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Walton's Pam and Bruce Clark are set to take their snow business on the road.
In search of the perfect trail
There's a unique breed out there,
one that revels in the arrival of win-
ter's white wonderland. As mounds of
argent powder are dumped on a world
decayed a dreary brown, these hardy
individuals find exhilaration in the
chill and thrill of the sport of snow-
mobiling.
However, you would have to
have spent the past few winters in
hibernation to not realize that plentiful
harvests of snow have been in short
supply, even in areas located in "the
snowbelt" regions. Thus, in their
quest for the perfect trail, more and
more snowmobile enthusiasts have
made the trek to the frosty climes of
Northern Ontario and Quebec.
Husband and wife, Bruce and
Pam Clark, of Walton, a tiny hamlet,
located about 12 miles north of
Scaforth, have been among the many
avid snowmobilers, who have made
an annual pilgrimage in order to get
the most of the season from their
favourite pastime. On one particular
trip to Quebec, they discovered a
by Bonnie Gropp
company offering snowmobile tours.
After spending time monitoring the
business, the Clarks began to look at it
as something that should be given a
try in Ontario.
Though Bruce felt it was a good
idea, one deserving of serious consid-
eration, he filed it away in the back of
his mind as an option for retirement.
However, after casually mentioning
the idea to an innkeeper on one of his
trips, he was encouraged to give it a
try immediately. The couple gave it a
little more thought, Pam said, but
eventually came to the conclusion that
there was no reason the concept
couldn't work. Everyone they talked
to had felt it was a great idea, and they
felt they might as well be the ones to
get it going. "A lot of people, we
learned, had discussed the possibility
of a project like this," she said, "but
few had studied the reality." So this
past year C Mac SnowTours Inc. was
born.
The premise is to offer clients an
30 TOWNSMAN/JANUARY-FEBRUARY 1992
exciting, worry -free snowmobile
vacation, says Bruce. For five days
they will be guided over approximate-
ly 475 miles of well-groomed trails in
the Haliburton Highlands, Central
Ontario, Almaguin Highlands and
Muskoka regions.
Accommodations at five and
three star resorts for the six evenings
are booked in advance and included in
the tour package. Also included are
all meals, including coffee breaks,
luggage handling, welcoming and
farewell banquets, gratuities and all
applicable taxes. If your snowmobile
should break down during the tour, C
Mac SnowTours will tow the broken
down machine to the nearest dealer
for repair and, if one is available, a
machine will be loaned to you at no
extra cost, until yours is fixed. Tour
guides are prepared to handle emer-
gencies and are informed as to where
the hospitals are located.
Repair costs are not included in
the package, nor are alcoholic bever-
ages, fuel or oil.
Every day of the tour will start at
8:30 and will end at approximately 5
p.m
Obviously, establishing C Mac
SnowTours has not been without
some personal and financial sacrifice
and risk on the part of the Clarks.
Both work full-time, so many pre-
cious hours of relaxation have been
parlayed into the entreprenurial enter-
prise. As it is when you are trying to
get any fledgling business started, a
substantial amount of capital has been
invested for which the Clarks are per-
sonally on the line. A large transport
trailer, for moving luggage and carry-
ing broken down snowmobiles, was
purchased and decorated with the
impressive company logo.
Bruce spent a good deal of time,
charting out the routes then last April
the actual organization commenced
with visits to lawyers and insurance
consultants. In June Bruce personally
visited the areas to arrange accommo-
dations.
Information brochures were
printed and distributed to dealers and