Gatineau Park

History of the Ottawa Ski Club

by Herbert Marshall

Chapter 6 - Intra—Club Organizations

From its beginning the success of the Ottawa Ski Club depended to a large extent on the voluntary help given by its members. Enthusiasm for the promotion of a grand open air sport, improvement of the facilities, and the sheer fun of working in the woods with pleasant companions, led volunteers to furnish labour and time freely. This was true until recent years when the scale of the Club's operations became so large that much of the work of opening and maintaining new hills could only be done by hiring help and using mechanized equipment. Even so, voluntary work is still a prominent part of the Club activities.

This tradition of voluntary effort is a matter of record. The first ski jumping towers of the 1910 Club were erected by enthusiasts of the time. As mentioned in Chapters 3 and 4, major tasks of the re-organized post-war Club in the 1920s were the building of lodges and trails. Later hill development became the main activity of the volunteer labourers. To single out individuals or groups is not our intention here, but the following tribute surely is appropriate. It was published early in 1935 in the Ski Bulletin of Boston, Mass.:

The Ancient and Honourable Institution of the Night Riders was founded in 1924 by Captain T.J. Morin, a veteran of many campaigns, strict disciplinarian and trail-maker extraordinary of the Ottawa Ski Club, who imbued the Company with an esprit-de-corps of such strength that it has subsisted to this day. The Night Riders are run pretty much on the lines of the French Foreign Legion, with the difference, however, that while the Legionnaire gets free board and lodgings, a fat pay of 4 sous a day and his tobacco at half price, the Night Riders get nothing but the opportunity to work for their Club. They pay for their transportation to the hills unless they prefer to cover by ski, as they often do, the ten miles between the gates of the City and the headquarters of the Club. They pay their membership fees, just like other members, they supply their own food upon pain of starvation and until recently, paid for their own bunks. Lately, however, the Club has relented to the extent of providing them with a free bunk in one or other of the three bunk houses donated for the purpose by three philanthropic gentlemen: Hon. Wm. Phillips, formerly the United States Minister to Canada and now Under-Secretary of State in the United States government, himself an ardent skier, who took a great interest in the maintenance of trails and the welfare of the boys who looked after them; H.S. Southam, Editor of the Citizen and F.H. Plant, ex-mayor of Ottawa.

From 1924 to 1932 the Night Riders attacked the thick bush in every direction within a three mile radius of Camp Fortune armed with machetes, brush hooks, saws, axes and dynamite. The silence of the woods was broken by the clamor made by busy men intent upon imposing their will upon them to create a skiers' paradise. In this eight year period fifteen miles of trails between Old Chelsea, Kingsmere and the Western Lodge with Camp Fortune as the hub, opened the woodland beauty to hordes of skiers and provided a complex of trails which tested the stamina and skill of the members far beyond the demands of the past.

When in 1932 Captain Morin changed his interest to open hills the Night Riders followed him with enthusiasm. Expert woodsmen were hired to denude the long hill which became the first slalom hill. After the removal of the trees a vast amount of work remained including the removal of stones, filling in of hollows, the removal of stumps and a general smoothing out of the hill. After 1932 the work of improving the hill and widening it was carried on for several years by the Night Riders. Up to 1955 that organization performed a multitude of tasks. Joe Morin, after 22 years of service with the Club under C.E. Mortureux resigned. Others, imbued with his spirit, followed as captains of the Night Riders. These included George Brittain, Ted Burpee, Bill Irving, Geo. Grossman, Dave Midgeley, Bill Jenkins and John Clifford.

In the Year Book of 1944-45 the following appears:

Splendid services have again been rendered by the elite corps, the Night Riders, under the leadership of their energetic and resourceful Captain, Bill Irving, and his lieutenants, Elmer Cassel and Fred Dixon. Originally bush whackers, the Night Riders have developed into trail finders, first aid men, builders and engineers. They have saved the Club many hundreds of dollars by rebuilding the Pink Lake Lodge, and their bunk-houses, the Southam and Plant lodges; by intelligent grading and clearing work they have doubled the capacity of some of the best hills around Camp Fortune and greatly reduced the risk of accidents. They have also greatly improved the ski tow on the Slalom Hill. The Night Riders may justly be proud of their work.

There was certainly no lack of projects calling for the aid of the Night Riders. During these years while the main current of interest was flowing more and more in the direction of open hills there was a determined effort to revive the lagging interest in the jumping aspect of the sport. The Night Riders performed prodigies of work on the new jump hill. The Year Book of 1950-51 stated in the President's remarks:

“I should like to pay tribute to the Night Riders, the Trail Riders, to the energetic jumpers and all the racing fraternity who worked on the trails and jump. While we had to hire bulldozers and compressors to blast and remove rock, the vast improvements which have been made would not have been possible without the voluntary assistance of the many. On some week-ends the jump hill was crowded with workers. John Clifford deserves special mention for his supervision of the whole project.”

In the above paragraph a new organization, ‘The Trail Riders’ was mentioned for the first time and thereby hangs a tale. About this time the voluntary work necessary to keep all facilities in top working order was proving to be too much for the Night Riders alone. Moreover that corps of workers had developed an additional interest which was making increasing demands on their time. This had its origin in the days when they had earned the sobriquet ‘The Night Riders of the Canyon’. A legend had grown up that after putting the Canyon in shape for the week-end influx of skiers the Night Riders often vied with each other in midnight runs at full speed down the steep slopes of this run. Technical skill became a prominent objective and eventually there emerged from this group many of the Club’s outstanding racers. John and Harvey Clifford, the Tommy brothers, John Fripp, Alec McDougal, Dave and Amold Midgeley, Geof. Crain, all were members at some time or other of this organization. For them the open hills had an irresistible attraction. They were constantly on the lookout for improvements in hills and even new ones which would prove more challenging from the racers’ point of view and this led in 1949-50 to the establishment of a downhill run on the side of King Mountain, the most difficult until the development of the Skyline area. From the viewpoint of some this preoccupation with open hills and downhill runs had its drawback because time did not permit of thorough care of the trails as well as the hills. The consequence was that through the initiative of Doug Carman and Verne Tant, both jealous guardians of the trail tradition, another organization came into being, namely, the Trail Riders.

ln the Year Book of 1947-48 Doug Carman reported:

Last February two carping skiers had the temerity to ‘complain to the management' about the lack of maintenance on some of the Club's trails, and to suggest that a new organization be formed to assist the overworked Night Riders. After due deliberation these two were suitably punished by being intrusted to form an organization themselves. Thus the Trail Riders were born.

The Trail Riders did a great deal to improve and maintain the Club’s trail system under successive Captains Doug Carman, Verne Tant, Morgan Hildebrand, Bill Scott, Don Welch, John Brown, Ferdie Chapman and Richard Cowan. They, in fact, have outlived the Night Riders as an active organization and have been instrumental in introducing a much superior system of trail markings and orienting the system to changing conditions.

By the mid-1950s the making of new hills was too big a task for volunteer labour and had to be done by contract. The energies of the Night Riders were directed more and more to racing. Under the captaincy of Bill Irving, competitive skiing was encouraged and members of the Night Riders were prominent in Club and outside competitions. It was suggested that the nature of the organization be changed to a sort of training camp for young racers. In 1955 the organization suspended operation for a year in order to reorganize. However, the development of training in ski technique and for racing was taking new direction with such rapidity that no reorganization took place and the famous Night Riders ceased to exist.

During the years 1954 to 1957 there was such a development of hills that volunteer labour could not begin to cope with the work required, much of which had to be done in the full interval between ski seasons. Prior to 1953 most work had been done by volunteer labour assisted by a minimum of machine work. When the projects became so large as to require full time work and supervision between ski seasons, John Clifford was given the post of Area Manager (in 1953). To cross-check the hills in winter snow-shoers were employed for awhile but mechanization caught up with Club activities and today the enormous task of hill maintenance is accomplished largely by motorized equipment.

First Aid

First Aid organization dates back to the early days of the Club. It included aid to damaged skis as well as persons. The Ski News of February 16th, 1927, stated:

A donation of five dollars from Major Chapman as a "grateful contribution to the first aid fund for skis and skiers, from one who was enabled to continue his glorious journey from Pink Lake to Dome Hill, thanks to the equipment found at Pink Lake Lodge" is gratefully acknowledged. Frank Semple, the Chairman of the Lodge Committee, writes as follows:— ‘All lodges have first aid kits which include iodine, bandages, adhesive tape, etc. A limited amount of tin, assorted nails, hammers, etc., may be obtained from the caretakers of the lodges.'

ln 1940 provision for first aid had been arranged on a much more effective basis. The January l7th Ski News of that year reported:

It will doubtless be a great relief to skiers in general, and their parents and families in particular, to know that a First-Aid station provided by the St. John Ambulance Brigade and including the services of two experts and a nurse will be found at Camp Fortune every Sunday of the season until the snow is off the ground. There have never been any very distressing accidents in the past, but some were serious enough to cause a good deal of pain and discomfort until medical aid could be procured, and sometimes that was only after a long wait. The majority of these accidents happen near the lodges of Camp Fortune where the hills are the steepest and bumpiest, and this is why the First Aid staff is stationed there, but provision will also be made to rescue disabled skiers from any part of the bush. To cover the expenses necessitated by this service — transportation of staff, purchase of supplies, building of rescue sleds, etc., — our members will be asked to purchase a button for the nominal sum of 25 cents as a gesture of good will to the St. John Ambulance Brigade and for self protection.

This helpful arrangement with the St. John Ambulance Brigade was interrupted by World War II but was resumed in 1946, In 1941 first aid service was provided at Camp Fortune by John Ferguson and George Morgan, two old members of the Club fully qualified for the work.

After the end of World War II the St. John Ambulance Brigade provided four competent First Aid men each Sunday to render first aid to casualties at Camp Fortune. In 1947 a St. John ambulance was placed at the disposal of skiers in the Camp Fortune area. In 1948 the Federal District Commission donated a building in Old Chelsea for use by the St. John Ambulance Brigade as a first aid post.

In the 1950-51 Ottawa Ski Club Year Book Mr. Howard Bergin reported on a new development:

Last season a Committee for the Safety of skiers, Gatineau Park area, was formed, with Mr. E.K. Quipp of Mountain Lodge Chairman and the following representatives;— Mr, E.S, Richards, Park Representative, Federal District, Gatineau Park; Mr. James S. Patrick, Secretary, Ottawa Ski Club; Mr. M.J. Scobie, Chalet Beamish, Mr. John Clifford, operator of the Ski Tows, Mr. Alvin O. Bergin and Howard S. Bergin representing the St. John Ambulance Brigade.

The Ski Patrol and radio communication between Fortune and Old Chelsea were important aids to the First Aid Service. At the time Camp Fortune had no adequate telephone communication. The forestry line could not always be counted on to get through to the Park Superintendent's house on the Meach Lake Road to relay messages to Old Chelsea. It was often difficult to get through by telephone because of the other nine subscribers to the party line. Several times badly injured persons had to be kept waiting in the cold at the upper parking lot.

It was fortunate that an organization of the Amateur Radio Emergency Corps, with some foresight, had skilled operators and homebuilt equipment ready to help. Most of the amateur radio operators who looked after this service were not skiers. They did it for the same reason that the first aiders gave their time and the Ski Patrol patrolled instead of skiing. Radio communication permitted a much speedier transfer of casualties from Camp Fortune to the well equipped field hospital at Old Chelsea.

In 1958 the first aid quarters adjacent to Camp Fortune Lodge were vacated and a new station set up near the Alexander Lodge. An old building obtained from the National Capital Commission was moved to the site and converted into an improved first aid station, making possible faster and more efficient handling of the injured, This new arrangement included the functions performed by the station in Old Chelsea.

The Camp Fortune organization, largely through the enterprise of John Clifford, now had electricity and direct telephone connection through the Bell Telephone System. Radio communication, which had served so well for preceding years, was no longer necessary.

Ski Patrols

The other organization closely allied to the work of the First Aid Post was the Ski Patrol. Mort commented on its formation in the 1944-45 Year Book:

One day at Dome Hill, a young man tarried until everybody had gone home; he climbed up the hill once more, for one more slide, fell at the bottom and broke a leg. No one heard his cries of distress and he spent all night out. He survived owing to his robust constitution but it was an ordeal that few could have stood and lived. The SKI PATROL was born out of this incident.

No one, fortunately, has been known to spend the night out in any of the many trails criss-crossing the Kingsmere range of hills but it might happen — and it is just to prevent such happenings that the Ski Patrol, a branch of the Night Riders, was organized.

Ski Patrols did not originate in the Ottawa Ski Club. In the winter of 1934-35 they began to function in the United States. Eventually a National Ski Patrol System was instituted and it was so successful that it became a consultant for the United States Government during World War II in connection with the training of Ski Troops. The first Ski Patrol was organized in Canada at Ste. Adele, Quebec, during the winter of 1940-41, and almost immediately received the sponsorship of the Canadian Amateur Ski Association. The first Chairman was A. Douglas Firth of Toronto with G. Douglas McIntyre of Montreal as vice-chairman, The latter moved to Ottawa and in the ski year 1950-51, became a member of the Ottawa Ski Club Executive. He established the Gatineau Park Ski Patrol. In the 1953-54 ski year it became a qualified member of the Canadian Ski Patrol System.

An article by Fred Hanna in the Ottawa Ski Club Year Book of 1947-48, under the caption “Corpses Anonymous”, said:

When the Ski Patrol was organized in 1943-44, the Night Riders became the nucleus of the Patrol. For several years they comprised the major portion of it; that is true to-day, since the two or three active patrolmen remaining are Night Riders. However, most Night Riders are not able to assist in patrol work because of the obligations involved in preparing for and running competitions. The loss of active assistance from the Night Riders has not been compensated by new members. Casualties have been retrieved from adjacent hills by the St. John Ambulance men, but since they are not equipped to go out on the trails and since they are needed in the First Aid room, there is the necessity of a Patrol for the task of bringing in the shameless gold-brickers who prefer the disgrace of a sleigh to the glory of skiing on one leg. It was hoped that enough club members would reply to the request in the newspapers earlier to make it possible to arrange a course of St. John Brigade instruction. Since only one person expressed interest, it was not possible to arrange a course.

During the next four years the St. John Brigade seems to have carried, not only the burden of attending to casualties in the first aid post at Camp Fortune, but also a good share of the labour of bringing in the injured from the hills and trails. The task of the Sunset Patrol, to see that every trail was covered before nightfall was taken over by the Trail Riders.

With the advent of the Gatineau Ski Patrol under Doug McIntyre things soon changed radically. First aid training began in January 1951 with 20 volunteer registered at St. Patrick's High School under instructors Howard and Alvin Bergin. Classes were held twice a week for three weeks. Special Ski Safety and winter first aid lectures were also given to the prospective patrolmen. Ski tests were held subsequently on the Alexander Hill. For a few years these tests were concerned with turns and stops under specified conditions but were later changed to the ability to descend slopes with a tobbogan.

Since then the organization and facilities for first aid and prevention of accidents have seen many improvements and have reached a very high state of efficiency. The leadership of the Patrol has been excellent. Ken Marshall (a member for nine years and leader of seven of them) Gary Perkins and Laird Lawton have performed a most valuable service for the Ottawa Ski Club and the Gatineau Zone.

Improvements in First Aid Organization — 1950's to early '60’s.

A few years ago heavy and cumbersome sleds were replaced by lighter and much more efficient Arctic Rescue Sleds. These could actually be handled by one person on a slope. They were furnished with mattresses and sleeping-bags to ensure warmth for the injured skier. The number of sleds was increased and they were located at strategic points.
Improved testing of applicants for the patrols was introduced. Dr. H.W. Keenan devised tests which were to be made on a designated hill with a toboggan upon which a dummy casualty was strapped. Each candidate, on skis, had to take his or her turn on the side, in front and at the back of the toboggan, respectively. Thus each applicant was given what amounted to three tests in skiing control and stability on the bringing of a casualty downhill. In the last few years the manual labour of bringing in casualties has been greatly reduced through the use of snowmobiles.
Transportation. The task of the ski patrol was considerably lightened with the opening of the Alexander parking lot since the injured could be picked up there by the ambulance instead of being taken to Dunlop's.
Communications. The communication system was vastly improved. Telephone communication was established by the Federal District Commission between Keogan’s, Camp Fortune and Lockeberg Lodge. Field telephones were established in the various buildings at Camp Fortune. In 1955-56, for the first time all tow hills in the Camp Fortune Area were connected directly, not only with each other, but also with the first aid chalet as well. With the installation of the Bell Telephone system communication arrangements reached a peak of efficiency.
In 1958 the Ski Patrol acquired a chalet of their own to serve as headquarters. It was needed badly. This was connected by telephone with the St. John Ambulance First Aid Post and with the telephone switchboard in the John Clifford Offices, and with the ski-tow phones in the area. A patrol man was to be on duty in the new headquarters to answer calls and to coordinate rescue work.
At first the patrol men were on duty only on Sundays. With the advent of the five day week they served on Saturdays and Sundays and eventually two patrol men were on duty on the midweek afternoons and one each evening of night skiing. The number of patrollers grew from 24 in 1951 to 45 in 1964.

The 1963-64 season saw the inauguration of the Club's own Ski Patrol with the bright red jackets. The decision to become independent of the Canadian Ski Patrol System was made in order to retain the services of the St. John Ambulance Brigade which had been replaced in the CSPS by the Red Cross. At this time the Patrol adopted its new title — The Ottawa Ski Club Aid and Rescue Patrol, now known as the OSCARS.

The OSCAR Patrol continued to emphasize Safety Skiing. Laird Lawton wrote in the Ottawa Ski Club Bulletin of January 3rd, 1964;

Wear safety bindings and hold them securely to the skis with a safety strap to avoid losing the ski when the release goes.
If the rings of your poles become loose, repair them or replace them before you go skiing. A pole without a ring becomes a spear.
Ski on hills on which your ability enables you to ski under control. If you introduce a friend to skiing, have regard for his safety, not a display of your skiing prowess.

Members could show more consideration for their own equipment as well as understanding why the OSCARs find it necessary to enforce some form of Club discipline.

Put your skis on the racks; hang up your poles.
Please remember there is mechanized equipment moving about the Camp as well as accident victims being transported to the St. John building. The ski patroller keeps the area clear of loose skis and poles to ensure clear traffic routes and to prevent someone skidding or tripping on scattered ski equipment.
The line-ups for the tows begin at the rear and should proceed without interference by ‘line-jumpers’. Take your turn; if you are impatient to ski and don’t want to wait in line, try climbing a few times; it’s good exercise and an excellent cure for impatience.
It is the concern of each and every member not to tolerate, encourage or indulge in... line-jumping. We are hoping for improvement in barricades but only the co-operation of all members, juniors, intermediate and seniors can improve this annoying situation.
Use the ski tows with consideration for the person riding behind you. Stay in the track.

Now that the skiing is in full swing, OSCAR will be checking ski equipment. In the Ski Club Bulletin of April 1st, 1964, Laird Lawson wrote the following:

The men and women who have done most for the skiing safety of the Club are forty-five well-trained, hard-working OSCARs. Safety gates have to be checked and the Patrol Leader and his 8-man patrol have been on duty from 9:00 a.m. in Camp Fortune or Skyline each Saturday or Sunday until after closing time. Each Patrol Leader is responsible for the area his patrol is covering for their day of duty and two of his OSCARs are on telephone duty for 2-hour periods throughout the day. In case of an accident use the Camp Telephone located in the tow shacks.

Another intra-club organization relevant to ski safety came into being in 1946-47. The Ski Traffic Corps, whose membership varied between 28 and 49, was organized by secretary James Patrick and captained by Halvor Heggtveit. Its duties:

To organize line up at bus loading points.
Watch conditions on parking lots and report on same.
Enforce discipline on trails and hills.
See that lodges are kept clean and orderly.
Report accidents.
Supply information regarding trails and hills to members.

In his report in the 1949-50 Year Book Halvor Heggtveit said:

Last season, while visiting a tow-hill in the Gatineau which is not operated by the Ottawa Ski Club, it was gratifying to overhear the comment from a group of skiers that they preferred the OSC Slalom hill where they had a traffic corps. Presumably the inference was that the Slalom Hill was a safer place to ski due to the efforts of the Traffic Corps, and since we are so used to being rewarded with dirty looks, this remark was carefully noted so it could be passed on to our members.

Halvor’s report of that year concluded with the following:

Robert W. Service once wrote an appropriate little poem about a louse which was overly ambitious. With a few changes here and there and with all apologies to Mr. Service, it goes something like this:

Oh, you who have daring deeds to tell
And you who have felt ambition’s spell
Have you heard of the chap who didn’t ski well,
Yet he yearned for a slide down the Slalom.
He sighed all day and he sighed all night
And no one could understand him quite
For the practice slopes are a beginner’s delight,
Yet he pined for a run on the slalom.
So he left his friends in merry play
And off by his lonesome he stole away
From the gentle hills where he ought to stay
And practice until he could slalom.

At last he came to the ski-tow gate
And he made his way in a manner straight
For a fool will go when he should wait,
Right to the top of the Slalom.
He boldly took off in rapid descent;
Smack into the creek at the bottom he went,
And lo, when the Ski Patrol found him there
He had only one ski instead of a pair
But he mumbled freely, "I do not care.
For I’ve had a slide down the Slalom.”

But even this poetic flight does not seem to have made the lot of the Traffic Corps easier. For whatever reason their existence was very brief. The Club's Year Books contain no reference to it after the issue of 1949-50. It’s duties, in fact, were largely assumed by the OSCARs.

Social Events

Mid-week “Moonlight Hikes", ending in a social gathering were popular for some 20 years after the Club's reorganization in 1919. Often the only “moonlight” available was from lanterns or torches but that did not matter. During 1921 and 1922 the social rendezvous was usually the Rockcliffe Tea House. At first the ski hikes were in the vicinity of Rockcliffe; for example, from the end of the car line via MacKay Lake to the Tea House or via the old rifle ranges. Later they went farther afield, the start being at the Wrighwville car terminus and going via Leamy’s Lake, Gatineau Creek, the banks of the Gatineau River and across the Ottawa to the Tea House or some variation of this route. At the Tea House refreshments and dancing were available.

Occasionally a purely social function was organized by the Ladies’ Committee, usually at the Tea House for the purpose of raising funds, a chronic need for a rapidly-expanding Club. But these events were varied from time to time. In February, 1921, there was a trip to Fury's Farm near the Dome Hill at Ironsides, where a bean supper was available. A year later club members made a torch light trip to the Ironsides Lodge. The 1921-22 season wound up with a dance in the Rose Room of the Jackson Building.

In 1923 a new destination was picked for the moonlight hikes. The skiers went by a semi-circular trail commencing at Wrightville and ending at the Old Homestead Inn on the Aylmer Road, about a half mile from Tetreauville. The trail was made by Mrs. J.R. Dixon and was supplied with lanterns as a guide. At the Inn refreshments were available and dancing followed. The season closed with a dance at the Rose Room in March and a banquet at the Chateau Laurier on April 19th, 1923, concerning which the Ski News forecast: “This is going to be a gay banquet — not one of your solemn, stiff and highly dignified affairs. There will be high class musical entertainment, catchy chorus songs, toasts, speeches, presentation of prizes, and plenty to eat and drink as well."

By 1924 the moonlight hikers were branching out even more and had three trails to choose from. Held regularly on Thursday nights, the hikes started at the end of the Wrightville streetcar line and ended either at the Homestead Inn (via a long route for strong, seasoned skiers or a shorter one for debutantes) or at the Fred Brown Tea House at Fairy Lake. The latter (two houses west of the Cliffside Tea House) became the Fairy Lake headquarters for the Ottawa Ski Club that season.

The January 10th, 1924, issue of the Ski News had this advice for moonlight hikers:

Follow the leader, the lanterns and the ski tracks, of which there will be many but all going in the same direction. To make doubly sure, you are advised to carry a small flashlight to pick up the ski track again if you should lose it. It is not easy to see a ski track at night. The lanterns may go out, you know, so be prepared.

HOW TO BEHAVE AT THE INN. Leave your skis in the basement, brush the snow off your clothes, go up, and if you want to dance take your boots off, (Ski boots with metal plates are hard on waxed floors.) When the refreshments are served (10 o'clock sharp) sit quietly and patiently until you are waited on. Too many times last year timid skiers went hungry while the “more pushing” ones had more to eat than was good for them, and there were disgraceful scenes at the counter.

In 1925 there was another change. The Thursday moonlight hikes ended at the Chaudiere Golf Club on the Aylmer Road, This change gave those who did not wish to ski an opportunity to arrive at the Clubhouse by the Aylmer car line.

It was customary to provide two chaperones at each of these dances which followed the ski hikes. On one occasion when Mrs. Herbert Marshall and Mrs. A.R.M. Lower acted in that capacity and were accompanied by their husbands, Arthur Lower (later Professor Lower) had a fall on the trail. He was undamaged himself but his ski slacks had suffered lamentably in the seat. What to do? Fortunately, the ladies were able somehow to produce a safety pin and a temporary repair was made which was improved when the Club House was reached. Even so, the rent was still conspicuous and Dr. Lower made himself comfortable in a chair and watched while others danced, and the chaperones carried out their not onerous duties.

In 1926 the moonlight hikes ended at the Highlea Tennis and Golf Club but in both 1927 and 1928 they went back to the Chaudiere Golf Club. In 1929 their destination was the Dome Hill Lodge but in 1930 and 1931 the rendezvous was changed to the Glenlea Golf Club. In the latter year the Ski News indicated a decline in interest. The period of regular night hikes had come to an end, although there was an unsuccessful attempt to revive them in 1936, and at least one in February, 1940, was recorded in the Ski News of March 7th, 1940, by Bob McGiffin:

February’s moonlight hike to Camp Fortune was a real success. More than 100 skiers trecked in from the Dunlop parking lot and found our White Shack with the red shutters sound asleep in the moonlit hills. However, it wasn’t long "till Tweedsmuir Hall was resounding with cheery laughter and Chief Hike Promotor, Fred Dixon was looking after the needs of the hungry and thirsty ones. Fred had arranged a perfect moon for the occasion but it must be admitted he slipped a little in the matter of snow supply. The trails were definitely hard but far from impassable and the trail sliding was very fast and smooth. Traveler's hill was attempted by many but mastered by few and soon everyone had gathered in the lodge. Dancing proved more comfortable than high speed skiing although the phonograph gave out only indifferent volume. An orchestra has been promised by Fred for the next occasion and if the crowd is any larger, one of the wings of the lodge may have to be used as well as Tweedsmuir Hall.

In 1951 Miss Jessie Fear became head of the Ladies’ Executive. An able and enthusiastic organizer, she introduced the Square Dance into the solitudes of Camp Fortune. In March 1953 the first one was held in Tweedsmuir Hall of the great white and red lodge. Participants had to walk or ski in from the parking lot on the Meach Lake Road but that was no deterent. This first dance proved to be such a success that every winter season up to 1961 three or four dances were held. Jessie Fear reported on these in the Ottawa Ski Club Year Book of 1961-62:

The call of ‘Swing your Partner’ was heard around Camp Fortune with toes tapping and skirts flying in ever-increasing numbers, as the 1961 square dance Season got off to a good start.

The evening round-up began with sets being squared at 9 p.m., with Jack Zoubis, our caller extraordinary, whose fame for calling and teaching square dancing has spread for miles around the Ottawa Valley. Also in attendance was our usual old-time square dance orchestra.

The dances have become a regular feature and with enthusiasm so keen they a have done much to foster club spirit. The friendly informality of square dancing gives the opportunity of getting to know our fellows better.

The blazing torches lining the road from the parking lot to Fortune Lodge and the old time music echoing through the hills gives these dances a mystic atmosphere. The lodge also lends a homely touch which blends with the gay shirts, jeans and what have you.

In January 1962 the great Camp Fortune Lodge was destroyed by fire and the one which succeeded it did not quite offer the same facilities. In the meantime, the Ladies’ Committee which succeeded that led by Miss Fear became extremely active in other directions. In particular, mid-weekly skiing classes for married women were most successfully organized. Ladies’ races, visits to other ski centres and social gatherings were included in the program and were very popular.

In 1960 the Ottawa Ski Club celebrated its 50th Anniversary. A carnival at Camp Fortune and a Smorgasbord and entertainment at the Coliseum were planned. Starting many weeks before the dates of these events, newspapers, radio and television co-operated generously in an intensive advertising campaign. The projected events were, of course, subject to difficulties which might arise in the winter weather. The carnival had to be postponed at the last minute because of impossible weather conditions but eventually was a great success.

Some predicted at the outset that the Smorgasbord might attract two hundred members, The Committee set its sights at 1,000 and achieved its objective. It was a happy gala occasion. In the brightly-decorated Coliseum several lines of tables ran the full length of the great hall except where the large platform for the entertainers occupied space at one end. Every seat at the tables was occupied and everywhere among the occupants the healthy tan of winter skiing was in evidence. Appropriately, from loud speakers, the lively strains of Swiss Alpine music furnished a background atmosphere for the Smorgasbord spread.

After the meal President McHugh announced that there would be few speeches and that each was to be limited to two minutes, which restriction he himself observed. Three other speakers, Mayor Nelms, Sigurd Lockeberg and Herbert Marshall followed. Though not entirely successful in holding the two minute line, they did not depart excessively from it.

Then affairs were handed over to the CFRA Happy Wanderers Orchestra and entertainers, followed by dancing which included both square and round numbers. A special feature was a competition in old time waltzing.

Well after midnight the very successful 50th Anniversary Celebration ended. There were some who advocated that such gatherings should pot be confined to anniversary occasions and that they should be held more frequently. The work of organization is formidable and none have been held since the Anniversary.

Recent Developments in Intra-Club Organization

The present scope of the OSC activities necessitate the use of a large and growing variety of mechanical equipment — and to attend to the multitudinous details of keeping the whole apparatus of skiing activity in efficient working order General and Area managers have full time occupations. The permanent staff at the OSC Office in Ottawa and at Camp Fortune keep fully occupied with a host of details. Nevertheless voluntary help continues to be an outstanding feature of Ottawa Ski Club affairs. For example, the great success of the OSC training and racing program could not have been achieved without it. The scores of devoted people who have given generously of their time for these activities have doubtless had great satisfaction in their efforts in behalf of others. Nevertheless there have been sacrifices and often discomfort because of such circumstances as the rigors of winter.

The Club’s debt to such people has been acknowledged many times. Perhaps Billie Burke expressed it as well as any as far back as 1947-8. In the OSC Year Book for that year he wrote in his Report on Competitions as follows:

We have listed here some of the best skiers, not only of the Ottawa Ski Club, but naturally some of the best and many of the coming skiers of Canada. Many of these names will appear again in next year's Annual and will make headlines in our daily papers. However, there is a hardy group of men too numerous to list completely around whom the whole of competitive skiing revolves. They plan all the meets, attend to scores of details connected with the races; they freeze for hours holding stop-watches or pencil and paper. You see them after a race warming their numbed fingers around a cup of chocolate, calculating positions and percentages by slide rule, combining results, and then rushing the results to the papers so that you can see your efforts tabulated over the breakfast table. You see no headlines for these men, but they are the real headliners when it comes to the hard work entailed in running a competition.

The record of recent developments in voluntary effort in connection with the racing

programs for mini-midgets, midgets, juveniles and juniors has been dealt with in Chapter 7, and it is a most gratifying record. Two highly important fields which are founded on voluntary effort are those of the OSCARS and the Trail Riders. This record of development is most impressive. The work of each is of fundamental importance to the skiing activities of the OSC area.

The Oscars

OSC Bulletin (1972 Program) has an article on page 22 which is a good description of the current service rendered by OSCAR that is, the Ottawa Ski Club Aid and Rescue organization. It reads:

The Ottawa Ski Club Aid and Rescue organization has provided excellent ski patrol service at Camp Fortune for the past nine years. During this period these fine red coated men with a cross on their backs have come to be affectionately known as ‘OSCARS’; so for you new comers to the Ottawa Ski Club who have the misfortune to hurt yourselves or wish to obtain help of a patroller, the word to shout is ‘OSCAR’ and any employee or knowledgeable skier will be able to help you. To improve this service the Oscars now have a tracked vehicle, known as the ‘Green Monster’ which serves as a ski ambulance. This vehicle is very manoeuvrable and is a great asset in emergencies because it can go just about everywhere, hills or trails. A conventional snowmobile is also utilized by the OSCARS to tow loaded rescue toboggans quickly to the First Aid Post in order to treat the casualty more efficiently. On weekends the patrol is aided by volunteers from the St. Johns Ambulance Corps. The St. John's people staff the First Aid Post and provide a standby ambulance to take seriously injured skiers to hospital.

The First Aid Post is always staffed so that quick action can be taken when an emergency call comes in.

The Centennial Program of the OSCARS was the building of a much improved operation centre. This was erected near the top of Pee Wee Hill, on the best downhill position to all the ski lifts in the Fortune area. The result was an attractive, larger and more efficiently designed structure. It was built with the following requirements in mind.

A permanent building of sufficient size to serve as a headquarters and despatch centre for a large first aid ski patrol which will serve the whole of Camp Fortune Ski Area.
It was to be a functional building but one which fits into the general atmosphere of the ski area.
It should create the impression that it is overlooking the ski area and valley.

It may be said that the Centre as constructed meets these requirements admirably.

Some 350 hours went into the design and organization of the Centre by Ted Stack, Hans Konig, Rick Naudeau, Doug Thomason. Some 700 hours of labour on the job were put in by members of the Patrol.

In 1972 provision is being made to introduce a radar communication system for the whole area for the reporting of casualties.

The Trail Riders

In the March 1, 1966 OSC Bulletin there was an article written by Ferdie Chapman, then Chairman of the Trail Riders, which in part read as follows:

To those of you who wonder about the many trails you find opened and cross-checked when you arrive early on a Saturday morning let me clear up the mystery. Most of the work is done by the Trail Riders packing crew Friday night in all temperatures and type of conditions. In the case of the storm of February 6th, packing was started Friday evening February 11th with the result that before the Trail Riders turned in for the night 15 miles of trail had been packed. The work was resumed at dawn and by noon the entire trail system was in excellent shape. It takes a lot of time and effort to pack a trail. Western, for example, takes a crew six hours to complete, Frank's a little over four hours, so when you add up all the leg work on the trails its no wonder the Trail Riders are such good skiers and in such good shape.

In the January 1st, 1969 edition of the OSC Bulletin Richard Cowan, Director of Trails, described pre-snow duties of the Trail Riders.

Four hundred and eighty man days have been spent by the Trail Riders preparing the trails, repairing the bridges, draining swamps, and filling the wood sheds in preparation for the winter. A group of trail skiers, not members of the Trail Riders but who work closely with the organization, has again touched up the red marker buttons on the trails. Gordon Hurlburt, Bill Grant and Harmon Cahill are to be thanked for doing the job.¹ In addition seventy new direction signs have been placed at junctions of trails; and as well, 800 additional red trail marker buttons have been put up. These signs have been put up at strategic locations to help skiers orient themselves with the ski trail map. They also make it easy to describe the location of an accident. This information may then be accurately transmitted to the OSCARS. All our trails bear name signs at each end as well as at junctions of other trails. Ski maps are available free.

On January 8th, 1966, the Trail Riders suffered a calamity ... the loss by fire of the lodge they had occupied for some years. The loss of this lodge had more implications than that of the Trail Riders being deprived of their dormitory. It was the occasion for the appearance of a special article in the OSC Bulletin of March 1, 1966 which read as follows:

Fire Erases Early Ottawa Ski Club Landmark.

As one looks up at Mort's Hill now, a feature of the landscape, long familiar, is missing. Mort's lodge, recently a dormitory for the Trail Riders has become a heap of charred ruins. Its disappearance brought back a flood of memories.

On that site the very first lodge of the Ottawa Ski Club stood. It was a woodcutters shack formerly owned by a Mr. Fortune, which along with the surrounding property, was purchased by the Club in 1920, Quite inadequate to accommodate a growing membership it was replaced in 1921 by a new building on the knoll where the present lodge stands. Later the shack was demolished and President Mortureux bought some land and had a lodge built for his own use on the same spot.

It was, however, never really a private lodge. It was a gathering place where Club problems were often discussed, a place where Mort was always happy to meet his friends, a place where he could dispense hospitality to distinguished guests and even a dormitory for a few of the Club's busiest workers.

It was a two-storey building, the second story being reached by a ladder which led to an opening in the ceiling. 1t was heated upstairs by stove pipes connected with the stove below. The latter was well stoked at night — no propane gas in those days — but as the night wore on the heat wore off. I recall below zero nights when full dress and a well blanketed sleeping bag were inadequate to ward off the piercing cold which permeated that upstairs dormitory.

A few of us, including Joe Morin, spent one New Year's Eve at Mort's. Joe was engaged in making his final trail masterpiece — the Highland Trail. It was still in the construction stage but he lured us out to see it by night. We got lost in the darkness and spent some time in getting back to the lodge. It was not the way we had planned to usher in the New Year.

Lord and Lady Willingdon visited Camp Fortune on a number of occasions. Great preparations were made for the luncheon in Mort's lodge. Once Alan Snowdon, Mildred Ashfield, Muriel Whalley and myself were delegated to prepare the meal. My part was mainly to keep up the supply of firewood, stoke the two stoves, bring in water from the spring, peel potatoes and be general handyman. Concerning the affair Mort wrote in the Ski News: “There were many cooks — but they showed wonderful team work and the gravy was not spoiled."

On another visit the Willingdons insisted on visiting the big lodge before going up to Mort's. It was full to overflowing and the air was permeated with the aroma, dear to the hungry skiers, of frying bacon and eggs, steaks, sausages, warming beans and what not. One young lady thought their Excellencies should enjoy more than the mere aroma and presented Lord Willingdon with a can of beans. He insisted that this should be added to the menu prepared by Mort in his lodge.

Mr. Mortureux took much pleasure in preparing salads. He had the large wooden bowl and the long spoon and fork to work with. He measured out the oils and vinegar with great precision. To him the mixing ritual was an art and it was a delight to watch him. The result was eminently satisfactory.

On one memorable occasion the Right Honorable MacKenzie King was a visitor at Mort's lodge. It was memorable because Mr. King told us confidentially about the plan to acquire thousands of acres and form the Gatineau Park, We knew then that there was no further need to worry about the preservation of the forest and that the future of skiing was secure in the beautiful Gatineau Hills.

The loss of the lodge was a sad occasion for the Trail Riders for whom it had become a dormitory. Recently they had put in a new floor, furnished it with a chesterfield (an unheard of luxury in earlier days), and other articles and had done a lot of repairing. These splendid voluntary workers, worthy successors to the volunteers of the past who had done so much to make the Ottawa Ski Club, are to be commiserated in their loss.

Early in April (1966) the project of rebuilding got underway. Ferdie Chapman reported as follows in the OSC Bulletin of November 4, 1966:

On April 16th, the project under way with Dick Cowan as foreman carpenter, the Trail Riders Organization providing the labour. The site selected was the one on which stood the old stable behind the caretaker’s house. In two days the building was demolished and digging commenced by the Burma Road Construction Company (Trail Riders) for the footings. On April 23rd two large trucks from Pilon Lumber Company dropped 13 tons of building materials on the flat below Fortune Lodge ... This was the first of many long days for the Trail Riders in the construction field — moving the materials to the building site by hand, building laminated beams on the floor of Fortune Lodge, to pouring of cement into concrete sewer pipes on which the building sits.

From here on each evening after supper and on weekends and holidays, the site was busy with building activity. On Sunday, May 1st, the main support beams, laminated 2 inches by 12 inches by 34 fect long — four plies thick, were lifted by hand 15 feet overhead to the support pillars, estimated weight a half ton, From here on the building continued to grow in leaps and bounds. Construction continued all summer unabated, black flies and mosquitoes having no respect for coolies or directors. In August the big task of building a fireplace got on the rails, and, finally the big monster appeared through the roof and was capped with 300 pounds of concrete poured with the crew illuminating the work with headlights used during the winter season on the trails.

More than 1,900 hours of voluntary labour was put in by the members of the Trail Riders Organization. All of the work on the building was done by the Trail Riders except the wiring which was done by an electrical contractor as required by law in Quebec.

The dimensions of the building are 24 feet by 34 feet. It has two bunk rooms downstairs, two sleeping lofts, kitchen, locker room, living-dining room and a heatolater fireplace.

On Sunday October 30, 1966, this result of Trail Rider voluntary effort was officially opened as the “Riders Roost" by Sigurd Lockeberg.

References

These three and Ferdy Chapman received honorary memberships in the OSC for services rendered over many years.

Index

Chapter 7.