As the snow fell a few weeks ago, my daughter repeatedly whined, “When are we going dad?” She wanted to get to Hillside Park while the snow was still falling. It was her last day of Christmas Break.

I was meeting a friend and his daughter at Hillside Park at 11:30am. When we got there, it was pretty empty. Another family was there, that had come over from the University and Bridge neighbourhood, but that was it. As the day progressed the hill filled up.

There is nothing like getting outside when the snow covers the ground, and the temperatures hover around zero, and the gigantic snow flakes fall. The snow was slick and the hill smooth.

After about 5 runs (only one of which included me), our girls switched to snowman making. I found myself crawling around in the snow, pushing a huge snowball.

We did a couple more runs, then the girls were off to the playground in the park, and we talked to some of the other parents, and ran into another Neighbourhood association member.

If we get some more snow, head down to Hillside with the family. Talk to your neighbours on the hill. And enjoy a good old fashion Canadian tradition.

Some Hillside Park tips:

-Pay attention to the parking signs. Be courteous to the neighbours in the area.

-Wear a helmet. Not only the kids. Parents can be good role models to children by wearing helmets.

-When you get to the bottom of the hill, walk to either the left of the right. Don’t walk back up the middle of the hill. We watched countless kids get taken out who weren’t paying attention.

-The City lines the baseball fence with hay bales.

Lane Burman