Sunday was the first day that Stephen Ferguson opened his business, Burbrook Equestrian.
“(I’m) happy because we need the income,” Ferguson said.
Ferguson’s feelings are mixed because he is concerned about loosening restrictions leading to another COVID-19 outbreak in the region.
He says he’s following all the rules for sanitizing, physical distancing and limiting access so there are no crowds.
For Ferguson, that means horse owners now have to book a time and he only allows one owner in at a time.
He says that means they are operating at a greatly reduced capacity.
“Our expenses are up, even though we’re doing less still because we have to do the sanitizing and spread our day out over 12 hours than four hours.”
Provincial parks were also opened up, leading into the long weekend for day use.
Hiking and bird watching are some of the activities that are allowed. Overnight camping isn’t.
Hilde Timmerman, about to set off on one of Frontenac Park’s trails with her five-month-old daughter, welcomes the opportunity for a walk.
“We are glad that we are able to go out of the house and see some other things than our own house and our own neighbourhood.”
A sentiment shared by Kerry Oulton and Andrew Hollett, just finishing a mid-afternoon hike with their five-year-old son.
“We saw lots of chipmunks; we had a nice snack on a rock looking over the water, so yeah, pretty beautiful,” says Oulton.
Signs are posted throughout the park reminding users to maintain a two-metre distance.
Hollett says it’s an act they’ve been performing, as have the other park users he’s come across.
“We went kind of went the opposite way that most people go, so we kind of just stepped off the trail and let everyone go bye but it was pretty easy to get out of the way.”
Provincial Parks are currently free to use until the end of the month.