Well packed trail. We started just before 10am. Met very few people on the hike in. We did pass many people headed on as we hiked out. Go early if looking for the solitude on your wander.
★
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Warm humid weather really brought out the bugs. The Panorama Point / Grand View loop is soon to be incorporated into the official Gatineau Park trail network. That should improve the hiking experience (except for the bugs) but will inevitably result in more traffic on the trail. The viewpoints are spectacular, especially PP, and the trail is pretty easy, no more than a Medium by Gatineau Park standards. Still, there was enough climbing that this 65 year old had to stop a couple of times. My 36 year old son had no such difficulties.
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24 degrees and low humidity made for a comfortable hike until I reached the woods where it became quite buggy. I was on a timeline, so I had to turn back before reaching the Gallery, my usual destination for this route.
★
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Presque pas de neige mais super . Pas
De neige depuis le 26 déc et l’on est le 4 janvier
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Pas de Patin ce matin avec Raymond, Monique et Denis Turbide et Natalie . De P5 jusqu’au pied de la Black
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A new route for me today. Rather than follow the crowds up the official Luskville falls trail, I opted to try the trail that starts at the west end of the parking lot. The trail is closed because a bridge over Luskville creek is out, but the water level was low enough that it was easy to cross. The trail goes west along mostly level ground until it takes a sharp right towards the Eardley escarpment. The climb to the top is less rocky and steep than the main trail, but you wind up in the same place, the old Fire Tower. From there I descended to the parking lot via the main trail. Weather was a cool but seasonable 6 degrees and the sky was overcast.
★
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Did the trail 73 loop around Lac Philippe in the northern Gatineau Park. I started in parking lot p20 and traveled clockwise. This turned out to be a wise decision because it started raining at about the halfway point, which was after the difficult part of the trail. If I had gone the opposite way I would have been slogging over the hills in the rain. Fall colours are nearly over in this part of the park, most of the leaves are on the ground. Temperature was about 12 degrees. There are several beaches on the west shore of the lake, but all of them are closed at this time of year. Not many people were on the trails today.
★
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Perfect autumn weather: sunny 16 degrees. Recent rains made part of the trail muddy, but that is par for the course for the Wolf Trail. I walked it in the counter clockwise direction, which I find to be more challenging due to the steep climbs. The trail was very busy for a weekday and the fall colours are just starting to show.
★
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Enjoyed the cooler weather. 18 degrees at the trailhead. It rained for about 20 minutes, which freshened up the mud created by heavy rains earlier in the week. The South Window is arguably a better lookout than its better known neighbor, The Gallery.
If you are looking for fall colours, it is still too early.
★
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Started at P5 on a pleasant day. 21 degrees, partly sunny. Took an unofficial trail that merges with trail #1 about halfway up the Penguin climb. Turned right at the top and walked the east branch of Skyline trail. There is an old poorly marked trail that branches off right where Skyline turns back on itself. The old maps call it “Bill’s Trail”. It runs right down to Meech Lake road and is very steep and rocky. The trail is mostly used by downhill mountain bikers and as a result is very eroded and in poor condition for hiking. Not recommended. I returned to P5 by walking along the parkways and trail #1.
I knew that Bill’s Trail was unlikely to be a hidden gem, and I was correct. But I had to try. 😀
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A short but rugged hike. Great sweeping vista from the lookout point (the Gallery). Few bugs today. The temperature moved from 19 to 26 in the two hours I was out there.
★
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Cross Loop is our go to trail in all seasons. The distance is comfortable. The destination cabin is perfect.
★
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Once again I was defeated by the heat and humidity. It was 29 at the trailhead. The trail itself is not heavily used and is a bit overgrown. The trail will be closed next year (2022) by the National Capital Commission, the government agency that is responsible for Gatineau Park. The good news is that some of the other “unofficial” trails in this area will be upgraded and brought into the main trail system.
Will have to try this hike again in the fall.
★
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Temperature was 21 degrees and the bugs were light. A pleasant hike over familiar terrain.
★
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I had to tap out short of the Yellow Box. Too hot (30 degrees) to continue and was starting to get dizzy. I recommend this trail, but you have to be physically fit.
★
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Weather was warmer than I expected. Mosquitoes are out in full force. There is also a plague of caterpillars in the woods. A lot of green leaf litter and pine needles on the forest floor, and the you can hear the caterpillars dropping to the ground. Sounds like rain.
Track is incomplete. It may have lost connection to GPS satellite. Not sure why it gives up the ghost when that happens, but I had to turn the tracker back on manually after I noticed that it had stopped.
★
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Cool temperatures and a breeze suppressed most of the bugs, which are usually very ferocious at this time of year. Trails were unusually dry, as we have had much less rain than usual for May.
★
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C’est un sentier demandant beaucoup de montée, boueux parfois mais très
Beau début de floraisons.
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Wonderful sunny weather, just above the freezing mark. The cool temperature helped to firm up the footing on the trail, which as usual for this time of year featured a mixture of mud and ice. Traction aids recommended. I love my Yak Traks . The view from King Mountain was superb, with none of the haze that you see in the summer. No bugs yet, another welcome bonus at this time of year.
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Easy ski trail suitable for all skill levels. Local nickname is “The Doldrums”, which tells you all you need to know. The scenery is nice.
★
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Sentiers de Asticou - 67-66-68-boucle 76 très beaux sentiers. À l’abri du vent .
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Du stationnement Gamelin et plus loin de l’entrée Mackenzie King. Des sentiers impeccables , -7 degrés .
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Le circuit le P3 Gamelin aujourd’hui était excellent.
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Didn’t reach my objective, the Haynob lookout, but not for the usual reasons of bad weather or adverse trail conditions. I was approaching the climb up the Eardley escarpment when a dog trotted down the trail towards me. I did the usual meet and greet, and expected the dog’s owners to be close behind him. No humans in sight. I continued on my way and dog fell into place in a perfect heel position. Each time I stopped, the dog would sit and look up,at me, just like in a dog training handbook. I have never owned a dog that was so well trained, and here I am a stranger and this dog was behaving as if I was his beloved master.
I checked his collar, and he had a tag that identified him as a guide dog for the blind. I immediately panicked, thinking that there must be a lost blind person on the trail. Then I noticed that he wasn’t wearing a working harness, so I calmed down because the dog was probably on his day off. Still, he was a valuable animal and I didn’t want him following me down the trail. I turned back towards the trailhead and when we arrived at a fork in the trail, he shot down the other fork, nose to the ground.
I figured he had sniffed out his humans, so I resumed my hike. But 15 minutes later he crashed through the bush and was back at my side. He whined softly as I continued on my way as if he was trying to tell me something. Once again I turned back to the trailhead, determined to take him back to the parking lot where I could probably reunite him with his humans.
Halfway back, he took off like a shot again down the trail. This time I followed him. Eventually, I caught up with him where he finally found his humans, who seemed relieved to see him again.
By this time I was pretty close to the parking lot, so I called it a day and went back home.
★
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Wolf Trail always provides a good hiking experience and today was no exception. Some sections were muddy, but that is par for the course at this time of the year. Parking at the trailhead (P13) is often a problem, but there was plenty of room at 9am on a Thursday. By the time I got back the parking lot was nearly full. I took a brief detour onto an unofficial trail where I came upon an unmarked viewpoint. The weather was seasonable, about 6 degrees Celsius. COVID-19 restrictions were in effect, so the loop had to be traversed in a counter clockwise direction. That was fine, it’s my preferred direction anyway. I like a hard(ish) climb at the beginning of a hike rather than a tricky descent at the end.
★
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This is one of the busiest trails in Gatineau Park. It starts with a moderately difficult climb beside a seasonal waterfall. The trail is well marked. Hikers are encouraged to carry a rock from a pile at the base up to the top of the cliff and leave it there. Erosion in reverse. Excellent viewpoint at the top of the climb. The hike to the old Fire Tower is fairly flat. The tower is well preserved but is no longer in use. At the tower, I branched off to a trail unofficially known as the Escarpment top trail. I only followed it for a short distance before turning back the way I came. A COVID-19 restriction was in effect, meaning that the loop was one way.
★
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Départ de camps Fortune le long du ruisseau , Trail 9, 3,32. Très beau et facile.
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Cold and rain kept the crowds down on this normally busy trail. Easy hike, but the main attraction is the ruins not the trail per se.
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Easy hike in bright sunny but cool weather. Parking lot P10 is closed for maintenance so I parked in P9. Trail 32 between P9 and P10 has been totally rebuilt and is no longer as rugged as before. Trail 32 west of P10 is wet but passable. This was my first time hiking this route, and was surprised when I heard several gunshots. At first I thought it might be hunters, but it turned out to be the Biathlon training center. I returned to the car via the Camp Fortune downhill ski complex. It’s not in operation yet but there were plenty of mountain bikes and other hikers in the area.
★
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The climb at the start was a bit too intense for my liking. Fortunately someone left a rope at a key section. So instead of risking the climb back down, I followed the trail across the top of the escarpment and joined the main Luskville Falls trail. It was a lucky break for me, as some of the views along the escarpment were breathtaking even though they are not marked as viewpoints on the map.
★
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Nice level approach from the road is a good warmup. I turned left towards the “Alpine Cabin” but after much scrambling along the base of the cliff I was unable to find a safe route to the top. (I am an old guy, so perhaps someone younger and fitter would have better luck). I reversed course and and headed up the well travelled eastern branch of the trail. The trail was easy to follow until the branch that takes you up to the Gallery lookout. Beyond that point I needed to use my GPS to follow the trail. It was worth the effort, as the view from the South Window was spectacular. The trail follows the top of the escarpment for a distance, a relief after all that climbing. After that, the route was all downhill. I tried to descend from the Alpine Cabin but once again could not find the trail. Once again I decided to take the safe route (I am old, and hiking solo).
★
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From P12 to Chalet Western then 9, 3, 21, and 2 back to P 12. A lovely hike with Matthew Bol, in gratitude and celebration of friendship.
★
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Level 3 hike. First part of Faris creek is quite challenging and cannot be done when there is a lot of water around. Lots of climbing, great views over Ottawa valley, trails faint so keep your eyes open. Park atLusk Falls parking and walk down road to trail head. With NCC being serious bureaucrats they are likely to start tickets at trailhead.
★
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This is a classic Gatineau Park hike. Some light climbing, beautiful views on King Mountain.
★
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Trail is routed through a swampy area which made it hard to follow. We ended up bushwhacking unit we reached trail 56. Lookouts were only so-so. We returned to the road via trail 56.
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The head of the trail is almost invisible from the road and it is not marked or maintained by Gatineau Park staff. The trail does not appear on any official trail map published by the NCC. Nevertheless, it exists and is actually pretty easy to follow if you ate using Gaia GPS. I turned around at the Grand View overlook, but if you continue on you eventually reach Panorama Point.
★
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A bit tricky to find the trailhead and, as you can probably tell from my meandering track, the trail was tricky to follow until I was well along it. The trail is not on any of the Gatineau Park trail maps published by the NCC but it is visible on Gaia GPS Topo map. On the ground, the trail is not so visible and I had to rely on my GPS to follow it. The grades are fairly easy, and the mosquitoes were thick. The viewpoint is worth the effort, Panorama Point offers the best vista that I have ever seen in Gatineau Park.
The trail is neither marked nor maintained. That may explain why it is not on the trail maps they sell to park visitors.
2021-06-05. This trail is now part of the Gatineau Park plan. In 2022 it will be formally incorporated into the official trail network.
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This is an easy trail. Some undulation in the trail but easy to follow, wide, shared with bikes which can be an issue. Some spots to stop for a swim if weather warrants
★
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Good hike. Moderate difficulty. During this crazy time we must park at P6 ($) but nice views, waterfalls, some road walking on parkway currently closed for pandemic. Can add on walk around Pinks lake which would add 3 or 4 km. It is a nice walk. Protected lake.
★
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Very busy trail with lots of boardwalks and stairs. Safe for young children, but not stroller friendly. A good short workout if you are a trail runner. Best to go when it is not busy, it is probably the most popular trail in Gatineau Park.
★
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Walked this trail in fall of 2018 - allowing for deviations around muddy trail sections and diversions to photograph fungus, this is about 9.0km in 3hr45mins, including a stop for lunch at the top. If you take it in anti-clockwise direction the northern section of the loop is steep and rocky and muddy in sections. Rewarding views over Ottawa Valley from the summit and the walk back to Lac Meech is much more gentle.
I would rate this one as challenging/rewarding. Probably for this reason, there was not much traffic on the trail, but as Australians we are not used to hearing oncoming (North Americans) from 100m - lol.
★
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