OTTAWA -- The city of Ottawa has closed the Mooney's Bay Hill to tobogganing this winter. COVID-19 restrictions at other hills include a maximum of 25 people at the top or bottom of the hill.With some toboggan hills closed, and others limited to 25 people at the top, families are running out of options when it comes to winter fun.
James Harrison took matters into his own hands in his own backyard.
He decided to build a luge track at his Kanata home, complete with winding curves and retention walls.
"I built a smaller version of this last year," says Harrison. "I thought I’d do it again this year, give something for the kids to do."
The kids love it.
It took Harrison roughly two weeks and many cold nights to get it perfect.
"I actually used an ice fishing sled. I fill it full of snow. And then we had a couple days where we had the snow that you could pack. So then I used it basically as a brick form," says Harrison.
All that hard work paid off.
"It goes pretty fast. Especially when you’ve got multiple people going at the same time," says Harrison. "The parents ride it just as much as the kids do right. It’s a lot of fun."
"It’s been amazing," says Liza, James’s wife. "Especially during virtual school. Recess was right outside our door."
The lockdown was one of the big reasons Harrison wanted to do this for his family.
For the Harrison family, being stuck at home does not seem so bad when you have a personal playground like this.
"It was all worth it for these guys to be able to do something in the winter," says Harrison.
