A unique outdoor skating experience is drawing visitors from across the world. A winding ice trail through the woods gives people a very different way to experience winter. For Hannah Shapiro, this winter adventure started with a phone call to a friend. “I called my friend in San Francisco. I’m like, hey, I heard about this really cool skating trail. You want to try it? She’s like, yeah,” said Shapiro, a Chicago resident. That call led them to a skating trail cut through the forest. “This is next level. You are skating through a forest. It’s incredible. Look, the snow is falling. It couldn’t be more perfect out here,” she said. Patinage en Forêt offers six kilometers of some of the smoothest ice, winding through a forest. It is now marking a milestone year. “It’s our 10th season. We started in Christmas 2016,” said owner Dave Mayer. Mayer said the reaction from visitors is what keeps him going. “They say that something magical happens here because everybody comes back out of the forest with a big smile on. So, obviously we’re doing something right, and everybody leaves here in good humor and thanking us and giving us hugs and everything. Because they enjoyed their experience,” he said. But this is not the only forest skating trail in the Ottawa and Outaouais region. From Stittsville and Metcalfe to Gatineau, Wakefield, and Pembroke, skaters have several options to explore this winter. Ontario locations Quebec locations For some, the discovery is part of a special occasion. “It’s our 10th anniversary. So, we came up to the Wakefield Mill, and then we just so happen to find this. It’s beautiful. It’s absolutely amazing. Unlike anything we’ve ever done,” said Will and Kelly Minks. Others say Patinage en Forêt stands out compared to one of the region’s most popular skating attractions. “The Canal is wonderful. We did that yesterday, but once we got on our skates and started on this trail, this place is just magical… It’s set up perfectly, and it’s really a special place,” said Dan Ruh, a Minneapolis resident. Edgar Bieniek, who moved from Poland to Canada in 1990, said not a winter goes by without a visit. “This is incredible because you can actually skate in the woods, and that’s what makes it an incredible experience,” he said. For Shapiro, it is about more than just skating. “it’s just so beautiful. It’s absolutely beautiful. You really get meditative calm out there and just being out here. This is what winter is supposed to be,” she said.
