Gatineau Park
Trails Skied: Gatineau Pkwy, Champlain Pkwy, Glide Wax: , Grip Wax:
ROUTE: P5 up to the Champlain T and then out the Champlain Parkway past Mulvihill and about half way up the big hill (sorry, that's all I've got in terms of locations).
SKATE: Great conditions - just enough snow to cover the leaves and make the glide pretty clean. There is good coverage everywhere and the weekend grooming and traffic made for a nicely packed surface. All surfaces that were bare last week (under the bridge etc.) are well covered now.
CLASSIC: Tracks looked good though a bit shallow, but were a bit snow-covered.
SKIER TRAFFIC: Lots of people out especially after 10.
CAR TRAFFIC: Driving from the south end of Ottawa (Bank and Albion) was slow at 8:30. Wait until 9 or 9:15 and you save about 20 to 25 minutes on your drive.
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).
