Almost a year following a forest fire that swept through the Mantario Trail, authorities from provincial parks in Manitoba are still uncertain about the possibility of reopening the province’s most popular long-distance hiking trail in 2026. The fire, named EA063, started near Ingolf, Ontario, in May 2025 before spreading into Manitoba’s Whiteshell Provincial Park, scorching roughly half of the 63-kilometre trail.
The trail has been inaccessible for 11 months now, with Manitoba Parks conducting an initial assessment of the fire’s impact. The assessment revealed that about half of the trail was affected to varying degrees, with certain sections experiencing significant damage, making navigation challenging due to the trail becoming indistinct in places. The provincial statement mentioned that the fire damage poses safety risks, particularly due to the presence of fire-damaged and fallen trees, making campsites hazardous.
While specific information about damaged campsites and the trail sections most affected was not disclosed by the province, initial efforts to ensure the safety of trail runners and hikers are set to commence this summer. These efforts will involve tree removal and the installation of directional signs along the trail. Decisions regarding whether the trail will partially or fully reopen for the 2026 season will hinge on safety assessments and the progress of the ongoing work.
Furthermore, a new footbridge costing $580,000 has been constructed over the Whiteshell River along the Mantario Trail, located several kilometers from the trail’s southern trailhead near Caddy Lake. This infrastructure improvement project seemed to have been planned before the wildfire incident.
Despite the closure of the Mantario Trail, the wilderness zone within Whiteshell Provincial Park has not been entirely inaccessible. Peter Panufnik, a member of the Manitoba section of the Alpine Club of Canada, led a skiing expedition into the wilderness zone in February to visit Mantario Cabin, situated on an island in Mantario Lake and operated by Nature Manitoba. Panufnik noted that the cabin remained intact and that pockets of greenery persisted in the wilderness area, with not all vegetation being destroyed by the previous summer’s wildfires.
As the summer hiking season approaches, Panufnik expressed a desire for more information about the current state of the Mantario Trail, emphasizing the limited information available. He also highlighted the willingness of volunteers to assist in trail restoration efforts and the importance of clear communication from provincial authorities regarding their restoration plans to meet the public’s interest in hiking the trail.