Cross-country skiers take off from the start of the 42nd edition of the Canadian Ski Marathon in Gatineau, Que., Feb. 9, 2008. This year, the maratheon is taking place inside inside a 260-square-kilometre private game reserve near Montebello, Que. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)An army of die-hard cross-country ski enthusiasts will descend on the sleepy, picturesque village of Montebello, Que., this weekend to try their gloved hands at a two-day, 160-kilometre slog across the western Laurentians.

Eight hundred adventurers will test their Nordic abilities by attempting to complete the course with a five-kilogram pack on their back or with an even heavier load that includes all they need to survive a night out in the frigid, sub-zero temperatures. Another 1,000 skiers will take part simply for fun.

The 45th annual Canadian Ski Marathon — the oldest and longest cross-country tour in North America — starts on Feb. 12 and costs between $150 and $200 to enter.

“It's one of those little Canadian secrets that not enough people know about,” says John Hardie, 67, who has skied in the tour 33 times and is a member of the marathon's board of directors.

The marathon course is made up of 10 sections of between 10 and 25 kilometres that the participants complete between Saturday and Sunday.

At the end of each section is a checkpoint with free food and drinks, washrooms and stations where participants can wax their skis. About 50 school buses run all day, shuttling skiers between checkpoints.

160 km in 48 hours

Participants are divided into two categories: Tourers, who ski as many sections as they want, and Coureur des Bois, who must complete all10 sections, five each day.

And if you thought skiing 160 kilometres in one weekend was hard, that's only the bronze level of the Coureur des Bois category. To qualify for the silver level, skiers have to finish the course while carrying a five-kilogram pack.

If they want to put their bodies to the ultimate test and achieve gold, skiers must carry all the gear they need to camp outside on Saturday night.

Participants in the silver-level Coureurs de Bois class have to ski with a 5 kg pack. Those in the gold-level carry an even heavier load, which includes a sleeping back, food, extra clothes and a tent so they can camp outside Saturday night. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

Former Olympic cross-country skier Chris Blanchard, who has completed the gold challenge five times, which has earned him a coveted permanent gold bib number, says overnight packs usually weigh between 10 and 12 kilograms , which includes a sleeping bag, food, extra clothes and a tent.

It takes a lot of training, he says.

“The rule of thumb is: as soon as the snow starts accumulating on the ground, you want to be out almost every weekend or as often as you can,” Blanchard said.

The Canadian Ski Marathon was started in 1967 by a group of friends who skied from Montreal to Ottawa for the country’s centennial.

Over the years, it has morphed into an annual event open to skiers of all ages and skill levels.

It is traditionally run between Lachute and Gatineau, Que., with a overnight stop in Montebello. Organizers create a new trail for the tour that is groomed and used only once a year.

However, because of poor snow conditions, this year, organizers have created a trail inside a 260-square-kilometre private game reserve.

When Greg Koegl first stumbled across the marathon in 1991, his reaction was disbelief. He was driving near Montebello around dawn when he happened upon a group of snow-covered skiers sporting large backpacks.

“And I just thought, 'What the hell are these guys doing at 6 o'clock in the morning?'" recalled Koegl, who was an avid alpine skier at the time. “These guys are full of frost, and it’s 6 a.m.”

Twenty years later, Koegl is president of the Canadian Ski Marathon and has skied the Coureur des Bois gold challenge five times.

About 1,000 skiers in this year's marathon are skiing in the Tourers class, which means they ski as many sections as they want just for the fun of it. Those in the Coureurs de Bois class have to complete the two-day 160-km course. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

He said it was his constant complaining about conditions at the overnight camp that led to some of the luxuries the gold-level Coureur des Bois skiers enjoy these days, such as water, a fire and two bales of hay, one for sleeping and the other for bedding.

Temperatures on the marathon route at night can reach around –25 C.

This year, 330 participants will attempt the gold challenge, including a few who have completed it more than 20 times.

Hardie, who has also earned his permanent bib, says the Coureurs de Bois must plan carefully to keep weight to a minimum. “You have to examine every item in your pack and chuck away everything that is in the sort of, 'This might be nice to have' category,” he said.

Still, there is some room for creativity. Koegl said that one year, he saw a three-man team ski into camp whose members had given their provisions some serious thought: the first had a cast iron frying pan dangling off his pack; the second a large salmon wrapped in cellophane; and the third a bottle of wine.

‘You’re skiing between a barn and a house’

Despite the grueling Coureur des Bois challenge, the Canadian Ski Marathon is primarily about having a good time regardless of the distance skied, says Blanchard, who has participated in the event since he was eight.

Everyone works together to lend a hand, especially the 600 volunteers who help feed and transport the skiers, he said.

About 150 members of the Canadian Forces, mostly reservists and cadets, also donate their time and supervise road crossings.

“I think there is a lot of camaraderie among the participants themselves and the hundreds of volunteers who are there to support everyone,” says Blanchard.

The marathon was started in 1967 by a group of friends who skied from Montreal to Ottawa for the country’s centennial. several participants in this year's event have skied the marathon more than 20 times. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

There is also a measure of good will between skiers and the local community, many of whom allow the trail to run through their property.

“You're skiing between a barn and a house — you get that close,” says Hardie.

“And [the owners] are sitting in there having coffee and looking out at these crazies skiing through their farmyard."

For Shelley Fraser, it is this camaraderie, and the fact that people can ski as much or as little as they want, that makes the event family friendly.

“You’re not under the gun for time,” she says of the Tourers division. “It's a personal challenge.”

Fraser, who first tried the Canadian Ski Marathon in 2006, will be there this year with her husband and two young children.

“For me, I’m kind of just enjoying how far [my kids] can go,” she said.

The scenery doesn’t hurt either.

“You feel like you’re in a postcard sometimes,” Fraser said.

Skiing through the generations

Thirty-year marathon veteran John Hardie says he thought he had reached his limit in 1988, when he and his seven-year-old daughter, Charlotte, were about to start the marathon in -25 C temperatures.

They were planning to ski one section of the course, enough to earn Charlotte a children's medal, but Hardie asked his daughter if she'd prefer to skip the marathon and stay out of the cold and spend the day in their hotel room instead.

“But what about my medal?” Charlotte asked.

The two went on to finish the section, though Hardie admits he almost got pneumonia in the process. His daughter was just fine and earned her medal.

This year, he will be skiing again with his daughter, who is now 30, and hopes new members of his family will join them soon.

“I'm nursing a hope my grandsons will get involved,” said Hardie.

“Maybe we'll have a three-generation team next year.”