Embracing the good ol’ outdoors during COVID-19

Nova Scotia businesses that promote outdoor activities like golfing and camping are reporting more local interest, but are also taking a hit during the pandemic.

Some Nova Scotia businesses that promote outdoor activities are seeing an upswing in local interest, but are losing out in other areas.

Golf clubs, for example, are seeing a sharp decline in banquets and weddings. On the other side, the pandemic has brought more people out looking to get in some exercise with physical distancing.

“COVID has made golf very busy, not only at Brightwood, but I believe pretty much coast to coast,” Glenn Singleton, general manager of the Brightwood Golf and Country Club in Dartmouth, N.S., told CBC Nova Scotia News at Six this week.

“With other activities not starting up just yet, everybody has been getting out to play golf. I think a lot of people that normally play soccer and baseball in the summer who normally play a few rounds of golf saw an opportunity to join a golf course and start playing a lot.”

Singleton said membership at Brightwood is sold out. He said the last time that happened was in the 1990s.

“And our [number of] rounds played compared to our same period last year is up over 50 per cent, so golf has been very, very busy due to the COVID factor,” he said.

The game itself is also “a little different” now, Singleton said.

For example, pin flags aren't removed and the cup is shallower “so the ball only falls in the hole about an inch so people can retrieve their golf ball without having to touch anything.”

There are also no ball washers on the course and no rakes for the traps.

“One impact this has had is it's made the speed of play a little quicker,” he said.

Some Nova Scotia campgrounds are also seeing an uptick in local bookings.

Jeff Chung, owner of Birchwood Campground & Cabins in Pictou, N.S., said numbers are down compared to last year, but business is starting to pick up.

“I think people are more interested in short-distance travel than going for a long drive, so we have many local campers coming to stay for the weekend,” Chung said.

He said he thinks the low number of COVID-19 cases in Nova Scotia is another factor at play.

“This weekend will be our first weekend where we'll be 100 per cent full. We didn't have that full capacity occupancy in July, so it's getting better,” he said.

Alexi Rodriguez, who also owns McKinnon Kayak Tours in Cape Breton, said he's seeing more people out on the water these days.

“It was busier this month than last month, but, on the tourism side of things, it's been significantly slower than last year,” he said. “I've probably only seen maybe a quarter of the amount of business for touring as I would have this time last year.

“But, on the recreational side of things, we're seeing a lot more boats and boards on cars and in the water.”

Watch the CBC's Elizabeth Chiu's full interview with Glenn Singleton, general manager of the Brightwood Golf and Country Club in Dartmouth, N.S. 3:34

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Rodriguez said paddle boards, along with used canoes and kayaks, have become popular items to buy this summer.

“There's usually a bit of selection, but right now everybody is sold out [or at least] it seems to be,” he said.

Rodriguez also runs the Different Strokes Paddle Program in the Halifax-area, which provides free paddling lessons to people of colour in Nova Scotia. He said a lot of people have been taking advantage of the program.

“With Different Strokes, I've seen a whole lot of interest…. I'm able to fill up any day that I schedule folks in. There's definitely an interest here,” he said.

“When it comes to stuff like paddling and biking, most folks, once they catch the bug, they just want to keep at it.”

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