Camp Fortune - January 8, 2018

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Powder Day = Sick Day.  My first plan was to drive up to Mont Ste-Marie for an epic day.  Take note Mont Ste-Marie advertised on their website that they didn't groom all the runs, leaving the snow free. More hills should do this! whats with all the grooming on a epic powder day.  Anyway by the time I dug out of my driveway and got out of Ottawa it was already 8:30 and I needed to be back in town by 2. So Camp Fortune it was.  Made it to Skyline by 8:45, got first chair. Though most runs had been groomed there was lots of fresh powder was on top, in fact the snow was picking up and it would snow heavy throughout the day. Free refills. First tracks were on Heggtveit which opened the day before.  Swan Dive is not yet open but with more snow in the forecast for Saturday it should be soon.  Sparks had...

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Camp Fortune - January 1, 2018

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Took in a few afternoon hours at Camp Fortune. January 1st has always been a good day for skiing as its generally pretty quiet. Today it was really quiet since the high was like -20c! The skiing was good though with well groomed runs of hard packed snow.  Fortune has been busy making snow all week. Tomorrow Slalom opens. Upper Canadian and Chute will open later this week. Best runs of the day were Bud Clark and Sparks.  Happy New Year!   

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Camp Fortune - December 26, 2017

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  The best Boxing Day deal today was going skiing. It was fairly clear that the majority of people you would have expected to be skiing had chosen to go shopping instead, leaving the mountain in pristine condition and contributing to no line-ups at the lifts. Thank you! As yesterday was Christmas Day and Camp Fortune was closed, the snow and conditions today were excellent. The fresh snow from the recent snowfall made the slopes perfectly soft and smooth. In fact, the only hard spots or ice I found was in the steepest portions of the expert trail Bud Clark. The rest of the mountain was offering the fresh fluffy stuff, with several spots to sneak in some first tracks. The skiable domain continues to grow, and already the Valley side is almost completely open, with the exceptions of Slalom and Duffy. Meech is in great shape with Paradise. It's sister trail,...

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Camp Fortune - December 22-23rd, 2017

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I skied a double header at Camp Fortune to check on conditions and catch the opening of the Skyline side.  Friday I skied in the afternoon and Saturday in the morning. Marshall opened on Friday. Bud Clark, Lower Canadian and Sparks opened on Saturday.  Snow was being blown on Allen's Alley on Friday and on Saturday the guns were moved to Slalom. Expect them both to open soon.  Clifford, Paradis and Sparks had the best snow conditions.  Bud Clark and Marshall were a little choppy from the man-made snow gravel.  Lower Canadian on Skyline was decent though. The right side of Clifford was being used for racing so its iced up a bit.  Crowds were small for the beginning of the Christmas break and heavy snow began to fall on Saturday. I think we ended up getting like 7-10cms! so Sunday should be great.  Happy Holidays, ski on!  Marshall with Alexander and MacDonald in the background.  The last few...

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Camp Fortune - November 26, 2017

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When the weather starts getting colder and colder, most skiers start counting the days till their favorite mountain opens. Some start counting right from the last day of the previous season (spoiler... that's me). The wait is over, the countdown is at 0, today was my first day out on the slopes for the new season. While it may only be my first day out, it is the third day of the season at Camp Fortune and conditions are amazing. Like past years mother nature having up till now only provided cold weather and a fairly valueless snowstorm, the snowmaking experts at the mountain took up the challenge and now have Pineault open to the joy of skiers and snowboarders. The snow surface is firm with some loose snow on top (like icing on a cake). I couldn't have asked for more, as the snow allowed me to open things up with some...

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Camp Fortune


Camp Fortune is the closest ski mountain to the cities of Ottawa and Gatineau, at only a 15-minute drive away. The mountain features a wide variety of trails, spread over 3 distinct mountainsides. Each side offers something different, from the family atmosphere to more challenging steep and higher speed trails, to long intermediate cruisers, Camp Fortune has it all, with 27 trails, 13 of which are open for night skiing, served by 8 lifts, consisting of 4 quad chairlifts and 1 triple. The mountain also features 2 base chalets, offering options for where you want to start and end your day. Located in Gatineau Park, Camp Fortune offers great ski conditions all season long thanks to snowmaking coverage on almost all trails. The Mountain and the Ski Trails The Valley is the main side of Camp Fortune, and is home to the large main chalet and all the services of the mountain. As its name implies, this area is formed inside a Valley with skiing on three of its sides. Starting with the Pin...

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Camp Fortune - April 14, 2017

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Here we are, at the end of the ski season in the Ottawa-Gatineau region. With the snow nearly all melted from the city and the heavy rain received over the past week, you could easily think that the skiing is over. This is definitely not the case. In fact, I can't remember the last time I skied at Easter at Camp Fortune where they had this much snow, and the skiing conditions were this great. Even more surprising, the Valley is still open, with Pineault and Allen's Alley, in addition to the trails on Skyline.  I started skiing shortly after opening at 9am. The first trail I tried was Heggveit, the classic double diamond of Camp Fortune. Wow, what a ride. The snow was already softening out and the slope was impeccable. Just a true joy to experience. Thanks to the spring conditions and the more forgiving snow, the imposing wall of...

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Camp Fortune - April 9, 2017

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Wow what a great ski day!. 15c by midday, loads of snow coverage and killer spring skiing.  Skyline and the Valley were both open with a dual slalom race on slalom. Even Swan Dive was still skiable with all natural coverage. Snow was corn but not slush, fast and fun. 

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Camp Fortune - March 26, 2017

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We raced up to Fortune in the hope of getting a bunch of runs in before the freezing rain hit.  We were rewarded with perfect grooming and no lines.  Though a little colder then the gorgeous day on Saturday I suspect the snow was better today. Heggtveit was our number one pick and we GS styled down it half a dozen times to get the blood flowing.  The rest of the runs were in great shape with only Swan Dive closed on the Skyline side.  I'm hoping Fortune can extend the season to the Easter weekend, fingers crossed.  Heggtveit in all its groomed glory   The Valley Lower section of Clifford The park We almost got first tracks!  The Chute and Canadian were is everyone. Don't pack up your skis yet.  Skyline Lift Craigsmarc tree run next to Heggtveit Lower Canadian 

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Camp Fortune - March 14th, 2017

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Nothing like night skiing in a blizzard! Wow was it windy at the top of Skyline but the skiing was great.  I arrived around 7pm and we had about 6cm of fresh snow on top of hard pack.  Just enough snow to the crust.  I stuck to Skyline and I have to say I have never seen Bud, Canadian and the Chute so well groomed. Not a single bump or mogul anywhere so smooth and flat. This must be because of the Ontario Provincial U14 races this Wednesday and Thursday. Anyway the skiing was wicked and I'm glad we got that storm, this morning Camp Fortune is saying close to 20cm fell and its still snowing.  I didn't take many pictures as my hands froze pretty quick out of the gloves.  BTW the snow is light and fast not your typical wet March snow at all.  Enjoy the fresh!

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Camp Fortune - February 22, 2017

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Last week we had almost 50cm of fresh snow on the ground.  Since Saturday its been a total meltdown.  We've lost over 20cm of snow pack and the worse is yet to come.  Regardless the snow base is holding out at Camp Fortune.  I went up night skiing to check on the conditions.  The snow is soft and fast but not slushy and there is no ice.  I was getting depressed at the winter meltdown but Fortune helped kill my blues.  All the light runs were open and it was a beautiful night for skiing with a temperature of about 4 C.  I'm crossing my fingers that it will get cold next week and snow!

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Camp Fortune - February 13, 2017

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Just got home from a fantastic morning at Camp Fortune. About 30cms dropped over Sunday afternoon into the night resulting in some beauty powder for Monday morning. I grabbed my fatties and made it to the hill for almost first chair.  Heggtveit, The Chute and Duffy were left un-groomed for the powder hounds.  Craigsmarc and Swan Dive were busy with "free riders" including Craig himself.  Got in a bunch of runs on Heggtveit and the Chute before they became chopfest.  The snow was light though so even the fresh made moguls were easy enough. Went over to the Valley later, it was a ghost town, but lots of powder was to be found on Duffy and in the trees between the runs. Killer morning, give me more 2017!

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Camp Fortune - January 14, 2017

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Trying my best to get to the mountain early, I arrived at 8:20am. The morning temperatures were quite cold, -20'c with a windchill of -25'c. Dressing appropriately was key. The frigid air did not stop people from coming out in numbers, although it was clear that people were taking frequent breaks to stay warm. Despite the warm weather of the past week and a few days of rain, the mountain is in great shape. It appears that nothing can upset this perfect season. For this visit at Camp Fortune, all trails except for Alexander and MacDonald (on the T-Bar side) were open and perfectly groomed.  North American, an intermediate trail located on the Meech side of the mountain, was open. This trail is mostly a natural snow trail, so it is often not open for skiing, especially when I have visited in the past. Similar to Paradis next to it, it is a long cruiser...

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Camp Fortune - January 1st, 2017

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Well its the new year and I headed back to Camp Fortune with my sister and nephew. I was up night skiing on Dec. 29th after 10cms of snow and now I'm back after 15cms yesterday!.  The conditions of course were great, fresh corduroy made with packed powder in the valley and no lines. We were lucky enough to get first tracks on Paradis and North America which opened for the first time this year.  I didn't get a chance this time to hit Skyline which still only has Bud Clark, Sparks and Lower Canadian open.  Not sure what the delay is with opening up everything considering all the snow but Fortune must have some master plan.  Both N. America and Marshall had some nice un-groomed sections of powder.  Also a couple tree runs "Glades" were open and filled with fresh snow. Ski on and Happy New Year.

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Camp Fortune - December 24, 2016

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Well on a snowy Christmas Eve I drove up to Camp Fortune to get first tracks. The snow was coming down pretty hard and almost 10cm of fresh were on the ground. I brought my fat skis figuring they would work great in heavy wet snow. Skyline was open for the first time this year with Sparks, Bud Clark, and Lower Canadian open.  I started in the valley as I needed to pick up my night pass, then got the first chair on the Pineault lift and headed down to Skyline. The conditions were perfect. This would be one of the best days skiing at Fortune since that 50cm snow storm last year.  No lineups no crowds you could ski onto the lifts. After several snow filled runs down Bud and Sparks I headed back to the Valley. The cross over was sloooowww.... but I made it.   Had fun on Clifford...

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Camp Fortune - December 18, 2016

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After a week of snow storms, the mountain is in phenomenal condition. It was hard not to be excited on the way up to the mountain this morning. All along the drive and upon arriving, it was snowing. Camp Fortune currently has 3 trails and 2 lifts open. On the Valley side, they have Allen's Alley and Pineault. The Meech side is also now open with Paradis, the longest trail at Camp Fortune with over a mile in length. Conditions everywhere were excellent, the base was firm and the surface had an inch of fresh snow as a cover.  Lift lines were fairly short, with waits of less than 3 minutes on the Valley and mostly direct to the lift on Meech. Pineault. Allen's Alley. We are definitely experiencing the best pre-Christmas conditions in a long while, especially in contrast to last season where we did not have a White Christmas. There...

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Camp Fortune - November 27, 2016

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My passion for skiing started many many years ago, on the slopes of Camp Fortune, so it was only right that the new ski season for me would start here too. The Quebec ski season finally began this past Tuesday at Sommet Saint-Sauveur, with Mont Tremblant following on Thursday. Camp Fortune launched their new season yesterday and is the third to open in the province and first to open in the Ottawa-Gatineau region. With only two nights of snowmaking, Pineault, one of the mountain's main beginner trails is now open. Ski conditions were great for the early season. Complete coverage over the main part of the trail, with soft and forgiving snow, perfect to help get you back on the slopes and have fun. Lift lines were less than a minute and most often zero. The weather was hovering around 0'c, and had some light snow flurries. Park jibbers were happy to find several boxes, rails...

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Camp Fortune - December 13, 2015

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Exactly two weeks after my first visit this season to Camp Fortune, I found myself back on its slopes. Having loaded my gear into the car the night before, there was no excuse not to arrive early. The mountain opened at 9am, but I left home at 8am, being sure to be among the first to enjoy the snow. As I only live 12 minutes away, you can imagine I arrived quite early. Luckily the chairlifts were already spinning by the time I was all set to go and was treated to an earlier start than anticipated.  This weekend, the mountain had two trails open, Pineault (beginner) and Paradis (intermediate), offering skiing on two sides of the resort. Paradis is the longest trail at Camp Fortune, and one I very much enjoy. It has long straight sections with several turns and consistent slopes. Conditions were firm with a good base, great for carving and enjoying some...

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Camp Fortune - November 29, 2015

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Here we are, the beginning of the ski season in the National Capital Region. While it is no longer the first day for Camp Fortune (that was Thursday), you can definitely feel the excitement and anticipation of getting your own ski season started. The Pineault quad chairlift and trail were open with a good base and coverage. Yes it did rain on Friday, but no it did not have any effect on the snow or the mountain. Ski conditions were right up with what you'd expect mid-season, which is nothing short of great and certainly a fantastic way to start the winter. Score : Camp Fortune 1 - Mother Nature 0. Heading inside the spacious lodge, and with the opening only minutes away, I strapped on my ski boots and clunked my way out to the lift. Riding up the mountain, you can clearly see the contrast between nature and human passion and...

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Camp Fortune - January 24, 2015 - Glades and Ski Cross

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Another weekend upon us, another ski day arrived. Finally a reprieve from the cold frigid weather, it was time to load up the equipment into the good old four-wheel drive and head up to the ski mountain.   Conditions were amazing all over the mountain. With almost all trails open, the skiable terrain at Camp Fortune is big and vast. On this visit, I took the opportunity to do some exploring. Despite being the place at which I first learned ski at age 5 with my parents, I still had not yet experienced the glades that appear on the trail map. There are three official glades for you to choose from. One at the top of Skyline (following the start of Sparks), another between Skyline and Meech, and the third to the side of Marshall in the Valley. It was this trail, called Off-Piste that I chose to explore. Always fun,...

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