Gatineau Park
Trails Skied: Fortune Pkwy, Champlain Pkwy, #1B, #2 (from #40 to #1), #3, #24, Glide Wax: definitely the wrong one :-), Grip Wax:
Skate skied from P10, up Fortune, Burma, Ridge to 1B to 1, 24, 1, 1B, Ridge Rd to a not so popular Gossip Corner, then back down the parkway to P10.
All in all, aside from having the wrong wax and skating on Burma, conditions were very good. Classic looked fantastic though. Ridge Rd was very hard packed with the snowmobile ski groves imbedded, but I did not find them a problem at all.
As I struggled over the top of Fortune, I looked toward to the lookout and was awestruck by the beauty of it all. I promptly forgot about my waxing woes and really enjoyed the rest of my ski.
Gatineau Park is ski paradise! The network of ski trails offer machine groomed skate skiing and classic skiing as well as little groomed backcountry trails. Multiple access points allow skiers to access a variety of terrain and scenery.
The NCC offers season or daily pay rates.
For suggestions on where to ski, excellent trail descriptions, photos and maps checkout Michael McGoldrick`s website about recreational xc-skiing in Canada`s National Capital Region (with an emphasis on the Gatineau Park).
