Snowshoeing to Ross Moore Lake
Having seen quite a few trip reviews from this area, I was quick to jump on the opportunity to finally check it out for myself. Along with my friend, Dan, we set off to see what all the fuss was about. Ross Moore Lake is located East of Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park. Winter access to the area is from Lac Le Jeune Park Drive E, and from Long Lake Rd via Knutsford during the summer.
Getting an early morning start, we strapped on the snowshoes and set off across Lac Le Jeune. We kept a bearing heading due east until we reached the far banks of the lake. Here, we picked up a well used snowmobile trail and set off once again. We soon found ourselves at a branch in the trail and had to check the GPS to ensure we remained on the right trail. Staying to the right, we once again continued on our way.
Having started the morning in the bitter cold I was sure to put on multiple layers… as well as bringing what could be argued was a full change of attire. I soon found myself overheating from the down jacket I had donned, so we stopped briefly while I packed away the outer layer. It was here that we made a navigational blunder that would set us 4km off track and an hour behind schedule. I had become complacent having followed the well groomed trail for so long, resulting in me not confirming our whereabouts until well past our exit from the main trail had passed. Once we realized the mistake, we simply retraced our tracks until we located the side trail.
This next trail started out much the same as the main trail; single track, mostly cleared, and easy to navigate. It wasn’t until we reached the halfway mark that we realized how wrong our assumptions had been. Although clear at the start, it was soon evident that the trail had fallen into disrepair. Deep snow hampered our efforts to make up previously lost time, and we soon tired from the extra effort. Along with deep snow, large deadfall blockages littered the trail nonstop. Facing the obstacles head on was not always possible, so we opted to duck into the tree line a couple times were the trail was no longer passable. After what seemed like an eternity, we finally emerged into the sparse forest that dotted the border of Ross Moore Lake.
We made our way across the expansive lake and honed in on the cabins which could be seen from the shore we had emerged on. The lake was quite slushy under the snow which was giving us a very unsettled feeling, even though we knew the ice had reached a safe thickness. We soon settled in the cabin and dug into our snack bags for a quick break. Two cabins can be found on the shore of the lake; one large and one small. The large cabin boasts a loft above the cooking area for added sleeping space. We did not venture over to the smaller cabin, but both offered wood burning stoves for those cold nights. There was a few very well used trails leading out from the rear of the cabin; trails I can only assume lead out to Long Lake Rd.
This trip, starting from the end of Lac Le Jeune Park Drive E, is 11.5km round trip. With our short “side trip”, we managed closer to 15km. I highly recommend this trip to anyone looking for a trail that really doesn’t get visited as much as it should.
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