Secrets to a Happy Toronto Winter: #6. Snowshoeing induces bliss

After the dot-com crash, Ted Cordina, a software consultant, turned his passion for kayak­ing and snowshoeing into an all-season touring outfit called Toronto Adventures. With his sons, Rosaire and Mathias, he now leads excursions as close as High Park and as far away as the Bruce. Our pick is bucolic Rouge Park, a 4,000-­hectare swath that straddles the ­Pickering-Scarborough border. The Cordinas accompany groups of 30 or so snowshoers for a three-hour tramp through deciduous forests and snow-covered fields. Deer and coyote tracks dot the snow, but you’re more likely to spy ­canopy-dwelling chickadees—the crunch and squeak of chitchatting snowshoers sends big game packing. Halfway through, the group gathers around two golden retrievers pulling a sled carrying hot chocolate. Weary trekkers can then head back with Ted, while the intrepid can opt to go the distance. ­Canadian-made Faber snowshoes are provided. $69. 416-536-2067, ­torontoadventures.ca.