Gatineau Park
Trails Skied: #40, Glide Wax: , Grip Wax:
An addendum to my report of yesterday after reading Paul and Jo-Ann's reports
When I said all trails were trackset I referred only to what I could see - #40, #24, #33, and #1 blue.
It looked as if #1 has been trackset all the way to the tower. When I started off for Osprey Lake only side had been trackset - it appeared that this was done when the snow had a high moisture content because there was a slight glaze to the classic tracks - the other side with the ungroomed snow was as slow as described by Jo-Ann. I met the returning groomer on the Wolf Ridge on my way back, doing the other side - this side was fluffy powder, which would suggest that the snow had dried out in the interim. An eloquent statement of the art/science that goes into the grooming.
The divergence in the three reports is a recommendation for what is a great idea by XC-Ottawa for this reporting site - it's a big park and conditions and grooming can vary widely throughout the park.
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).
