvigorate the attraction.
"As a park system as whole we're working on making winter more appealing," Chris Hornby, Park Manager, Blackstrap and Fort Carleton said.
"In this park we see over 100,000 visits a year. Mostly in the summer obviously, but over the winter we see people out here hiking, biking, snowshoeing."
For winter mountain bikers, it's a popular area to navigate with challenging terrain.
Spencer Cruickshank bikes the area often and was a regular out on the ski hill when it was open.
"I was pretty sad to see the lift towers go down. I was actually out here when the chalet burned down. That was a pretty sad moment for me because I spent decades in that chalet as a kid," Cruickshank said.
All that remains from the hill now is the lift's T-Bar which the park is also planning to remove.
Currently, around 50 people use the park on a busy weekend day. A number that could rise after planned improvements to the bike runs and cross country ski trails.
"It's good the parks are doing something to invest back into this park and try to build the infrastructure back up even though it's not skiing," Cruickshank said
