Old Fool's Weekend Fiftieth Anniversary

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The smoke is curling from a cottage
 I will let the photos speak for themselves.

A bunch of us traveled to Quebec this past Valentine's Day weekend to spend time at our cottages and to enjoy the beauty of winter while trekking on snowshoes.

A late night shot
The cottages were very warm despite the frigid -10C temperatures. In fact, one of the cottages got as high as 30C a tribute to a very efficient wood stove.

The little cabin in the second shot was so warm (a small space heater was provided) that the occupants had to turn the heat down.

We were all greeted Friday night by an impressive bonfire that could be seen from a great distance. Though the night was chilly the heat from the bonfire was impressive. Of course, a few can of beer helped.

Most of us spent the entire day, Saturday,  on the ice immediately in front of the cottages. Some were unable to join us for the day on the ice because of a strange sickness that befell them as a result of a little indulgence the night before. Did I say they drank too much? Anyway to each his own.

Making snowshoes from scratch
One of the activities was making snowshoes from scratch. In the third photo you can see a team of "experts" crafting snowshoes from string and available willows. Several teams were tasked with building snowshoes. Some looked very good but they were not durable. Once built the race revealed just how well they were constructed. Well, let's just say that some did not last long. Lots of fun though.
packing up the snowmobile

The highlight of the weekend was the feast and awards ceremony. Needless to say everyone was a winner. It was a great time as as one participant said "It was awesome".
Snowmobiles were used to bring the supplies in


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