No matter what you do, no matter how young or “wise” you are, it’s important to leave time in life to let loose and have fun. We live in a world where deadlines are tight, immediacy is the norm and we’re constantly sucked into a digital space. All of this gets overwhelming, but we press on, forgetting that we have interests outside of work. Guess what? Work can sometimes wait! Sometimes it can’t and you should probably pay attention to that so you can continue to fund your fun time, but when it can, you should go outside and do something for yourself.
I’m not here to advocate playing hooky, although there is a certain thrill about it! No, I’m saying use some lieu time, take a vacation day, do whatever you need to do to get out of the office. If it makes you feel better, call it a mental health day! There are so many things you can do, but for the sake of argument, let’s use snowboarding for an example.
There’s something amazing that comes with a random weekday out on the hill. I don’t know if it’s adrenaline from shedding pent up stress or just the sheer joy of knowing that you could have the worst day on the hill and still know it’s better than the best day in your cubicle! Getting out there, carving some turns, catching up with an old buddy on the chairlift who has the “flu” (wink wink) does more for your productivity than you can imagine.
Try it, you’ll be glad you did. Answer your emails tomorrow and ride your snowboard today. Remember that there’s a kid inside you. Here’s a little video of my last “mental health” day where I tipped the scale of work-life balance a little further towards life. You’ll be happy to know that I got a lot done in the office today!

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Rob Whelan grew up in the Hockley Valley, about an hour north of Toronto and spent every spare minute of his youth skiing and snowboarding down 300 feet of vertical. “The ski/snowboard community is one of my favourite things in the world and I’ve dedicated myself and my work to keeping it strong. Now living in Kingston, Calabogie Peaks is my home hill. I make my living behind a camera, spending my summers photographing weddings and my winters photographing families that ski/snowboard together.” Life is good, #goplayoutside!

Calabogie Peaks is known for its ski hill, but there is a lot more to The Peaks than just downhill terrain. A favourite activity of mine aside from skiing and ice climbing is snowshoeing. Snowshoeing is a great way to go outside and get some exercise.
It’s also something that you can learn how to do without having to take a lesson.
If you have ever hiked the area during the fall, then you know there are a variety of trails that go up, down and around Calabogie Peaks. If you haven’t, well then, it’s time to get out there and explore! Winter is a great time to check out these trails for many reasons like the views without leaves on the trees. You will get some breathtaking sights that you may not get in the fall and there are also a lot of frozen waterfalls just off some of the trails. These frozen waterfalls are really neat because ground water and cold temperatures form them. There is a section on the Manitou Trail that is quite popular for ice climbers and it is actually known as one of the best single pitch ice climbing areas in Eastern Ontario. With its easy access and multiple sections of ice, it gets busy fast. Before I began ice climbing, I used to enjoy snowshoeing into this area to watch the ice climbers in awe.

If you don’t have your own snowshoes, don’t worry! Calabogie Peaks offers snowshoe rentals. They also have easy to moderate trails for those who don’t feel like trekking up the ski hill. What if you want to take the trails behind The Peaks but don’t feel like snowshoeing up, that’s what the chair lift is there for (it’s not just for skiing). For a small fee of $5, you can hop on the chairlift and hop off at the top of Calabogie Peaks where you have your choice of many different trails. Before heading up make sure you are prepared. Snowshoeing is a high exertion activity and can cause you to sweat easily. Dress in layers, carry a pack with lots of food and water, take your phone and keep it close to your body (for heat so it doesn’t die from the cold in case of an emergency). I recommend grabbing a map of the trails from The Peaks before heading out, but I must say that their trails are marked really well. Almost every junction you come to has a map that shows where you are and the different options of where you can go.
Don’t want to snowshoe because you would rather ski? Well, why not head out for a snowshoe under the stars! The beauty of Calabogie is that with little light pollution you are able to see a sky full of stars on a clear night. Winter is one of the best times for stargazing and the feeling of being in the dark on a cold night with sparkling snow is an experience in itself. That being said, you still need to take a headlamp to see where you are going.

Calabogie Peaks has so many options for winter activities. Whether it’s -20c or colder, get outside and enjoy winter!