New Years in Ottawa

Bridge "waterfall"
Originally uploaded by kenmores

Took in the New Years' Eve fireworks show tonight. There was an early show - (1857 hours) to celebrate Ottawa's selection as the capital. It was a decent show with all the explosions, cascades, precussion shots etc. that one hopes for in a fireworks display. I may run back for the midnight show... Just a quick post to wish all a Happy New Year.

Christmas ski

Kennedy Road
Originally uploaded by kenmores

I got an excellent ski in on Christmas morning. I went up to the Wakefield trailhead and looped around in the northern part of the park. The NCC has reopened the Kennedy road to skiers after closing it for snowmobiles for the last few years so I went to reacquaint myself with this trail. I looped around to the Lac Phillipe gate and then toured out to Taylor Lake and finally up to Herridge/Healey lodges before heading back to the car. Everything was freshly groomed so conditions were really good. In fact I perhaps lucked out a little bit as - once I got to Herridge lodge - the rest of Pine road connecting the southern part of the park had not been groomed as yet. I guess the Wakefield crews turned around there and went home at that point. There was one open "water hazard" right near the parking lot where the past weekends rain had ponded and not frozen over but it was easily avoided. For the most part I had the trails to myself seeing only 5 or 6 people all day. There were other cars in the lots tho’ and the lodges were pretty busy with skiers having a Christmas brunch. All in all a great ski out - and the sun shone the whole time I was out with clouds rolling in only as I got back to the car.

Almost Christmas

Christmas lights
Originally uploaded by kenmores

Been skiing a lot over the last week since the big storm. The conditions and tracks have been really good but for the most part the days have been dull grey and not particularly conducive(inspiring?) to picture taking. Sunday we got a lot of rain (a whole lot) so I stayed home. It looked a little too perfect for getting hypothermia with cold rain falling. In the evening we got a flash freeze so I ventured out in the afternoon today to see what the trails would be like. The sun was even out this morning but by the time I got out to the trails it had clouded over and started to snow again. The trails weren’t in bad shape (after the rain and freeze) but were nothing spectacular. I chose to skate as I expected the tracks to be hard and icy – and they were. The old grooming contractor often worked magic in prepping the trails after challenging weather to turn them into extraordinary tracks… the new contractor…ummm, not so much… but it was okay and they've improved a lot lately so I'm not complaining. I’m hopeful that tomorrow I’ll be able to get a good Christmas ski in the morning. With luck I can get up there before the crowds arrive with their new skis, new mitts, new toques etc. (not that I’m averse to new gear… hoping for a little of that myself) At any rate tomorrow should be good - the sun is even reported to make a brief appearance. Haven’t seen the sun in a while so it will be good to be confirm that it actually still exists.

When two weather systems fight...

stormy
Originally uploaded by kenmores

We got a little more snow on Sunday… then we got a little more, followed by some snowfall and then a bit of snow. Close to 40cm fell in all and it made for some challenging driving. Actually I drove up to the Park on Sunday morning and it wasn’t too bad at that time but coming home after my ski was a challenge. The storm really started to dump snow while I was out and the plows couldn’t keep up. In several places I faced white out conditions but luckily there wasn’t much traffic on the roads. I skied fpor a couple of hours in the storm making a loop in the lower half of the park. NO I wasn’t the only one out there. I actually met lots of people on the trail. If I could see under their masks, scarves and/or balaclavas I’m sure they were smiling also. It’s shaping up to be a great ski winter. I also met the grooming vehicle. This is the second time I’ve met them in the middle of the snowstorm. Seems strange to me that they wouldn’t wait (and save gas) until the storm stopped dumping snow before heading out to work the trails…. but I suppose they’re the experts (?).

The temperature was pretty cold (-13C and windy) but I stuck to the trees for the most part so it wasn’t too bad. These temperature changes are really putting a stress on my old waxing iron. I use a “Singer – no steam” iron to work my skis. It’s an old family iron that I “borrowed” many years ago. Yes I have been forced to apologise (many times) for what happened to Dad’s shirts after I borrowed it but I didn’t think wax would STAY on the iron…. And besides shiny (waxy?) shirts were briefly in style in the 90’s so maybe I did him a favour. At any rate the old iron is starting to show its age. Time to get a professional grade iron for the wax room.

A Friday ski

Making our way along
Originally uploaded by kenmores

I took Friday off and went for a ski with Mike and Bryan. It being Bryans birthday, his Dad came to town and joined us for the trip. We skied up to the Lusk Lake cabin, had a good birthday lunch and then headed around Taylor Lake. It made for a good ski and the conditions were really good with a few inches of fresh powder down on a solid base. This made for a good chance to spot (and guess at) lots of animal tracks in the fresh snow.

It was an interesting day weather wise. Cold then warm then cold again, calm then windy, light snow then blizzardy then clear... we pretty much had a bit of everything. Never was the weather a real issue though and a good time was had by all.

There probably wasn't enough fresh snow to justify new grooming but it was interesting to see that the snowshoe trail had been freshly rolled while the ski trail was untouched. There were a few other strange grooming "issues" that I spotted under the fresh snow but I am firm in my resolve. Just like Bart Simpson at Camp Krusty - "Krusty will be here!!" - I'm convinced the issues will be corrected. One lady we met was clearly not of the same mindset (and not too timid to voice her opinion to complete strangers) - each to their own. In the meantime I'm really happy to be skiing on December 14th - good grooming or otherwise. Besides a quick pitstop for a poutine on the way home improves anyone's mood.

What a difference a day makes

freighter
Originally uploaded by kenmores

A good nights rest and lots of carbs and I was able to erase Saturdays miserable effort off the books. The skiing went from "wondering if it would ever end" (Sat.) to "wishing it would never end" (Sun.). The temperature had dropped overnight and the clouds rolled over so it wasn't as nice a day but I felt 100% better. Again there were lots of people on the trails today.

I skied up Fortune and out Burma before turning out towards the firetower. Finally I turned back and did an extra loop through the Fortune valley. The tracks everywhere were in great shape. This is probably the earliest I've skied on Burma... ever. Its often late into January before we get enough snowcover to ski it. There were a few thin spots here and there that the grooming machines likely churned up but nothing that couldn't easily be avoided. Ridge was nicely set and they've even taken a stab at rolling some of the black trails so things are looking up. Hopefully I can avoid the mistakes of Saturday (if I can figure out what they were) and keep rolling through the winter.

One of those days...

Wattsford Lookout
Originally uploaded by kenmores

I went out and did a long ski today. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the skis were fast, the snow was good.... and I felt like I was made of lead. None of my muscles showed the slightest interest in forward motion from the moment I clipped into my skis. No amount of coaxing could get them into action. I tried to do a bit of a warm up to see if I'd loosen up and feel better - no dice. In fact, by the time I realized it wasn't going to go well I was commited to a long loop. Shorter(almost) to go forward then back. So the slog was on. One of those days I suppose.

It was a truly beautiful day (this didn't cheer me up ;-) and there were lots of people out and about enjoying the fresh snow. The tracks were reasonably groomed with just a little fresh snow from last night on top of the groomed track. Speaking of(the track), I'm hearing grumblings from various sources that the new contractor isn't providing good grooming - either in a timely fashion or in terms of quality. I think folks were a little spoiled with the past years superlative grooming by Lafleur. I agree that things have been a little "off" but remain confident that the new contractor will pull things together. They got a lot of snow much earlier than expected and I'm sure they are working out some of the bugs in the system. I give them a solid "B" for the work they've done so far. Room to improve - which can also be said for my ski today. I'm sure a big bowl of pasta and a good nights rest will improve things on the trails tomorrow.

Snow Day

Feeder
Originally uploaded by kenmores

I can't remember such a big storm... and it coincided with my day off so I took full advantage. Around 40cm will have fallen over the last 24 hours. It was surprisingly cold for a snowstorm as well but this would not deter me. Took some wider skis up to the park and explored a variety of trails. Some had been rolled, some had been groomed and some hadn't seen action since last spring. I could hear the grooming tractors through the woods working the fresh snow but it must have been a frustrating job for them. At one point I skied on a beautifully groomed section of Parkway which was rapidly filling with snow - so I guess I got first - and only - tracks through there. In fact - while I did see a fair number of tracks in the fresh snow at various points in the day - I only saw 1 other actual skier. The parking lots were also pretty empty so I guess people were hunkered down waiting for the storm to pass before heading up to ski.... their loss.

Stopped into Keogan shelter for a little bit. Got a fire going and watched the birds at the feeder. It was pretty savage at the feeder as hordes of birds were scrambling for the last seeds as the snowstorm raged. Someone should put up a sign to let them know the feeder will be refilled so they don't have to get so aggressive as the seed supply drops. I suppose - with all the different kinds of birds (and squirrels) -it would be tough to pick the appropriate language to use on the sign to convey the message.

Renaud shelter

Renaud shelter
Originally uploaded by kenmores

I went skiing up at Lac Phillippe on Saturday. It was pretty cool (-15C). Worse when you got your nose into the wind but for the most part quite enjoyable. Much to my surprise there weren't too many others out and about - maybe 6 cars in the parking lot. I suppose all the early season skiers head to the more southern parking lots closer to the city. I stuck to the groomed trails which was pretty much the campground roads. Mostly good coverage although It was a little thin in a few spots but I still managed to get ~20k in. Also stopped in to the Renaud shelter at one point. The sight of smoke coming from the chimney is always welcome on a frosty day... too tempting to ski past.

I did run across two guys who were walking in to winter camp. They appeared to have enough gear to hunker down for the rest of the winter in the snow and were struggling to get their heavy sleds up the hills. As I doubled back past the campsite later I could hear their happy voices through the trees so I assume they made it in without incident.

Sunday I skied closer to town - and found more skiers out and about. Still great conditions but it was a bit of a gray day and still quite cold. Lots of snow predicted for tonight so tomorrow could be a big powder day.....