Well, the 2024/25 riding season is quickly coming to a close.  When compared to last year, 2024/25 turned out to be more of what we expect in NW Ontario!!  Not only were snow conditions better, the cold, frosty weather provided us with excellent ice thickness across most of the Sunset Trail Riders (STR) district.

A huge thanks to our volunteers who spent countless hours preparing the trails and shelters for the winter, as well as maintaining the trails throughout the riding season.

In addition, we would like to thank our sponsors, Shane’s Northern Tire & Auto, Wolfe and FFUN Motorsports of Kenora, Lecuyer’s Lodge Nestor Falls, and Snackhouse Restaurant Sioux Narrows.  Your support is always greatly appreciated!

We would also like to thank the City of Kenora for their financial contribution via the Municipal Accommodation Tax, and their assistance in helping us secure grants from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC), as well as the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario (FedNor).  These funds were used to purchase two Kubota Lightweight RTV groomers.

Without the support from those noted above, we would not be able to manage our 600+km of trail networks and warmup shelters that makes Sunset Trail Riders one of the top managed snowmobile clubs in Ontario!!

Going into the 2025/26 season, in addition to planned improvements to select trails and shelters, we will be making some changes to our website.  Before we implement changes, we would like feedback from permit-holders as to the type of content you would like to see on the STR website.  This includes the type of articles you want to see, popular destinations, club history, etc.

Please be on the lookout for a survey which will be coming out on the STR website and Facebook page requesting feedback from our members.  In the meantime, if you have any comments, please send them to [email protected]

We hope you enjoyed your 2024/25 riding season, and we look forward to seeing you again next year!

Sunset Trail Riders (STR) capped off another successful snowmobiling season with a rally at the A & W Ball Field on Sunday, March 16^th. The purpose of the rally was to say thank-you to the City of Kenora for their assistance in the club securing funding from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation and the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario programs to purchase two Kubota RTV grooming machines. 

STR thanks Mayor Andrew Poirier and Councillors Graham Chaze and Lindsay Koch for attending Sunday’s rally. Thanks also to Josh Nelson for all his assistance and cooperation over the past few years, helping STR grow and improve our trail system. In the attached photo, longtime club member Doug LeBlanc points out the 637 km trail network of lake’s and land, as well as key points of interest and fishing spots that are accessible from the STR trail network. 

As part of District 17 of the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC), Kenora’s Sunset Trail Riders manage over 637 KM of trails, the largest trail network managed by any club across the OFSC. 

A 2023 report by Harry Cummings and Associates, approximates the combined economic impact across all OFSC clubs show that snowmobilers spent $1.481 Billion in the 2022-23 season, a direct contribution to GDP of $704.6 million and $1.13 billion in direct, indirect, and induced GDP impacts. Employment from snowmobilers expenditures totalled an estimated 9,307 full-time equivalent jobs and $538 million in taxes across three levels of government. 

In District 17, where STR is based, snowmobilers spent an estimated $22.7 million in 2022-23 , with total employment of 168 jobs, and $10.891 million in taxes across three levels of government.  

A special thank-you to volunteers Rick Vincent and Connie Gilbertson for their countless hours in submitting the funding request proposals for the groomers, the volunteer groomers who spend thousands of hours managing the trails, and the entire STR volunteer team who make our trails one of the premiere destinations in all of Canada.