Tuesday morning and the sun is shining and it is glorious outside with the new fallen snow. I have a ski date with G to go to the Canmore Nordic Centre. We met G in Bhutan when our tour group encountered another Windhorse tour group and the folks were from Calgary and Canmore. I asked G if she XC skied, which she did, so we made a plan to ski together when I was in Canmore. We choose the Nordic Centre because, with the quantity of new snow, the trails in the National Park will not be tracked.
The Canmore Nordic Centre was built for the 1988 Winter Olympics. It has 65 km of trails tracked for both classic and skate skiing from beginning to expert levels. Click on “Grooming Status Report” on the website and there is a real time GPS grooming report. I check and see that the groomers are out plying the trails to create perfect tracks. On the bottom of the “Trail Conditions” page, there is a map and brochure. It is always a good idea to review your route prior to skiing as there are some expert trails a beginner skier would not want to attempt.
Wednesday I ski the Nordic Centre gliding along the whole Bow Trail and Banff Trail. It is glorious as the sun is shining, the warmth penetrating my layers across my back. The snow, making fascinating shapes in the trees, decorates the forest as for a celebration. On Tuesday morning there were not too many skiers out and we felt quite secluded on some sections. On Wednesday there were schools groups out and more skiers, but since the Nordic Centre is so large, even with more people near the lodge, the Bow Trail was very lonely towards the outer reaches. Being in the wilderness so close to civilization is extraordinary.
As Murray absconded with the vehicle on Wednesday, I resort to a taxi for the trip to and from the Nordic Centre. I use Apex Cabs (403- 609-0030) as their fare is $12 rather than $15 quoted by another company. The driver is friendly and chatty and I enjoy the rides up and back. He is from London, England, came to visit for a week 7 years ago, loved the mountains so much he moved here with his wife. If you ever need a cab in Canmore, I recommend using Apex Cabs.
Another glorious cross country ski outing in Canmore, in the Rocky Mountains.