XCOttawa Webcam Shows Snow at Last
There is a sprinkling of snow in Old Chelsea according to the Gatineau Park WebCam and weather forecasters are calling for cool temperatures and a little more snow today and tomorrow.
But Wednesday is supposed to see fairly warm temperatures so who knows...
Mockups in Hand
GuideGatineau.ca is currently marked prominently as "Beta" for the combined reasons that we have yet to implement the site bilingually, and that the graphic look of the site is inherited from the technology we're using.
At least some of that is about to change. Today we've received mockups of candidate designs for a new look for GuideGatineau. We like what we see!
After we have a little time for discussions with the designer (Travis Gobeil) we're thinking of asking GuideGatineau users what they think; this is after all supposed to be a "crowd powered" site.
So, stay tuned.
A Winner But No Snow
XCOttawa has been running a contest to see who can guess when the first snow is captured on their Gatineau Park camera. They have a winner, Ross Knight. Congratulations!
But the thing is, Ross only won because his was the last guess at November 25th.
Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen anyone?
Ten Thousand Years Before Skiing
In an Ottawa Citizen article about an archeological find NCC archaeologist Ian Badgley says that high places like Gatineau Park may yield evidence of human occupation in the region 10,000 years ago and more. A site at Leamy Lake is believed to have artifacts 6,500 years old.
NCC Family Emergency
XCOttawa.ca has reposted this Citizen story about François Dallaire being a missing person now for 2½ weeks. François is the son of Michel Dallaire, a Gatineau Park manager of recreational services and someone whose work you've likely benefited from. Our hopes are for a quick and positive resolution and our thoughts are with those closest to François.
IMBA Canada sign MOU with NCC
That's a mouthfull of acronyms but it means that the International Mountain Biking Association of Canada has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Capital Commission concerning collaboration on mountain bike trail planning, rehabilitation, management and use in Gatineau Park.
This MOU had been mentioned verbally at the NCC AGM last week and now appears on the IMBA Canada blog as one of that group's listed achievements for 2009.
Owly Weather We’re Having
Two short video's on owls I've met this fall.
This one is big (a barred owl)
This one is teeny (a saw whet owl)
Paul Keddy Links Greenbelt and Gatineau Park
In the opening discussions of the NCCs National Public Forum - 2060 Vision on the Greenbelt, Dr. Paul Keddy will emphasize the importance of green spaces including the inter-connectivity of such seemingly distant land masses as the Greenbelt and Gatineau Park, according to Metro News.
More on George’s Trail
Two weeks ago GuideGatinea published a short video on the once famed George's Trail running from Kingsmere to Camp Fortune.
A document entitled The History of George's Trail, written in the early 1920s by Charles Edmond Mortureux, then President of the Ottawa Ski Club has been posted in PDF format to complement that video.
Gatineau Loppet Start Place Slightly Changed
Notice at the Gatineau Loppet Facebook page: This year, the Gatineau Loppet starting point will shift a hundred metres to behind Gatineau Park’s Relais plein air in the Mont-Bleu sports complex.