Friends of Frontenac hits 30

Aug 24, 2022

A celebratory BBQ at Frontenac Provincial Park visitors centre last Saturday (August 20) was the culmination of a series of events this summer to mark the 30th anniversary of the Friends of Frontenac Park.

“The Friends of Frontenac Park (FOF) have had the same basic goal for 30 years,” said FOF webmaster, “to enhance programming, help promote the park and provide extras to make the park experience better, while working closely with park staff.”

To make sure things run smoothly, the Park superintendent, currently Ben Chabot, is an ex-officio member of the Friends of Frontenac board.

“The park has seen a big influx in traffic since COVID, and while that is passing, it is still busier than it was before,” said Peters.

The onset of COVID, and closing of the Visitors Centre building to the public, sparked the FOF to begin work on an outdoor classroom, to be used for a variety of purposes, including for the classroom without walls initiative at nearby Loughborough Public School in Sydenham and for students from other schools as well. The classroom will also be used for park programming and FOF events.

The classroom is located neat the Visitors Centre. A concrete pad is being put in as part of the project, which is slated for completion this November. Already plans for three sided soft walls, electricity and even space heaters, are being looked at.

The FOF has also put in a pollinator garden, and a barn swallows nest location near the visitors centre. Earlier this summer, the FOF sponsored a 30th anniversary paddle challenge, and the Frontenac Challenge is coming up after Labour Day.

Cutline. The BBQ ended with a 30th anniversary cake. Pictured the cake is Friends of Frontenac legend Audrey Sanger, who has completed the Frontenac Challenge every year since the challenge first established in 1993, 28 years in a row. As you can see, she is raring to go for number 29. The Frontenac challenge is to hike all 11 trail loops in the park, between September 1 and October 31.