Escape to these magical forest skate trails near Ottawa!

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Updated on January 13, 2026.

Did you know that you can skate through the forest, on one of a growing number of groomed skate trails in Ottawa, the Outaouais and beyond?

The ice trails craze started about a decade ago and is still going strong. These days, there are several skate trails near Ottawa where you can glide through the trees.

Note: PLEASE check a skate trail’s website and/or social media before heading out! Skate trails are very weather dependent, and may close with little notice due to poor ice conditions. Also, most skate trails are only open on certain days of the week, and some require you to buy tickets in advance. The websites will also provide detailed information on amenities such as snack bars, indoor change rooms and equipment rentals, which may affect which trail you choose.

Ice trails in Ottawa

In York’s Corners (between Metcalfe and Russell), the River Oak Estates ice trail is popular with families and hockey players, as hockey sticks and pucks are allowed (in fact, encouraged!) on the multiple outdoor rinks. Some of the skating trails are illuminated at night. In total, some 3.5 kilometres of trails wind through orchards, evergreens and sugar maple groves. The trails are open from Thursdays through Sundays. You can hike and snowshoe, too, and you can warm up with hot chocolate, cider and treats in a cozy lodge.

Icelynd Skating Trails is a two-kilometre route off Fernbank Road near Stittsville. Along with trails, there’s a canteen and two outdoor rinks (including an NHL-sized one), and you can warm up around one of the bonfires. Strollers are allowed on the skate trails but hockey gear is not (save the pucks and sticks for the outdoor rinks). Trails are partially lit at night, but a headlamp might come in handy, too. You must buy your tickets in advance online. The trails are open from Thursdays through Sundays.

Skate trails in the Outaouais

In 2017, CBC Radio wrote about the Patinage en forêt skate trail in Lac-des-Loups, Quebec, just beyond the northwestern edge of Gatineau Park. One of the region’s first skate trails, it offers a canteen, equipment rentals, skate sharpening and more. Note that animals are not allowed. The six-kilometre skate trail network is open seven days a week. Insider tip: It occasionally offers torchlit skating evenings, which usually sell out quickly. You can also check out hiking and snowshoeing trails.

Closer to Ottawa, the Little Penguin Trail is a 5.5-kilometre ice trail that wends through the Touraine Golf Club in Gatineau. It’s open from Thursdays through Sundays, as well as public holidays and Ontario/Quebec school holidays. Night skating is available.

Other skating trails in Ontario and Quebec

• There’s a three-kilometre skate trail at Countryside Adventures in Moose Creek, partway between Ottawa and Cornwall. Strollers, sleds and leashed dogs are allowed on the ice trail, which is illuminated at night. Skate rentals and sharpening are available, and you can get food truck snacks. The site also offers a tubing hill and snowshoeing trails. Open seven days a week.
• In Pembroke, a two-kilometre snowshoeing trail parallels the 1.5-kilometre wooded Laurentian Valley Skating Trail. The trail is open seven days a week and is illuminated on Thursday and Saturday evenings. Strollers are permitted on the skate trail but pets are not.
• A reader alerted me to Domaine Enchanteur, a network of skate trails about 20 minutes from Trois-Rivières and Shawinigan, Quebec. It’s open seven days a week, and food and skate rentals are available onsite. No hockey sticks permitted.

If you visit one of these skating trails (or find another one I haven’t mentioned), come back here, leave a comment and let me know what it was like! Here’s a map to help you find all the trails mentioned above.

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As the owner of Ottawa Road Trips, I acknowledge that I live on, work in and travel through the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg Nation. I am grateful to have the opportunity to be present on this land. Ottawa Road Trips supports Water First, a non-profit organization that helps address water challenges in Indigenous communities in Canada through education, training and meaningful collaboration.

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