Trail 60 and 61 are among the shortest (maybe THE shortest) snowshoe trails in Gatineau Park. But that doesn’t mean they’re not worth checking out. These trails can be started from the Gatineau Park Visitor’s Centre, where they happen to rent snowshoes. So Trail 60 and 61 are an absolutely perfect spot to figure out if you actually like snowshoeing (you will), and want to invest in purchasing a pair for yourself.

These trails are also great for families with small kids, because you get the feeling of being in the middle of the forest without having to cover too much distance to get there.

We headed out to check out these trails after Ottawa had that whole thaw/freeze situation in January. We had heard trail conditions were poor and we didn’t want to sign ourselves up for a long trail that was going to be iced over and leave us frustrated. So I guess these trails are also a good alternative for when you want to get outside but trail conditions are less than ideal.

Trail 60 and 61 are only open in the winter.

Getting There

We parked at the Gatineau Park Visitor’s Centre. The address there is 33 Chemin Scott, Chelsea, QC. Parking there was free, and we were able to access the Visitor’s Centre to use the washrooms (although there was an outhouse at the trailhead too). There were big maps available inside of the Visitor’s Centre, as well as outside. The staff working there also had a smaller map of these trails that they provided to us. The staff seemed to know the trails and the area quite well.

We didn’t check out the snowshoe rentals because we had our own, but the cost of a rental (in 2018) was $9.00 for one hour, or $28.00 for the day. Kids’ snowshoes were available as well, and cost less!

Starting Out on Trail 60

To get to Trail 60 and 61, we first crossed over the red bridge that was south of the visitor’s centre. It was to our left when we were facing the centre.

After we had crossed the bridge and walked for 200 metres, there was a split in the trail. At this point, we turned to our left. It was another short distance (just over 100 metres) and then we came to a second split in the trail. There was a sign at this point, and we turned left. The sign noted that the Keogan Shelter was in this same direction.

In order to access the trails, we had to cross over Chemin du Lac Meech. We hadn’t actually put our snowshoes on yet, having known that this would be the case.

We crossed Chemin du Lac Meech, and hopped on Trail 1 (which is an amazing trail for biking in the summer). We put our snowshoes on as soon as we had crossed the road, and turned right into the woods after having walked for a total of .5 kilometres.

Trails 60 and 61 are both loops, with a short connecting path between the two. In order to get to Trail 61, we needed to start out on Trail 60. After traveling for 0.6 kilometres, we came to the split that began the loop for Trail 60. We chose to head to our left, which had us going uphill.

Trail 61

We arrived at the path that would bring us to Trail 61 after we had been snowshoeing for 0.9 kilometres. We turned to our left again (still going uphill!), and after 100 metres we came to the split that began the loop for Trail 61. We chose to turn right here, which had us traveling around the loop in a counter-clockwise fashion.

Making these decisions had us going slowly uphill for nearly a kilometre. Within that distance, we only gained about 60 metres of elevation, so it wasn’t too brutal, but it was certainly enough to keep us warm!

The loop for Trail 61 was just under a kilometer. When we arrived back to Trail 60, we turned left to complete that loop. For the remainder of the trail, we were mostly headed back downhill.

We arrived back at the Visitor’s Centre, having traveled a total of 3.1 kilometres. We were able to cover this distance without trying too hard in just over an hour.

Alternate Route Options

There are a few good options to make a day trip on these trails either longer or shorter, depending on your preference.

If you were looking to get some extra kilometres in, adding on the Sugarbush Trail would be a really great option. In order to do this, you could turn right at the very first split after the bridge. This would have you travelling along the Sugarbush Trail in a counter-clockwise fashion. From the first split to the turn to get to Trail 60 is 1.7 kilometres, so you can really add on a good distance before you even get to the trails.

Of course, you could also choose to complete the Sugarbush loop on your way back as well. To do so, you would just turn to your left when you arrive back to the Sugarbush Trail.

Sometimes, choosing the shorter route is the way to go. With the way Trail 60- and 61 are laid out, you have the option of only completing the loop for Trail 60. If you chose to do so, the total length of the route would only be 2.2 kilometres (versus 3.1 when you add on the loop for Trail 61).

I hope this trip report has enough info to get you there too. Let me know in the comments, or share and tag a friend to start planning your next adventure!

Map and Elevation Gain

Gear We Brought