Snowfall has opened ski trails around Estonia
Recent weather conditions have led to there being a solid enough winter for skiing in Estonia. As a result, many ski trails are now open and conditioned for people to go cross-country skiing but people should still follow rules - both for the coronavirus and for general politeness.
There are a total of 121 health trails in Estonia with most of them now opened for cross-country skiing after snowfall over the last week. ERR's sports portal reports that 24 trails can also produce artificial snow, although that is not needed currently, but does allow for skiing in spring as well.
Alo Lõoke, head of SA Eesti Terviserajad, which operates and maps the network of health trails in Estonia, told ETV's sports show on Sunday: "There are many movers - not just skiiers, but just regular movers. We cannot only talk about skiing in winter, as there have to be other ways of moving on trails as well. We are breaking records every day - visitation records, webpage traffic records, parking records, social media records."
This year's winter is finally one for skiing: "It is a skiing winter after a long while. There are classic trails and I ask for walkers to stay away from them. In larger sports centers, where there are many laps, we ask for a few of them to be given to walkers. If they do not have any to give, all people should fit on the trail," Lõoke said.
According to him, ski trails are no place for anger and nastiness: "It is a public place and in a public place, friendliness, politeness and getting along is important. Our message to people is that they come on the trail as polite and stay polite on the trail. It is important to understand that if a less experienced skier is ahead of you, the more experienced one should find a way to pass without yelling out 'trail, trail, trail'!. Let's make them a ski friend as well and give them a positive experience. There is no need for anger on trails," Lõoke said.
Since the coronavirus is still active and the risk of infection remains, safety measures should still be followed. "When coming to health trails, ski centers, and queues, we should still remember distancing. Put a mask on with the goal of stopping the spread of the virus," the ski trail expert said.
For more info on trails available in Estonia, visit terviserajad.ee. Zooming in on the map shows the locations of ski trails in Estonia, with dark and light blue marking the routes that are good for any technique - classic and freestyle.
--
Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!
Editor: Kristjan Kallaste
