Ottawa residents making the most of ski season, despite lack of snow

Some ski trails showing green A lack of snowfall has posed problems for some ski-lovers in the nation’s capital. CTV's Joshua Marano reports.

A lack of snowfall has posed some problems for some ski-lovers in the nation's capital.

This winter, the city has seen some heavy snowstorms but nothing consistent enough to leave ideal ski conditions.

At Gatineau Park, the National Capital Commission (NCC) has worked to pack whatever snow it can on the trails for cross-country skiers, along with other winter sports.

For Joanne Crisp, who made the trip from Ottawa, the conditions were perfect.

"I just love being out in nature. There's something about being in the woods and to be surrounded by trees," Crisp said.

"It's so close to the city, but it feels like you're the only person out there today."

Dozens of people made their way across the trails on Sunday, spending the day on their skis and snowshoes.

"It seems in the city, there's not much snow and there's just enough in the parkways to make it fun," Crisp added. "Today is probably the best day of all of them."

At the Kanata Nordic Ski Club, brown patches on the ground have caused concerns for skiers, many of whom are taking their first lessons of the season.

"We've had a long-standing tradition of learning to ski programs for 30 plus years," said club administrator Ardeth Kirkham. "People are waiting, they've signed up, they want to get going."

For days, volunteers have been grooming the best spots around the grounds looking for whatever spots of snow they could find.

For the kids who came out to enjoy, they were just happy to be back on their skis.

"It was a lot of fun with my friends because we got to do skate skiing which I really like," said 10-year-old Jasmine Arjang. "It was really nice to get out there and go back skiing."

Ottawa is expected to see one to three centimetres of snow on Monday morning and more is expected later in the week.

The conditions aren't discouraging many who've been excited to hit the trails.

"I think they couldn't believe that we were actually going to be able to do some skiing," Kirkham said,

"If you look around and you find the patches and you put out a plan, you can make it happen."