March 20 End of Season Party Report by Keith
It’s hard to believe the season is over. Since early October until
mid-March, every week we have been active as a club, actually more a group of
friends coming together under the Beaver Tails Nordic Ski Club name. We
hiked up and down hills, discovered new walks, skied all winter on a December
fall of snow, socialized, and took over 2000 photographs of our adventures,
thanks to you happy snappers.
So how do you have closure for such a wonderful time, you have a party of
course, and so we did. Melanie stepped forward to organize the event and
even Hans set aside his thesis writing in support to produce an excellent party
to celebrate our Season. Forty-five club members and the odd friend (odd
in number, not in personality) got together at La Maison Verte on Saturday
evening. Our group included long-time member Pat K, visiting us all the
way from Victoria, BC.
The restaurant proved to be perfect for us, a nice atmosphere, friendly staff,
and good food. The one problem I found was that club members talk a lot,
and they talk loudly, so by the end of the evening most folks’ voices were
hoarse and I thought that I was going deaf--”what was that did you say?”
We were able to show photos of our season and also a DVD of Ghyslaine and
Monique’s ski tour of the Gaspé. Finally, the more active and
knee-replaced members of the club hit the dance floor whilst others watched in
admiration.
And so near midnight we called it a day, a little concerned that our cars would
change back into pumpkins dragged by mice, or maybe that’s just the General
Motors cars. A fitting end to our season. Many thanks to Mel and
Hans and everybody who came out and enjoyed our 2009/2010 Season. Enjoy
the summer whatever you plan to do and be prepared for new adventures starting
in the fall.
Glen Choma’s Olympic Report
Citius – Altius – Fortius
A Review of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Experience
Glen's photos
http://picasaweb.google.com/Glen.Choma/Vancouver2010Olympics?feat=directlink#5444282363442372418
Many have asked “what is the most memorable moment,” or “what was the most
exciting thing you remember about the Vancouver 2010 winter Olympics?”
Well, that is a difficult question, as it really was two weeks filled with many
enduring memories.
I arrived on Wednesday, two days before the opening ceremonies. On the
plane, I knew I was on my way to the Olympic games, as one of the torchbearers,
who was on the plane, walked down the main aisle (with the torch extinguished,
of course!) to let passengers hold it. As the plane touched down, you
could see the rain pounding on the windows of the plane as it taxied to the
Vancouver airport terminal. It really did not feel like the winter
Olympics due to the wet, warm weather. However, leaving the terminal, I
was confronted by a gigantic, illuminated blue Olympics rings sign. The
colour of the rings was significant, for each day I was to pass similar rings in
the middle of Coal Harbour, just off the downtown city centre. It became
known that each time Canada won a gold medal, the rings would turn gold!
I decided to try to be one of the 25,000 volunteers back in Feb. 2009.
Little did I know that up to 75,000 people were applying for these volunteer
spots. This was hard to believe, given that this would mean 2 weeks of
unpaid vacation time, having to try to find a place to stay, and paying for my
own airfare! Nevertheless, the process included a 5 page application,
followed by a 2 hour training/interview session in April 2009. During this
time, they also checked out our background/passport check, as well as assessed
our areas of interest and expertise.
My first choice was to work on the downhill race course, as this is my all time
favourite sport (downhill skiing). However, as I did not have a place to
stay up at Whistler, I was placed at the Pacific Coliseum. This was really
not so bad, as figure skating and short track speed skating are prime, sought
after Olympic events. I was really lucky in my role as “host”, which meant
that I was responsible for getting people in and out, and helping them out at
the venues. This included both the main competition venue (Pacific
Coliseum) and the practice (athletes only) venue - Killarney. Killarney
was fun too, as the people I worked with were really fun, and I got to interact
very closely with some of the athletes, coaches, etc... I still remember one of
the Chinese speed skaters coming up to me and giving me an Olympic Chinese pin.
Speaking of pins.... I could not believe the interest in pin trading at the
Olympics! People were wearing these amazing Olympic pins that they had
collected from all over the world, past Olympics, etc... Some had them on
their hats, scarves, vests, etc... And quite often, people would come up to you
to exchange/trade pins with you. There was even a lot of pin trading in
the streets, where people would have massive boards full of pins, and they would
trade one for the other. It was really quite incredible. One of the
most amazing things I saw was a line of many hundreds of people at the CTV booth
on Robson Street. When I asked an employee what were all these people there for,
he told me that they have all been there for the past 4 hours to get a free
Olympic pin!!!!
Speaking of line ups.... I have never seen so many people line up for such
a long time and not seem to mind it! At The Bay, which sold the official
Olympic merchandise, there were line ups around the building outside to get into
the store to buy memorabilia. And it was not cheap... but people had the
money and the patience, and did not mind waiting for hours to get inside!
Also, there was a zip line across Robson Street, and the line-up to go on this
15-second zip line was about 7 hours... I am not kidding!!! I forgot to
mention ... about The Bay, it was open 24/7 for the whole Olympics, and there
were still line-ups to get in. Finally, there were all the pavilions and
Live City events, where people would also line up for hours and hours to get in.
In fact, one of the most popular pavilions was the Royal Canadian Mint, which
displayed the actual Olympic medals, etc... The line here was constant, and
perhaps about 3 or 4 hours to get in... Wow!!
The Olympics did not get off to a good start. Yes, the opening ceremony
was stunning by all accounts. The only blooper that happened at the
opening ceremonies was the 4th torch that did not rise. The weather for
the first few days was lousy and rainy, and there was a death on the luge track
during a practice session. I remember Wayne Gretzky riding on the back of
a pick-up truck to light the Olympic flame. The rain was coming down so
hard that I was sure the flame would go out! Furthermore, there was a good
deal of protesters during the first few days. I am not sure what they were
protesting, as all these hooligans dressed in back did was throw mailboxes
through the windows of The Bay. Nevertheless, this was followed the next
day by protesters protesting the protesters, and then we never saw any
protesters again! Around this time, the rain stopped, and to everyone’s
glee, the giant illuminated Olympic rings turned to GOLD. Canada had won
its first gold, and this was to continue for several days. And then there was
the hockey, which really lifted the spirits of everyone.
One memory I have of the games is the atmosphere... everywhere! The energy
and party atmosphere was amazing. I had to commute up to 1.5 hours each
way to my volunteer spot, and had the opportunity to ride the Canada Line (the
brand new rail line from the airport/Richmond to downtown) with fans from all
over the world. Many wore flags of their country, pins, make up on their
faces. I saw musicians from the Netherlands with their instruments, media,
locals, all kinds of people... on the Canada Line. And what impressed me
the most was that they all seemed to be so happy, no matter what country they
came from. In fact, it seemed that the fans would cheer any athlete who
did well, even if he/she did not come from that person’s country.
Security at the games could not be missed. There were 6,000 police from
all over Canada. They included RCMP, municipal, provincial, and city
police. In fact, I even bumped into FBI agents at the Pacific Coliseum...
Where did these 6,000 police stay? Well, they had 3 cruise ships docked in
the harbour where the police slept and ate. I heard it was quite
comfortable!! The cost of all this security was approx. $900 million.
Police were not the only layer of security. There were security screeners
at each event screening and x-raying each and every spectator that entered each
event. That was quite a process, and my role as a host volunteer was to
ensure that this ran smoothly. On my day off, I skied at Whistler, and
there too one could see police on the slopes. Interesting here was that
the police were skiing in full uniform with guns at their side!!! I could
not believe this! I had to ski up to one and ask why he was wearing a gun
at his side. We were on Blackcomb where there was not even an Olympic
event. He told me that was not his decision, but he was told he had to ski
with a gun!!
And then there were the photographers... everywhere! Firstly, all those not at
the games and who watched on TV know how fantastic the coverage was. At
each venue were countless TV cameras covering all angles. At the Pacific
Coliseum, the many cameras at ice level, and the several cameras on booms, gave
a real sense that one was there. I also found that this Olympics really
showcased high definition (HD) TV, so the games really came alive for all.
And then there were the hundreds of still photographers, all sporting gigantic
lenses mounted on their fancy cameras. I would often see them walking
around with three or 4 cameras around their necks with 40-50 cm long lenses.
It was interesting to see how careless many were with their cameras; often they
would crash into a doorway as they walked though.... oh well, I guess they had
many!
As a final last word, I must say that the Olympics made me a very proud
Canadian. I am not sure if it was the sea of Canadian flags at all the
events, or the many painted faces with maple leaves I saw everywhere, or all the
people wearing Canadian flag capes, or all the tourists rushing up to take
photos with the Mounties decked out in red, or all the athletes wearing the very
stylish Canadian Olympic team clothing. Maybe it was all the letters and
editorials written by Americans and those from other countries talking about the
warmth and friendliness experienced at the games. Vancouver, and Canada,
really put on the best games ever! A games that will go down in history as
an event that exemplified competition, friendliness, and the coming together of
peoples from all over the world.
Mar 07 Gai Luron Report by Tom
Nine Skied at Gai Luron
The weather for the last 10 days has been perfect for maple syrup producers --
about -5 C at night and +5 C during the day. That is just what they need
to get the sap running. It has also meant a steady decline of the snow.
But it was melting less quickly in some spots, and one of those spots was good
ol' Gai Luron. A couple of us had been there last Thu and so we knew that
the snow coverage was still complete.
Nine of us turned out last Sun under sunny skies. When we arrived the
temperature was just at 0 C and so some of us started off with red wax.
But the temperature rose quickly and we soon began daubing klister on our skis,
using our handy applicator cans. Some people kept the waxing decision
simple by using waxless skis. But whatever was used, the trails were
well-groomed and the skiing was pleasant. Some spots were getting softer
later in the morning and so it was a bit more work. But everyone who came
out was very happy they did. Even after years of skiing experience, it can
be surprising to skiers to find how there can be so little snow in the city and
yet one can still have a good ski outing just 45 minutes out of town.
Check the photos on the web site.
Feb 21 Gai Luron Report by Sue-Anne
We were really looking forward to skiing in the few inches of fresh snow that fell on Montreal Friday and Saturday night, but alas, right before St Jerome the wet roads became perfectly dry and the new snow completely disappeared! They had only received a slight dusting, but we forged on nonetheless. Conditions were pretty good with a few rough brown patches, but with the beautiful blue skies a good time was had by all. Check out the group photo to see the huge turnout
Feb 20-21 Mont Sainte Anne Report by Keith
Well sad to say Tom's forecast of 204 cm at Mont Ste Anne did not
materialize, in fact I doubt that they have had 204 cm all season. The
fall of snow in Montreal just before we left did not happen in Quebec City.
Fortunately at the x-country center the trails were in good condition even
though there was a lack of snow in the parking lot. Rumour has it that the
lack of snow around Quebec City was due to a Quebec entrepreneur who saw a
business opportunity to ship it all to Cypress Mountain, unfortunately all the
snow melted whilst being shipped by rail across the prairies.
A few of the club members visited Duchesnay on Friday but the majority of us
were anxious to start skiing Saturday at Parc de Mont Sainte Anne. It was
a red wax day, not to be confused with a red letter day, brilliant blue sky and
sunshine, which usually means lots of pole work. Everyone found trails to
suit their needs and abilities, whether you were a mega miler or just "let’s
enjoy the open air", and anything in between. The skiing was most
enjoyable, especially if you had waxless skis, although we were involved in one
or two incidents. Elizabeth fell early in the day and cracked a rib which
had to be checked out at the local hospital, fortunately she was able to return
for the evening activities. Our medical professionals in the mega miler
group became first attenders for a skier (not in our group) who had left the
trail and broken a collar bone. Sobering thought -- what is that you say,
breaking a collar bone on the trail? – no, having our medical professionals as
first attenders. Finally a skidoo arrived and trucked the skier out and
the mega milers were able to carry on.
Eventually most of our members retired to the chalet after an enjoyable if
tiring day, not so for some of the Own the Podium Mega Milers, one last
challenge lay ahead, the ski back to the hotel. It would appear that some
dubious navigation occurred on this last leg when the group came crossed a dog
sleigh team on its way to Labrador City. Still they made it safely back.
The evening festivities started in our traditional manner with the Wine and
Cheese event. Tom did an excellent job in preparing the food which was
completely devoured before supper time. The wines were a special import
from the Vankleek Hill wineries courtesy of Robert Letmepouryouaglass Lewis,
excellent as ever. Good food in the restaurant finished off the day, then
most club members turned in early muttering they were going to watch the
Olympics, I suspect most crashed out in bed as soon as they got to their rooms.
Sunday was overcast, but it had snowed and the temperature was a little colder,
so completely ignoring our aching legs and arms off we went to ski again.
Conditions were very good and people enjoyed the skiing before the drive home.
So what did I not mention?
-- Our amazing senior members, you have to be mid 70's to mid 80 's to qualify.
-- The mega milers did own the podium doing a huge distance on skis this
weekend.
-- The fancy two side by side seat skidoo parked outside the hotel.
-- The frenzy of ski hat buying at the store at the Mount Sainte Anne x-country
centre.
Another memorable ski weekend at Mont Sainte Anne due to all the efforts of Tom
in organizing the weekend. Thanks very much, Tom. You, Jacques and
Mickey certainly did Own the Podium this weekend.
Feb 13-14 Canadian Ski Marathon Report by Karen Hornby
We both made it. I was not surprised that David did, he certainly could have
skied much faster, but he stayed with me. I am shocked that I made it. I really
expected to be sleeping in my bed at home on Saturday night!
The weather conditions were just about perfect the whole weekend. I guess you
heard they changed the route and instead of running from Lachute to Buckingham,
we did a loop to the north of Montebello on Saturday and pretty much the same
route only in the opposite direction on Sunday. The trail conditions for the
first two sections on Saturday were pretty awful with very minimal coverage and
none in places. We removed our skis and walked in several places. Luckily these
two sections were only a total of 12 km. After that we had three sections of
just over 20km each. These trails were along old logging roads and had plenty of
snow and beautiful scenery. These three sections saved the marathon.
On Saturday David and I made it to the last section an hour & a half before the
cut off. But by the time I got to the camp I was so tired I crawled into my
sleeping bag within an hour and told David not to wait for me on Sunday as I
probably would have to stop after the first section. However, on Sunday I felt
pretty good and just skied at my pace and we made it to the last section with 45
minutes to spare.
The only Beaver Tailer that we saw was Olaf and we shared a campfire with him at
the camp. He must have done an awful lot of night skiing at Rigaud cause he was
skiing really strong. We also ran into an old work colleague of David’s who was
skiing faster than Olaf, until we caught up with him at the last section. He
told us he was having stomach problems all day on Sunday and stopped at a check
point in a medic tent for 2 HOURS! He started feeling better and decided to keep
trying and finished just ahead of us!
Feb 14 Lac Monroe Picnic Report by Keith
Valentine’s Day, a day for lovers, massacres (1929), and of course Gwen and
Richard’s picnic at Lac Monroe. It all started at the crack of dawn with a
drive up through the green fields of the Laurentians to Parc du Mont Tremblant
where we found the landscape contaminated by this soft white substance.
Obviously, this caused a great deal of concern, as none of us had brought
surgical gloves or decontamination suits. Older members of the club said they
had seen something like it before, probably in a previous life, and a detailed
analysis of the substance revealed that the main constituent of this fluffy
white substance was in fact H2O. So a feeling of relief spread among the club
members and it was decided we should see if it was possible to ski on this soft
white frozen H2O. Groups set out like the tentacles of an octopus with club
members skiing all the trails at the Secteur de la Diable. Realization slowly
set in that the snow, because that is what was, was in very good condition. Oh,
how we had forgotten that such wonderful conditions could exist.
At the bewitching hour of 12 noon, everyone appeared full of tales of excellent
trails and great descents, took out their packs, and transported Gwen and
Richard’s picnic hampers to the Refuge de la Renardière. Fortunately, Julie
had got to the refuge early and had lit the stove and soon we were all settled
in munching on all types of sandwiches, veggies, fruit and cheese fondue,
followed by cakes. Once again Gwen and Richard had excelled themselves and
there was more than enough food for everyone. Eventually, the last two
stragglers Debbie and Marlene reached the refuge just before the other 25 club
members prepared to leave. A quick ski back to the parking lot, and then into
our cars for the journey back to green grass and hard packed snow, leaving
behind a true winter wonderland.
Great job, Gwen and Richard!
Jan 07 Viking Trails - 26 Skied Like Vikings--report bt Tom
Glenn Kytes GPS plot: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/24396038 Click on Satellite to overlay the route on Google earth. Go to the player and start it (again select Satellite for an enhanced view).
After having had to cancel our visit last year due to freezing rain, the Beaver
Tails finally made their return visit to the Viking Ski Club, located a few km
past Morin Heights. The Viking Club, with their private clubhouse and
exclusive network of trails, it is not a place normally seen by the general
skiing public. They were kind enough to invite us again, after our
successful and inaugural visit two years ago.
With blue skies and a temp of around - 8 C, it was another great day for skiing.
The 26 of us assembled in the clubhouse and were greeted by our Viking hosts,
Derek and Hjordis Wills. There were two main options -- take a "regular"
ski around their 10 km loop and be back after 2 hours or so, or venture farther
afield on the Crown South trail. Nine of our group decided to accompany
Hjordis on the shorter outing. The rest of us prepared to set out on what
Derek estimated would be "at least a 3-hour tour". The operative, and
perhaps over-looked by some of us, part of this advisory was the "at least".
But we did heed his advice to bring along adequate food and drink.
We made our way across the road and down to the lake to begin our outing.
The Crown South trail takes us on the southernmost part of the Viking trail
network and is less frequently traveled. After 30 minutes, our group
decided to split, with seven of us going ahead at a quicker pace in a group led
by BTer and long-time Viking member, Dennis M. The other ten were led by
Derek.
About 6 km along, our group of seven reached the junction where one turns off
the Crown West to go on the Crown South. The Crown South had not been
groomed, but it had been tracked by other skiers. We switched to
back-country mode and forged on, going through the woods and then crossing Lac
Hills. The scenery and snow were just lovely. The snow coverage was
fine in general. Some parts of the trail are a bit rugged, with bumps and
dips that need a good bit more snowfall to be smoothed out. So that made
some of the descents a bit more technically challenging. The trail did
take some sharp dips and climbs where, even though there was enough snow, some
people side-stepped or took off their skis.
We got to Lac Dey and looked for the continuation of the Crown South trail.
And looked. And looked! We thought we were on the right track a few
times, but we just could not find the trail indicators. At one point, after a
lot of climbing, we reached a road along another lake that told us we were
definitely off course. We returned to Lac Dey and skied back and forth
along it, taking some breaks to eat our lunches. There had been no sign of
the other group behind us, who were supposed to take the same route. By
this point we had been out for over two hours and we decided the most prudent
course of action would be to backtrack to the junction with the Crown West trail
and make our way back from there on the groomed trails. When we reached
the junction, we checked the map and plotted a return route that would take us
less than an hour. But somewhere along the way we missed another turn and
took a much longer -- and hillier! -- way back. Some in our group became
concerned that friends in the other group led by Derek must be waiting for us,
and so we pressed on with few breaks.
We finally straggled into the clubhouse after 4.5 hours on the trail.
Members of the group who had done the 10 km loop had been comfortably lounging
for some time and looked very refreshed. But to our great surprise, we
learned that Derek's group had not yet returned and was still out on the trails.
Twenty minutes later, a very tired looking group of skiers arrived back, after
an almost 5-hour outing. For most of us in both our groups, it had been
the longest and most tiring ski outing of the season!
It turned out that Derek's group had also reached Lac Dey and struggled to pick
up the trail, but they soon succeeded in doing so. They must have done
this while our group was off on the wrong trail. They wondered what had
become of us when they found that this part of the Crown South trail had not
been skied on by anyone since the last snowfall. They had to break trail
for a good distance. So our two groups ended up skiing on two very
different trajectories. But we figure we all did between of 20-25 km of
skiing on often challenging trails.
Despite all the challenges, or because of them, all of us had a very good and
satisfying day on the Viking ski trails! A very big thank you from the
Beaver Tails Nordic Ski Club to the Viking Ski Club for their hospitality, and
especially to Derek and Hjordis for receiving us and guiding us on the trails.
Jan 31 - 25 Beaver Tailers at Good Ol' Gai Luron -- Report by Tom
We had been scheduled to go to Montagne Coupée last Sun, but they were having a
tough time recuperating from the rain, followed by the cold and wind, earlier in
the week. The layout of their centre, with a greater abundance of open,
unwooded areas, left many parts of their trails icy and difficult to negotiate.
To their credit, they were very up front about their conditions. They even
recommended that visitors use their old skis! So we decided we should
cancel our visit to Montagne Coupée. But for the many of you who like
skiing at this center, note that we have another visit there scheduled for Mar
7.
After briefly considering tracking down the best snow in the region at Mont
Orford, we decided that our old fallback of Gai Luron would be a better option.
It was closer by and we know from experience that Gai Luron usually manages to
have great conditions. And that turned out to be the case. We had 25
members find this out for themselves on a sunny -16 C morning.
We assembled and waxed our ski in the small chalet. Since everybody who
had arrived to that point was still milling about, we decided to take the group
photo then and there in the chalet. And then it was off on the trails.
Since many of us have been to Gai Luron a few times already this year, there was
little hesitation about which trails to tackle. It seems that a number of
skiers took straight to the 8.1 km L trail, which is graded as an expert trail
and is the longest loop. After completing it, many of those skiers decided
to do it again. And then a thrid time! Clearly, many of our skiers
are in mid-season form!
Other members, some of whom are still working their way to mid-season form, took
the A and G trails and also had a great time. The trails were in good
condition considering the lack of new snow. The descents were controllable
but you had to keep your guard up. There was one curve near the end of the
L trail that seemed to be giving people a problem. Chris Martin came away
with a bandage on his forehead after taking a too close-up look at one of the
trees beside the trail. (He was otherwise fine.) But some people
felt they were just not going fast enough. Rumour has it that Keith left
Gai Luron and went straight to the ski shop at Mont Rolland and bought some new
and speedier skis. Look out if you see him behind you on the trail --
another rumour is that his new skis were made by Toyota.
The day started cool at -16 C, but by the end of the morning it had already
risen to about -7 C and some people had to re-wax. It was a great
mid-season outing, especially considering the lack of snow we have had.
Jan 22-24 - 33 Enjoyed Excellent Conditions at Lake Placid
The Beaver Tails Olympic x-country ski team were very disappointed not to be
selected to go to Vancouver. However, we decided we knew of an Olympic Centre
that would welcome us, so off we went to Lake Placid. In true Vancouver
tradition, the conditions did not look so good as we drove south with large
patches of grass showing. This was probably what prompted Egon and Linda
to bring along bikes, kayaks, skis, snow shoes and sun block, just in case --
if you do not believe me look at the photos. The rest of us had a more relaxed
approach and just went for the ride. A few members went down early and
managed to get in some back-country skiing on the Jack Rabbit Trail before
getting together for the Friday supper where Tom demonstrated how easy it was to
eat half a cow and still stand up. God help your digestive system.
Next morning was brilliant, crisp, and cool with a brilliant blue sky, -14 C or
so, but warming up fast, so off most of us scuttled like lemmings to the Olympic
Sports Centre. A smaller group opted for a back country expedition
to Avalanche Lake. This turned out to be 5 hours of skiing, and 6 hours of
Jack telling us all how fantastic it had been. Meanwhile, the lemmings hit the
Olympic Sports Centre--no one seems to call it Mt Van Hoevenberg any more--where
we found conditions quite reasonable, if fast. Note I am using the Tom/Ghyslaine
grading system. A huge gang set off to do the Porter Mountain Trails whilst
more sensible souls set their sights at more realistic levels. I found the
Porter Mtn Trails had got steeper, higher, and faster than I remembered from two
years previously and the descents removed the kick wax in short order, so what
was a group became individuals, each one fighting their own demons on the steep
pitches and finally deciding when to back off on a shorter loop. Of
course, not everyone felt the same, at least not publicly, and not only did the
Porter Mtn trails but also other trails in the extensive network. By the time
most people called it a day, the day was warm and it was very comfortable to sit
out in the sun. The evening started with wine and cheese, more wine than
cheese, but who is counting, then plenty of food for supper. Afterwards,
several of us sat around the roaring fire in the parlour whilst a group of Ever
Ready bunnies went ice skating. Mind you they lost points when we realized
they had driven to the rink, so much for their carbon foot print.
Sunday was also fine but the temperature was rising quickly, so the group split
into two, some going to the Olympic Centre whilst the remainder opted for an
easier day at Cascades, a smaller centre with a welcoming restaurant.
Everyone seemed to enjoy the narrower trails with good snow even though the
loops are small and you tend to repeat a few several times. One gang even got in
some snowshoeing as the temperature hovered around 0 C. Finally, Tom was
allowed to come in for food after he and Terry had passed the critical
Not-a-Rest-Day limit, here I am using the Terry distance classification scale.
So there you have it, well not all of it, I did not mention the fit young ski
teams staying at the hotel and the distraction this caused to our motorcycling
lady member, no names, no back drill, eh Patty. And of course there is the
example set by Sylvia, once again out there skiing with the rest of us.
A huge thanks to Winnie who gave up time and energy to organise the
weekend. Boy, would we have missed a marvellous weekend had she not done it.
Hugs and kisses all round for Winnie.
Jan 24 - 10 Skiers at Far Hills
While the rest of us were in Lake Placid, 10 BTers made it out to Far Hills.
Ivan reported back to me that the conditions were excellent on all the trails,
except on the steepest trails, which were closed. The grooming was very
good and there was a thin cover of powder snow which looked pretty fresh. There
was also snow in the trees. Most of that group skied together all morning
and did about 18 km before lunch. Some of them went out for some more
after lunch for a total of 25 km.
Jan 17 - 18 Skiers at Ste Agathe Enjoyed Great Conditions
(Really!)
After the milder weather on Sat, the temperature was due to drop overnight and
so there was some concern about how the conditions would be at Ste Agathe's Parc
des Campeurs on Sun. But we decided to stick with Ste Agathe as the
destination and it turned out to be the right call.
It was -8 C with barely any wind when we arrived at 9 am. The first of us
to arrive immediately strode over to the ski trails to inspect them.
We found them to be in good shape, with a thin layer of fresh snow on deep
tracks and a good base. We applied our blue wax and soon took to the
trails. Our skiers ranged from "easy does it" skiers who stayed mostly on
the green trails, to our hard core group that set out on a 29 km itinerary (two
of them carrying their Coureur de bois gold backpacks). The trails at Ste
Agathe are more narrow and woods-enclosed than the trails at most other centres.
Some people find this sort of setting to be charming and beautiful, while some
others find it a bit unsettling, especially on the downhills. Despite the
drop in temperature and no large amounts of fresh snow, those downhills were in
good shape. They were "firm", but not hard or icy. When you did your
snow plow to descend, there was enough give in the snow to dig your skis in and
slow down. Oddly, the temperature was steady at -8 C all day, so things
did not soften up any.
On this day, all 18 Beaver Tailers in attendance were definitely in the camp
that found the trails to be lovely. The 1 km climb to the lookout on Mont
Ste-Agathe, the roller coaster trail next to Lac Davis, the sight and sound of
songbirds along the trail -- it all made for a splendid day. The four or
so members who were skiing there for the first time were all effusive in their
praise of the trails at Parc des Campeurs. And those skiers who did the 29
km route, well, they went out for another 10 km.
A "very reliable source" (not me) submitted the following testimonial about one
of those first-time visitors to Parc des Campeurs: >>> Terry, as you may know,
is usually quite nervous about any downhill slope, and descends very cautiously…
well, by the end of the day of so many ups and downs at Ste Agathe, she was to
be seen racing downhill, careening around the corners at break neck speed and
exclaiming “That was so much Fun!” and “We should come here more
often.” This is true! <<<
So, a great day at Ste Agathe. Check out photos from Ste Agathe and from
the day before at Morin Heights on the web site.
Jan 16 - 30+ Skiers at Morin Heights / Ski Clinic
The ski clinic was another great success this year!
The temperature was steady at -1 C under cloudy skies. About 15 skiers
arrived at 10:30 a.m. to go for a recreational ski before the clinic. Most
people used violet wax -- it worked well for most but some people still had some
grip problems. The lessons began at 1 p.m. and 30 Beaver Tail members took
part in classes for beginners, intermediates and advanced that lasted between
1.5 - 2 hours. As usual, just about everybody learned something new, or
just something they needed reminding about.
Thanks to Glenn K for undertaking the organization of the clinic again this
year.
Jan 10 Orford Report by Keith
Gps plot and profile of some of the main Trails ( 2 page pdf ))
Yes, it is a long drive to Orford, especially if you were tired from skiing
on Saturday. However, the highway to Orford can be interesting.
Sunday morning was no exception as we became aware of a trio of hot air balloons
up in the sky. Two were close to the highway and the power lines, could be
exciting. Next we came across a couple of deer in a field next to the
highway and finally the ice covered trees near Shefford as a result of freezing
drizzle. All this excitement and we had not yet put our skis on.
The stress levels got a notch higher when Linda could not find her fanny bag
with wallet and Blackberry in it although she had been on the phone a few
minutes earlier. After emptying the car twice, the errant bag was found in
Ray D's bag and normality was restored. By this time the numbers of club members
at Orford had increased to what was reported to have been 29 skiers.
Unfortunately, we could not get everyone together for the photo due to cold
fingers and toes, no wind but a chilly -14 C. Clearly it was going to be
one of those days as Winnie, having collected her skis from the rack, could then
not get them on. Frozen bindings? -- no, wrong bindings for her boots, in
fact wrong skis! Sheepishly, the skis were returned to the rack and
replaced by her own skis.
Finally, groups split up and set off on the trails which were in excellent
condition. Now, it's a well known fact that whatever direction you ski
from the main chalet at Orford or ski back to the chalet it is always up hill.
Not possible you say, what goes up must come down and that is true, but at
Orford you spend 80% of the distance climbing and 20% descending. Check
the GPS profile of our group's ski day. Still everyone had a good day whether
you had to haul a large pack on your back for marathon training, or you achieved
a personal best of 8 kms on your second time on skis -- well done, Edie!
Long drive to Orford, yes, but well worth the effort, super skiing and a really
good work out. One picture is worth a thousand words someone said, so check the
photos in the gallery and get the real feeling for the day. See the GPS
plot and profile of our ski as I think many of our 29 skiers skied these trails
and probably a good few more.
Jan 3 - 30 Skiers at Gai Luron report by Tom
With Jan 1 falling on a Fri this year and with our ski and pot luck lunch on the
Sat, this was our third day in a row with an organized ski outing. It was
also our first "regular season" Sun outing so you know what that meant -- the
dreaded 8 am departure!
Despite the earlier hour, over two dozen BTers met the call to action and made
the journey on the still snow-covered highways up to Gai Luron. It was
slow going on the last 20 kms of Aut 15 as we all got stuck behind a phalanx of
snow plows. That bunched us up and so it was that at 9 am a convoy of cars
turned into the almost empty parking lot of Gai Luron disgorged a bevy of Beaver
Tail skiers. Within a few minutes, the first parking lot was full.
With about 10 cm of snow overnight and temp of about -5 C, conditions were once
again just splendid for cross-country skiing. With a group shot taken of
as many skiers that we could round up, it was off to the trails. The sky
was mostly cloudy but there were some sunny breaks that only heightened the
beauty of the trails. People made their way around on the G, A, I, L, and
U trails. (Clearly, if they ever add three more trails, they will be the
R, O, and N trails!) The trails all loop around back to the chalet, so we
were able to meet up with those skiers who arrived an hour or so later.
People were skiing with joyful abandon. However, Patricia took it a bit to
far when she abandoned her wallet on the side of the trail after stopping to
fish her water bottle out of her fanny pack. How could such a thing
happen? Well, more than one person noted that Patricia's "water" was
contained in a clear plastic flask with Bacardi marked on the side. In any
case, Patricia resumed skiing, but Arthur and Keith happened to pass the same
spot a few minutes later and Arthur noticed something protruding from the snow.
He only got as far as the first card (Costco) before he realized whose wallet it
was. Back at the chalet, a concerned Patricia had discovered her
loss. Arthur and Keith arrived, but before they revealed their find, they took
a few moments to "console" her about what a shame it was to lose all those
cards!
In the end, everyone had a great day of skiing. Yes, the 8 am departure
made for an earlier start, but for the many people have been out a few times and
are skiing longer, it's nice to get back to town an hour earlier. But
that's why we like to have the first 8 am outing at Gai Luron, so that late
risers can still meet up with others.
Jan 02 Mount Royal and Pot Luck Report by Keith
Well there is nothing like a few hours exercise and lots of food to start the New Year and that’s exactly what we did. Mount Royal came into skiable condition just at the right time so the gang was able to ski the mountain, or as some people did, just walked on the hill. One walker admitted that his skis were still in the bag from last season, tut, tut, not so the rest, they just wanted a walk. The snow conditions were good—note it is not Tom writing this, so it is probably true. Anyhow, we all had a good time and so did the thousands of Montrealers who descended on the hill as the day progressed. You have to admit it’s a wonderful place for everyone to get out and enjoy the winter.Soon it was mid-day and the hungry hordes descended on Monique’s for our Pot Luck Social. Monique, our generous hostess, welcomed everyone into her home and it must be said that her signs are improving every year, see Glenn’s skis in bag, oops, what a giveaway, I mean photos. Once again the club attempted entry in the Guinness Book of Record for the most skiers in an NDG house and rumour has it that the Gazette restaurant critic sneaked in and gave the food a 5-star rating in the Sunday Gazette. Indeed, the food line-up at one point appeared to wind all the way down Melrose and along Monkland. The chomping of food and the chatter amongst friends went on for hours until sadly we had to wend our way home, thoughts of an 8 am start for the next day’s skiing foremost in our minds.
I am afraid to say that there may be a margin of error with the official bean counter’s number as I understand he dropped his bag of beans and may have lost a few in the snow. Anyhow, 28 went exercising on the mountain and several more crept out of the woodwork for the feeding frenzy, pushing the number at the pot luck up to 44 or so. Super time on and off the hill. Thanks to Monique and our many cooks.
New Year's Day Special - 16 Greet the New Year at Gai Luron
Report by Tom
What better way to recuperate from a night of partying than to rush out and
embrace the New Year on one's skis! That's what no fewer than 16 Beaver Tailers
did as they gathered at 10-ish at Gai Luron for the "New Year's Day Special" ski
outing. I think 16 may be a record turnout for Jan 1.
The recent tradition has been to go to Oka on New Year's Day, but Oka seemed to
be recovering slowly from the rain the previous weekend. So we switched to
Gai Luron for the second year in a row. Maybe it is becoming the new
tradition. There is no arguing that many BT members love going to Gai
Luron during the early part of the season.
With a couple of cms of snow overnight, sun and a temp of -5 C, conditions were
perfect at Gai Luron. Blue extra, or even violet, was the wax that seemed
to work the best. With our staggered arrival at the hill, there was no
group shot. But I managed to snap photos of 12 of the 16 skiers. It
was a great start to 2010!
Dec 20 ------ 23 Happy Go Lucky Beaver Tailers at Gai Luron - Report
by Tom
Considering we have had only one real snowfall almost two weeks ago, the
conditions have been holding up amazingly well. This was certainly the
case on Sun at Gai Luron, where 23 Beaver Tailers took to the trails.
Gai Luron, which roughly translates as "happy go lucky fellow", has become a
favourite destination for the club. Less than an hour away, it is easy to
get to and offers a really nice little network of trails. On Sun, it was
supposed to be cloudy, but instead we got sunny skies, no wind and warmer than
expected temperatures. The Swix thermometer showed only -11 C at 10 am.
After the group photo, we spread out on the trails. At Gai Luron the
trails often pass close to each other and then all loop back to the chalet, so
there were many opportunities to run into other club members. Several
skiers were heard to remark how much they liked skiing at Gai Luron! I was
part of a group that did the L (8 km), the A (5 km) and then the G (4 km).
That took us to 12:30 pm, at which point it had warmed to -9 C. Many of our
group went to the Gai Luron casse-croute across the street for lunch.
A great start to the ski season so far! Let's hope the weather cooperates
to keep the conditions as good. Check out the photos from Gai Luron and
Cap St Jacques
Dec19- Six Skiers at Cap St Jacques - Report by Tom
If you got up on Sat morning and checked the weather on the internet, you may
have discouraged from going out skiing by the 8 am temp of -21 C. However,
experienced cross-country skiers know that a bit of cold does not preclude good
skiing conditions. A consensus had been reached the day before on the web site
forum that Cap St Jacques would make a good place for an "informal" Sat moring
ski outing. Six Beaver Tailers turned out for the 10 am start. As it
turned out, the temp by then had already warmed up to -15 C. What's more,
the sun was out and there was no wind. In short, it was great weather for
x-c skiing. It was NOT too cold to go skiing!
The six of us set out at 10:15 am. The trails at Cap St Jacques have long
been known to have poor to mediocre grooming. Tracks were sometimes set by
a ski-doo but were often set by skier traffic. But last year the park
acquired a proper grooming vehicle and it had been out on the trails earlier
that morning. As a result, we had fresh tracks and the trails were in
excellent shape. We made our way around on the "red rabbit" trail, pausing
occasionally to regroup and take photos. We completed the 10.4 km loop and
got back to the parking lot at 11:45 am.
There is no charge to use the trails at Cap St Jacques, but they charge $7/day
for parking. However, island residents can buy a parking pass for the
calendar year (to Dec 31, 2010) that is good at all of Montreal's "Nature Parks"
-- Cap St Jacques, Bois de Liesse, Bois de l'Île Bizard, Île de la Visitation,
Pointe aux Praries. Each of these parks offer x-c ski trail networks at no
charge. The parking pass can be bought at the Visitor Centre at the
entrance of Cap St Jacques. If you want to see a description of these
parks, go to the following Ville de Montreal web site:
http://ville.montreal.qc.ca/portal/page?_pageid=175,4878714&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&nomPage=bt_parc_07
Dec 13 - 30 Skiers at P'tit Train du Nord -- report by Tom
There was a big difference in temperature on Sun morning from when we left the
city at 9 am and arrived at Mont Rolland less than an hour later. It went
from about -3 C in Dorval to about -9 C up north. The shock of this
temperature swing caused our skiers to quickly get ready and then be eager to
get going on the trail. As a result, we did not get close to taking a
photo of the entire group -- we only got about half of them in the shot.
Even I was not among them, being a few minutes late myself and helping people
getting organized.
Our starting point at Mont Rolland is at the 25 km point of the P'tit Train du
Nord. Under cloudy skies at 10:35 am, I was one of the last to set out and
headed, like everyone else, north towards Val David. The first
snowstorm of the season last Wed had brought about 30 cm of snow to the area and
the PTdN trail was nicely groomed and in great condition. I tried to keep
up a good pace, so that I could catch up with as many people as possible (but
one in particular). As I encountered each new person, I paused to exchange
greetings and snap a photo. I finally caught up to Terry and others just
short of the 33 km marker. We decided to proceed through the
underpass to the checkpoint hut at the 33 km point. Of course, that meant
we were 8 km out and were now committed to a 16 km day. So much for my
admonitions to take it easy on the first day out. But, for what it is
worth, there is more downhill on the return leg. We returned back to the
Gare at Mont Rolland after just over 2 hours on the trail and just as it began
snowing.
As I skied I also kept count of our spread out group. Including friends of
members, our gang came out to an impressive 30 skiers. Some people decided
to get on the road and drive down the highway and stop at a Tim's. But the
majority stopped in at the charming Café de la Gare, where they had a good
selection of soups, sandwiches and drinks. The big flakes drifting down
outside the window only added to the ambiance. The consensus was that it
had been a splendid first formal outing of the season.
Depending on how far and fast you went out, your skiing muscles may still be
feeling a bit sore even today. (It is certainly the case for me!)
But if you get out regularly from here on in, the legs will be in good shape for
the rest of the season.
Party Dec 05 - 55 Revelers at the Holiday Party Report by
Tom
As predicted, the Beaver Tails Holiday Party at the Comme Chez Soi restaurant in
the Pointe Claire village was the social event of the season. Shortly
after 6:30 p.m., well-dressed party-goers began streaming into the 2nd
floor locale for a vibrant cocktail hour. In addition to the cacophony of
conversations filling the room, there was a slide show of photo highlights from
the previous year. There was also a guest appearance by Melanie and Hans and
6-month-old Olivia. Hans set up the music to be played during the evening
on the sound system, but then he and Mel had to leave to get Olivia home to bed.
(So we were 58 if we count them.)
At 7:30 pm we took our places for dinner and the feasting began. For the
next couple of hours there was much elegant dining and drinking of fine wine.
As I explained during my brief words of welcome to the crowd, we had done our
best to put in an order for fresh snow, but there had been a terrible mix up and
our snow had somehow ended up being delivered to Houston, Texas. But we
had registered a complaint and we are now expecting our snow to finally be
delivered to us by this Wed (up to 30 cms worth).
After dinner, the party-goers soon took to the compact dance floor in large
numbers. Ray D saw to it that the setup left by Hans delivered song after
song of dance music. There were still people dancing after midnight.
The last people left shortly before 1 am. I have it on good authority that
Al was one of those last people.
The party was a great success, thanks to all the hard work put in by our party
organizer, Judy Kolomeir. Thank you, Judy, on behalf of all of us who were
able to celebrate the coming holidays and the imminent ski season in style!
But don't take my word for it, check out all the photos on the Gallery.
Mount Royal Dec 06 - 25 Hikers at Mount Royal
Report by Tom
There were 25 Beaver Tails who showed up on Mount Royal on Sun morning. Of this
group of 25, a full 13 of them had been up late at the holiday party the night
before and so demonstrated the indefatigable energy of a true Beaver Tail.
Note that this distinguished group included Past Past President Al, who was
among the last to leave the previous evening (or earlier that morning, to be
precise).
For the 10th Sun in a row since we began our hiking season on Oct 4, the weather
was yet again perfect for hiking with a temp of about -1 C and mostly sunny
skies. Upon arriving at Beaver Lake, surrounded by bare green fields and hills,
we were surprised to find that the skating rink adjacent to the chalet was in
full operation with impeccable ice and happy skaters going round and round.
The lack of snow had clearly distracted us from the fact that it was indeed
December with temperatures cold enough for skating. (Mind you, this rink is
helped by a refrigeration system.)
After the group photo (of the 21 people who showed up on time -- 4 others showed
up later), we set out a few minutes before 10 am down Olmsted Road, past the big
stairs, and then on the path that loops through woods beneath the Camellien
Houde lookout. We returned to the stairs and casually sauntered up its 256
steps. After a short bio break at the big chalet, we followed the upper
road around the cross and then past the big chalet to the main lookout facing
downtown. We finally returned via the most direct route back to the Beaver
Lake chalet. This was the only part where we had to face the unsheltered
breeze, with its -6 C wind chill. Brr, a sure premonition of things to
come. We walked just under 10 km in about 1h 45 min.
After the walk, many of the group stopped for lunch at the cafeteria on the
second floor of the Beaver Lake chalet. For those of you who have not been
to this chalet in recent years, this is not the old-style cafeteria that used to
serve mostly hot dogs and poutine. The cafeteria is outsourced to catering
company that offers a selection of healthy soups, sandwiches and salads.
Good food, although they also have prices to match.
Don't forget to check the photos on the Gallery. Our team of crack
photographers had their A-game going on Sun and produced a number of
good-looking photos.
St Bruno Nov 29 Reort by Keith
Trail map of walk
Where the heck is all the snow, last year at this time we were skiing on the Le
Petit Train du Nord, this year we have hardly had a frost. Now that is a problem
for us, as we are a xcountry ski club that hikes in the Fall before the snow
comes so our repertoire of hikes is not extensive, therefore no snow in December
causes a little flustering in the Exec. Also in December the weather if it does
not snow can be unreliable.
So what to do, well a walk at St Bruno was suggested, very accessible, assuming
the Champlain Bridge is open, a pleasant walk if not too demanding, some may say
ideal for some of our elder club members, no names no pack drill. Therefore St
Bruno it was.
Although the official bean counter did do a count he failed to pass it on to
the writer so my guess is that there was 25 bodies and a at least one bird
willing to risk their lives in the hands of the map reader. Truth be told the
Park is very pleasant and well used by the local population so much so they are
having to renovate the Information Chalet, I think it was an Italian company
doing the work, Oh. Any way we all gathered at the temporary cabins acting
as the Info Centre then away we went, anti clockwise as usual ,however we did
take in the little loop passed the mill or as we found out a fancy house
belonging to the man on the moon, sorry the Space station. The first part of the
walk has some steady climbing as we reversed the descents on one of the ski
trails, then the trail becomes more rolling as we skirted around Lac des
Bouleaux and Lac Seigneurial finally arriving, where do you think a washroom.
Hurrah.
It was here that we were entertained by a small bird, giving Monique chance to
show her photographic prowess. Finally, the last club member emerged from the
wash room, I believe the bean counter did a check before we left, and we said
good bye to our feathered friend, mind you I think he or she had their eye on
different food by then. So we ambled home with a short detour close to the
downhill ski slopes completing what turned out to be a 11km walk. I have posted
a map on the web site showing where we went, missing out the odd wrong turn,
just in case anyone wanted to know.
A significant number of the walkers finished up in St Bruno drinking coffee and
eating muffins however the location and name of this eatery is a closely held
club secret. Another fun day.
Rigaud Nov 22 Report by Keith
Trail Map of walk and profile
The lost trails, well actually the trails were never lost, just the hikers. This saga started 20 years ago when on a couple of occasions I was shown some ski trails from le Sucrerie de la Montagne to the downhill ski centre. Fast forward 20 years and I decided to find the trails. Unfortunately my only map of the trails was hand drawn, provided by Al and I soon discovered the trail markers had long gone, so my first attempt with Arthur failed. However I was determined and a discussion with Christine Buckley Moore established she knew the way. Great Christine could lead the walk however just to get an idea what it was like Tom and I with Christine completed the walk and I kept a gps plot of the way.
Unfortunately on the day of the club walk Christine was
away in England on family business, so it was left to Tom and I to lead the
hordes of club members, 27 and a couple of horses, on the walk. As I previously
said it is not as though there are no trails the problem is there are numerous
options so we had to rely on Tom’s carrier pigeon instincts and cross checking
with the gps plot, plus some classic Keith guesses to find our way. The end
result was a success, with visits to Beaver dams, no Beaver except ourselves, a
climb to the cross and views over the Ottawa river and Rigaud. Our CCB members
were thrilled to see roads they had ridden on in the summer, doesn’t take much
to get a cyclist excited. Onwards again to the potato fields, large round stones
used I am told by stone age man to make early versions of French fries, I guess
they substituted
Stone Fish (Actinopyga lecanora) for cod in the early version of
fish and chips. Quickly moving on we reached the Sanctuary, the old railway and
the ice rink. Several members took advantage of the washrooms , and to watch the
ice figure skating contest, whilst others started turning into ice whilst they
waited outside. Never mind the next stage of the walk was up hill often on
decaying wooden ladders so we soon warmed up. The trail here is narrower and at
times less distinct, still we all popped out at the burnt cabin. A short stop
for food and the return leg of the walk.
So there you are,
the lost trails found and an interesting walk to boot, I have attempted to mark
the trails (about 12 kms) on the map, check the link, and of course a TH
afterwards.
Forét Ouareau Nov 15 Report by Keith
Gps plot and profile
Well after several days and numerous bottles of wine Linda and I finally
found the trail out of Barcelona and landed back at Dorval on a cold wet
Saturday. Hurrah it will be wet Sunday so we can recover, but no, Tom’s
email said the weather would be good and the hike would be on. The CJAD 3 degree
challenge also agreed with Tom so given we had been awake since 4am we packed
our bags and went to Forêt Ouareau. Soon a group of eight had assembled ready to
do battle with part of the National trail. Although Linda and had skied here
none of us had been on the walking trails so we had no idea what to expect.
Tom’s prediction was right although overcast it was warm and dry however as we
were about to depart a mountain biker with a large pack on his back came up the
trail saying logging had churned up some of the trails and it was a trifle
boggy. Question , what induces a mountain biker to go back packing? Undaunted we
set off clutching our scrappy piece of paper called a map, we soon crossed a
river then our trail left the main trail and became a single track, at times
stoney, of the large variety termed boulders. This must be one of the most well
marked trails in the area, even a blind man with one eye would have difficulty
getting lost. It was interesting walking with plenty of climbing and view points
at 2.5 and 4.9kms, mind you the low cloud reduced the view, still our blind man
with one eye did not seem to be too upset.
After the view point at 4.9 kms we parted from the National and picked up a back
country ski trail which zigzaged down the hillside until we reached the
broad trail at the bottom. It was here we found the impact of the logging, with
the trail being a little churned up. Fortunately some hawk eyed members picked
up trail markers in the trees and we were able to rejoin the back country trail
heading westerly until we had to join a broader xcountry ski trail which passed
the refuge. Tom and I investigated the refuge which the others had appeared to
have missed, so much for hawk eyes, to discover a party was spending the week
end there The trail back to the parking lot was a little wet and could be said
to be sticky, not a problem for our bog trotting team and so the last 3 kms were
soon over and we were at the trail head.
Good walking in new country with much more to explore in the future, yes we did
find a TH check the photos also the gps and elevation plot of our hike.
Mont St Hilaire Nov 08 Report by Tom
For the second week in a row, our
head navigator, Keith, was absent from the hike. We are not sure about the
first week, but from what we can piece together last week, he was headed towards
Mont St Hilaire, but then took the wrong exit off the Dorval Circle and found
himself in front of a large transportation-related building. He went in to
check his GPS coordinates, but after a couple turns down the wrong corridors, he
ended up on a flight to Barcelona. He has since been trying to correct his
error and return home, but it looks like it might take him a few more days, what
with his Spanish-speaking skills being even less proficient than his navigation
skills.
There were 18 of us who did manage to find our way to Mont St Hilaire on a
gorgeous sunny and warmer-than-average day. The temp was 10 C when we
arrived and warmed up to 15 C by the time we left. The park was a popular
destination on this day and we were lucky to arrive as early as we did, because
the parking lot was filling up quickly.
We took our traditional photo of the group, which on this day included a couple
of friends of members who were out for their first time with the Beaver Tails.
Departing at 10:05 am, we decided to visit each of the four main lookout points,
in a clockwise order. The trails made for easy hiking, with most of the
trail surfaces being clear packed earth, with few leaves on the trail and little
mud.
Our first stop was at Burned Hill. After a short pause there, we then
proceeded to Pain du Sucre, which has the large rocky outcrop that one can climb
using a permanent cable imbedded in the rock face. This point provides the
best views west towards Montreal. We then rejoined the main trail and
continued north to the Dieppe lookout, where we stopped for 20 minutes to enjoy
our packed lunches.
The last summit too attain was Rocky. The map indicates that one has to
back track to the main trail and go further along it to get access to Rocky.
But there was much speculation about the existence of a short cut. So we
followed an uncharted, but well-established, footpath off the Dieppe summit
towards Rocky. Sure enough, we found a steep but secure approach to Rocky
and achieved our fourth summit.
We returned to the start point via the red trail that skirts along the eastern
boundary of the defined park. This took us past Lac Hertel, which featured
an impressive sight of about a thousand geese floating on the water and noisily
squawking. After making our way on the last part of the increasingly
crowded trail, we got back at 1:50 pm, after being out for 3h 45m and hiking
about 9 to 10 km. At the debriefing session at the Tim Hortons in Beloeil,
everyone agreed that it had been a spectacular day.
Sutton Nov 01 .... Report by Tom
14 Hikers Reached Round Top at Sutton
With the change of the clocks back to Standard Time during the preceding night
(and not to Daylight Saving Time as I incorrectly said in my message last week),
we took advantage of the extra hour to get an early start to Parc
d'environnement naturel de sutton (PENS), which is a nature area next to the
Mont Sutton ski centre. With the 8 am departure from the city, the 14
Beaver Tailers (8 girls and 6 guys) were able to assemble, take the group photo,
and start on the trail by just after 10 a.m. The sky was mostly cloudy but
there were occasional breaks when the sun peeked through. The temperature
was about 7 C.
We decided to take the trail up to a summit called Round Top. We had been
to Sutton twice before, in 2004 and 2005, but both times we had been stymied in
our quest to take in the view from Round Top. The first year, the summit
was attained but it was fogged in. The next year, there had been an
unexpected snowfall and the trail to Round Top was too treacherous to take.
But, four years on, we knew this was going to the day we finally got see the
sights from Round Top.
The trail is only 4.5 km long from start to finish, but there are no flat parts
and the hike is a steady climb all the way up and then a sharp descent all the
way down. There is a net gain of 450 m to the top. Many people
remarked that this hike offered a very different and more interesting terrain
compared to anything we can do closer to town. On some parts of the trail
closer to the top, fixed ropes are in place to help one get up the more
difficult sections. There was bit of mud on the trail but it was nothing a good
pair of hiking boots -- or careful footwork -- could not negotiate.
As we reached the first of the three lookouts, the sun was breaking through the
cloud cover, providing great views. This first lookout had a view of the
approaching trail below and the leading members of the group aimed their cameras
down to take photos of the trailing members -- and vice versa. The second
lookout faced south and was the largest, with a wooden railing and indications
of nearby peaks (Jay Peak was only 17 km away). We took a break here to
snack and enjoy a little warming nip from Joyce's bottle of brandy -- just
enough of a taste to toast our achievement and warm up a bit. The third
lookout, which was just a few metres higher, was the official summit of Round
Top.
We kept a steady pace on the way down and got back to the trailhead 2h 45m after
we departed. So not so long a hike in terms of time but the steep trail
provided a more concentrated effort within that time. A quick debriefing
was held around the picnic table at the foot of the trail. There was a
unanimous consensus that the trail had provided a marvelous hike, that it had
been well worth the drive, and that we should not wait another four years for
our next visit! Afterwards, 12 of us stopped at the charming
L'International Resto Café on the main street of Sutton for a light post-hike
meal and drink.
Prevost Oct 25 ....Report by Tom
Gps plot and profile
20 Hikers on the Trails of Prevost
The wind was gusting up to 30 km/h under mostly sunny skies as 20 of us prepared
for our hike on the trails of Prevost. But as is always the case on a
windy day, we don't feel the wind once we are on the sheltered trails.
We set out at 10:05 am. The temperature was 7 C and rose to 10 C by the
finish.
Most of the trails we hike at Prevost were laid out many years ago by the McGill
Outing Club (MOC). The trail markers are old and sometimes are not easy to
see. Even though we had hiked the trails several times over the years, we
had to keep a sharp eye out and follow the trail map closely to make sure we
stayed on our intended route. This time out, we decided to follow the same
route we took two years ago. It starts the same way we usually do for the
first two hours, but then instead of going further west and then south to loop
back, we go north and come back under the power lines.
The conditions were beautiful for hiking, with a carpet of gold- and orange-hued
leaves laid down on the trail. We started on the MOC trail and ascended
the smaller peak of Mount Shaw, where we got our first view of the valley.
Then it was down the other side and along past Lac du Paradis. We
proceeded underneath the lower part of the power lines and to the wooded trail
on the other side which took us up the hill. We then crossed back across
the power lines and along the top of rock face until we reached the main lookout
at Mount Belvedere. We made our main snack/lunch stop here and sat quietly
and contendly for 20 minutes while we munched and surveyed the surrounding
countryside below us.
Back on the MOC trail, we reached the junction with the WN (Wizard North) trail
and took it north until we once again reach the wide opening at the power lines.
We got slightly off track a couple of times and ended up fording a small stream
and bushwacking through some brush, but we always got back on our route quickly.
We then turned right on the 6X trail and got briefly off track again, but we
soon found our way and confirmed our position on the map when we reached pylon
94 of the power lines, which was clearly marked on the map. The rest of
the way back was straightforward enough, with a slow descent on a trail that
followed the power lines, and then a short bit on a road (Mtée Sauvage), before
we rejoined the MOC trail and returned to our starting point at 1:50
pm. Everybody agreed that it had been a marvelous walk in the woods.
We covered 10.2 km in just under four hours.
Val David Oct 18 Report by Keith
Map and profile of hike
Well nothing like blue sky and sunshine to bring out folk for a hike and so
it was on Sunday with 29 folk turning out for the Val David hike. After a
short discussion on where to go without reaching any form of consensus we set
off (Plan A)on the single track snow shoe trails below the L’Aiguille and
towards Bleue and Mount King. Now with 29 people on a single track trail the
group kind of spread out and our gallant map reader was nowhere near the front
so after missing two turn points the group reassembled and a new plan put into
action (Plan B) Off we set to Mount King where probably to the dismay of the
climbers our noisy group set up base camp below the crag to enjoy a little
refreshment. Soon however we moved on to ascend Mount King, ‘hurrah”
shouted the climbers peace at last. The ascent of Mount King was uneventful if a
little steep but soon we summited and our Pres. opted to find the elusive
viewpoint which surprisingly is not on the top but part way down the other side
.After appreciating the view, Plan B was abandoned as it would have entailed
climbing back up the trail to the top of King and so Plan C came into play. Once
again a snow shoe trail was picked up heading towards Mount Condor Ouest at
which point we turned towards Mount Condor and the viewpoint above Bleue. Much
to the relief of several ladies in our group this trail passes a rustic outhouse
and soon a line up had formed to make use of the facilities. They rest of us
settled down at the impressive viewpoint above Val David and ate our respective
lunches which for some folk was decidedly up market, not your old Cliff bar that
some of us were eating. At this point a bottle was produced’ purely for
medicinal purposes you understand’ and few of us were able to revive our
spirits with the liquid and odd strawberry soaked in it. At this time a concern
was raised that it had been an easy day and perhaps we should find a long loop
back, fortunately after a couple of minutes of Yoga meditation common sense
prevailed and we opted for Plan D finish
Sometimes we do not have to go the farthest, or climb the steepest, be out the
longest time, we just have to enjoy the day and the companionship it brings. Oh
that was a bit too deep.!!!
At the end of the day several of us walked into Val David to a café for
coffee and food which was good if somewhat slow service. There we go again
rush, rush , rush
Check out the photos to really appreciate the walk.
Oka Oct 11 Tom's report
Some people were likely busy with Thanksgiving Day
activities. How else to explain that we were only 10 people on a beautiful
fall day at Oka? Those of us who were lucky enough to be there gathered at
the parking lot on the *north* side on the highway. (Yes, the access to
that lot was open! -- I will correct the directions for next year.)
The weather was sunny with a temp of 6-8C. It was also quite breezy, but
once we were on the sheltered trails the wind was not noticeable. Indeed,
a walk on a wooded trail was the perfect outdoor activity on a gusty day like
that. We set out at exactly 10 a.m.
At first, we started to take the trail at the east end of the parking lot, but
we decided to respect the signs that said the trail was reserved for moutain
bikers and that walkers were not permitted. So we returned to the west end
of the parking lot and took the classic Calvaire trail. This path is a gentle
climb past a series of mini chapels to the lookout at the highest point where
there is another trio of small chapels. But we reached the lookout area after
only about 40 minutes of walking, so instead of diverting to the lookout, we
continued hiking on a trail to the north. We then turned east and we might
have ended up on trails that were supposed to be for mountain bikers, but we
only ever saw other hikers. We eventually turned back and retraced our
steps. This time when we passed the lookout, we climbed up to it to check
the magnificent view. We were also treated to free samples of Oka apples,
Oka chocolate and, of course, Oka cheese. After a 20-minute break there,
we made our way back down the Calvaire trail to the cars. We were out on
the trails for 2 hours 20 min, which was long enough to get some great exercise
in the fresh air.
Cap St Jacques Oct 04
This is where we finished up going
17 Walkers/Hikers at Cap St. Jacques
There was a debate among some members as to whether an outing to a flat and
"unchallenging" venue such at Cap St Jacques could be truly classified as a
"hike" as opposed to a "walk". I don't think a consensus was reached, but
regardless, 17 Beaver Tailers enjoyed an invigorating stroll through the woods
on our first Sunday outing this season.
The weather had been rainy overnight and things were still a bit foggy and misty
as we assembled in the parking lot at the entrance of Cap St. Jacques. It
was cloudy all morning but there was not a drop of rain. The temperature
was 13 C. After taking the obligatory group photo, we set out at 9:12 a.m.
We followed the Red Squirrel trail, which is the main long trail that many of us
ski on during the winter. We joked about how we could not possibly get
lost on such an established and familiar trail. However, there were
several detours and closed trail indicators, and we had often pause and get our
bearings. But we managed to more or less stick to our intended itinerary
and a grand loop of the park, which included a stop at the deserted beach.
Some people commented on how we tend to take a local spot like Cap St Jacques
for granted, but that it really does offer a nice long trail for a quiet hike
(or walk), which is all the more remarkable given its proximity to the city.
We returned to the starting point exactly 2 hours later after covering 10.3 km.
The terrain was flat to be sure, but enough people found that being on a trail
for two hours was enough of a challenge for this first hike of the Beaver Tails
season!
We were actually 14 people in our main group. At the chalet, we met up
with the 3 other club members, who arrived later and did a shorter hike.
This group consisted of Melanie, Hans and little Olivia, who at 3 1/2 months
old, is our newest and tiniest Beaver Tailer!