BLUE MOUNTAINS, Ontario — To become a Canadian citizen, immigrants must swear allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, prove their proficiency in English or French and demonstrate that they understand the symbolic significance of the hallowed maple leaf.

But the road to becoming Canadian, to truly feel this northern land’s cultural identity in one’s breakable bones, is a journey that increasingly propels immigrants down a gentle slope suitable for beginners: the snow-dusted bunny hill.

Eager to embrace the Canadian way of life, or simply to assuage the cabin fever that accompanies the long frigid months, many immigrants are jamming on their ski boots and hazarding a go at their adopted nation’s quintessential winter pastime.

“In winter there’s nothing else to do,” said Mahendran Arumugam, who moved to Canada in 2014 from the sweltering Indian state of Tamil Nadu. “There’s no point complaining about snow, so you better start enjoying it, and what better way than to start skiing.”