Cold Snap hits Eastern Ontario - Stay Indoors?

This weekend the wind chill reached -39 in the City of Ottawa, and to hear the media there was nothing for anyone to do but seal the doors, brew up some hot chocolate, and settle in front of the television set.

I disagree.

There is no question that -39 is not merely extremely cold, but potentially dangerous. At that temperature, exposed flesh can quickly freeze and frostbite is a real possibility. However, that does not mean to me that you should not go outside. It simply - but most assuredly - means that you must take the proper precautions: dress appropriately, choose a route where you have the ability to return to shelter rapidly if necessary, and monitor your condition constantly.

I actually went outdoors three times on Sunday, and walked a combined distance of more than 14km. The first was before breakfast, although not before coffee. I am fortunate to have near the house a wooded path tracing a ridge line. I spent nearly an hour tramping along this ridge; I took the above picture with my Blackberry.

Was I cold? Surprisingly, not really. I had two layers on my legs and four on my torso. I wore mittens and a toque, as well as a kerchief that I could raise over my face. My fingers felt chilled somewhat, as were my toes, and any exposed skin felt raw, particularly when I headed into the wind, but when I finished my walk I was sweating; you can see it frozen on my toque.

I am not saying that -39 temperatures should be discounted, but neither do I think that they preclude being active in the outdoors. During my walks on Sunday, I saw people walking their dogs, children sledding in a local park, and cross-country skiers (true, bundled up with so many layers that they could barely move).

So do not let the cold weather of January and February force you into hibernation. You might need to put a little more effort into what you wear, but if you chose wisely, you can still get outside and absorb more of that delicious sunshine that our body craves so much in these winter months.

No Corrections Yet Received

Happy New Year everyone. I hope that you getting outdoors and not permitting the winter weather to keep you housebound. (I did a 15km run at -25 [wind chill] this morning with the Ottawa Orienteering Club. The hardcore added another 5km through unploughed forest trails.)

One of the reasons I established this blog was to provide updates to the routes that I have profiled in Hiking Trails of Ottawa. Some might think that unnecessary, especially when the book was only published in June 2010, but you might be surprised how often something changes, even on a popular managed trail. Bridges wash out, parking lots get renumbered, and forest fires occasionally shut trails. So, with the aid of comments submitted to this blog, I thought that I might be able to update readers on any variations on the ground from what is presented in the book.

However, to this point nobody has commented on any changes that they might have noticed. It is possible that I made no mistakes in the book (and anyone who has written a guidebook will know that this is impossible), or that they have yet to be submitted. I am guessing it is the later, so I would like to remind everyone that if they notice something different on the trail from what I wrote in the book, please make a comment on any story on the blog. I will review it and post it for the benefit of all other users of Hiking Trails of Ottawa.

Enjoy your snowshoeing and cross-country skiing.

Winter Appears to have Arrived

The National Capital Region is known for its robust winter. Although Ottawa is not the coldest capital city in the world - it is only seventh, behind Ulan Batar, Astana, Moscow, Helsinki, Reykjavik, and Talin - it is sufficiently cold that one of the region's largest festivals is Winterlude, held every February.

Cross-country skiing is tremendously popular in the region. In Gatineau, the Nakkertok club has become one of the largest, by member count, in Canada. In Gatineau Park, more than 185-km (depending upon who you ask) of trail is groomed for cross-country ski. And in the Greenbelt, although no trails are groomed, skiers can be seen on almost every pathway.

Snowshoers are becoming nearly as frequent, especially in recent years as more and more people trade in their traditional design baskets for those more high tech and user-friendly. This increase in popularity is being reflected in the number of trails that are being designated for snowshoe use. In Gatineau Park, for example, there is an extensive new network that permits snowshoers to have access to both Herridge and Healey Shelters, as well as the Lac Brown Cabin.

Walkers are more likely to be found on the Greenbelt Trails, and the pathway system where it runs close to housing. In addition, whenever conditions become icy, as they did in the winter of 2009-10, many people put away their skis and snowshoes and trust in their hiking boots instead. But even when the snow is thick, many walkers can be found on trails all over the region.

All 50 routes profiled in Hiking Trails of Ottawa have the permitted snow season uses listed, including mentioning those, such as Pink Lake, where they are closed in the winter. These winter uses may be found in the "Trails at a Glance" table on page 19.

So, whatever your preferred method of winter recreation, you should find the information that will keep you active this winter. The snow may have arrived, but that does not mean you need to hibernate until next spring.