ice sailing toronto

People in Toronto are now ice sailing on Lake Ontario

Frigid February is sending most of Toronto indoors, but some people are doing the opposite: They're heading to Lake Ontario to partake in a little ice sailing. 

It's sailing—using strong winds to propel a vessel—except that the vessel in question is your own body. 

Forget the boat, apparently all you need to have fun is a hand sail, maybe even handmade, and a pair of skates. 

Sub-zero temps this last week have seen some adventurous souls whizzing across the lake with sails in hand. Residents of Toronto Island, who, unsurprisingly, are best equipped for this sort of thing, have been sharing their escapades on Instagram.

Toronto Island SUP, the company which offers Stand Up Paddleboard rentals to visitors and residents on Ward's, documented Toronto TikToker Brendan Caberry make his own sail out of fabric and old SUP paddles. 

It's important to note that safety while ice sailing shouldn't be taken lightly: these ice sailers have tons of experience on 'wild ice'.

They carry ice picks, rope, first aid kits, and extra clothes, because you just never know if the ice will give. People have reported potentially fatal conditions and accidents while skating on Grenadier Pond.

Lead photo by

Luis Torres


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