After an extremely successful launch, Haldimand County is pleased to announce additional pickleball programs for both adults and youth. Running throughout August, the programs offer both introductory workshops to learn the fundamentals of the sport as well as skill-building workshops for intermediate players.

Pickleball Intro Workshops (Adult)

This workshop is for new players who are just starting out and want a basic introduction to playing pickleball. Serves, returns and other basic strokes/rules will be covered.

• August 9 – Dunnville Lions Court, 6-8 p.m.
• August 16 – Caledonia Lions Court, 6- 8 p.m.
• August 23 – Jarvis Lions Court, 6-8 p.m.

Pickleball Drill the Skills Workshops (Adult)

This workshop focuses on building and improving a player’s technical shot inventory and decision-making abilities, such as third shot decisions, managing hard-hitting opponents, the ABCs of dinking, and refusing to ‘pop-up’ the ball.

• August 11 – Jarvis Lions Court, 6-8 p.m.
• August 18 – Caledonia Lions Court, 6-8 p.m.
• August 25 – Dunnville Lions Court, 6-8 p.m.

Youth Intro to Pickleball Workshops (9 to 14 years)

With a fast learning curve, smaller court, and shorter paddles, pickleball is an ideal introduction for kids to racket sports. This workshop focuses on a fun engaging and active experience to build basic skills.

• July 30 – Dunnville Lions Court, 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
• August 6 – Caledonia Lions Court, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
• August 13 – Jarvis Lions Court, 6-8 p.m.

For more information, or to register please visit the County’s online registration system.

What is Pickleball? 

“Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in Ontario. It is a combination of tennis, badminton and table tennis. The game is played on a badminton size court with a whiffle ball, about the size of a tennis ball; and a solid smooth surface, short handled paddle larger than a ping pong paddle. The game is easy to learn and you do not have to be a great athlete to play.” (Pickleball Ontario, 2022)

Haldimand County’s Playbook, its guide for all things summer programming, activities and experiences, is now available online or at the Cayuga Administration Building, library branches and County museums.

The Playbook includes information about registering for summer aquatics, week-long recreation and museum camps, heritage and culture presentations and library programming.

New this year, the County is offering youth and adult pickleball programs. Participants can learn the basics of one of North America’s fastest-growing sports, or build their skills with intermediate clinics. Sessions take place in Dunnville Lions Park.

The Playbook also highlights non-registered recreation options for residents to enjoy at their leisure, such as parks, trails, pools, and splash pads. Many county parks and greenspaces include amenities like skate parks, ball diamonds, tennis/pickleball and multi-use courts, and picnic areas, offering a wide variety of recreation opportunities for all interests. For walkers and cyclists, Haldimand offers more than 40 km of off-road pathways and trails and hundreds of kilometres of on-road cycling routes throughout the county and along the Grand River.

For those looking to explore the farthest reaches of the County, the Haldimand GeoTour challenges adventurers of all ages to find twenty geocaches stashed throughout the community. Rated the second-most-popular geocaching experience in southwestern Ontario in 2021, the GeoTour includes a specially-designed geocoin for anyone who completes the entire tour. For a more leisurely pace, the PATH (Public Art Tour Haldimand) offers residents and visitors a county-wide route of more than 25 handmade wooden paddles painted by local artists.

For more information, visit www.haldimandcounty.ca/recreation-guide/.

Haldimand County is excited to announce the launch of pickleball programs for both adults and youth. The programs will introduce participants to the fundamentals of the sport and encourage more recreational use of the existing courts in each community.

Courses will include Introductory Workshops for Adults in Caledonia, Dunnville and Jarvis as well as Introductory and Intermediate Clinics in Dunnville. The Junior Pickleball Program for Ages 9 – 11 and Youth Pickleball Program for Ages 12 – 14 will be offered in Dunnville. The courses will be led by Head Coach Jeff Rooney from Performance Pickleball, CPTP Level 2 Teaching Professional / PCI Member & Coach, who has trained alongside top national players and medaled at international competitions.

Thanks to the support of Canadian Tire Jumpstart’s Sport Relief Fund—which helps provide access to sport and play for Canadian youth— Haldimand County was able to purchase equipment for the program as well as subsidize the cost of the Junior Pickleball Clinic and Youth Pickleball Clinic.

For more information, or to register please visit the County’s online registration system.

What is Pickleball?  

“Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in Ontario. It is a combination of tennis, badminton and table tennis. The game is played on a badminton size court with a whiffle ball, about the size of a tennis ball; and a solid smooth surface, short handled paddle larger than a ping pong paddle. The game is easy to learn and you do not have to be a great athlete to play.” (Pickleball Ontario, 2022)

Haldimand County is pleased to announce the return of its popular summer camps and aquatics programs. All program details will be published on the county’s online registration portal this Friday, April 15, 2022. Registration opens Sunday, May 1, 2022.

Residents are encouraged to check out the full schedule of spring/summer 2022 programs using the enhanced online registration portal or via www.haldimandcounty.ca/register.

Traditional ‘favourites’ will be offered this year as well as some new, themed camps suited to a wide variety of interests.

Program registration may be completed online starting Sunday, May 1, 2022 or in-person at the Haldimand County Administration Building starting Monday, May 2, 2022.

The county’s Spring/Summer 2022 Playbook will also be published online later this month, which contains general programming information and more local activity suggestions for the whole family to explore.

Further details about Haldimand County recreation programs can be found on the county website.

March Break is quickly approaching and Haldimand County is pleased to offer Safari themed March Break Camps from Monday, March 14 to Friday, March 18 for children ages 4-11.

These week-long camps will operate daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. with the option of extended care starting at 7:30 a.m. and ending at 5:30 p.m. The cost for the week is $116.00 with additional costs for extended care.

March Break Camps will be offered at the following locations:

• Caledonia (Haldimand County Caledonia Center and Grace United Church)
• Cayuga (Cayuga Memorial Arena)
• Dunnville (Amity Lodge)
• Hagersville (Hagersville Arena)
• Jarvis (St. Paul’s Anglican Church)

Camp registration opens February 7, 2022 at 8:30 a.m. and can be completed online at link.haldimandcounty.ca or in person at the Haldimand County Administration Building, located at 53 Thorburn Street South in Cayuga. Camp spots fill quickly, so it is advised that new users create an online account in advance and returning users attempt logging into their account prior to February 7.

Additional COVID-19 protocols will be in place to ensure a safe and fun time at camp. Children participating in the program must wear a face covering that covers their mouth, nose and chin throughout the day for the majority of program activities.