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Trudeau holidays in Louise

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took a break from his busy life over the Christmas break to hide away at a remote backcountry lodge in Banff National Park.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took a break from his busy life over the Christmas break to hide away at a remote backcountry lodge in Banff National Park.

Neither the Prime Minister’s Office or Parks Canada would provide details on his stay at historic Skoki Lodge north of Lake Louise. He left there Tuesday morning (Jan. 2) and hit the slopes at Lake Louise Ski Resort.

Western Canada’s oldest backcountry lodge, accessed by an 11-kilometre ski-in over two mountain passes, isn’t full-on luxury. There’s no running water, electricity, flush toilets or Wifi service, making it popular for outdoor enthusiasts who want to disconnect from the outside world.

“This is a personal private holiday,” said Chantal Gagnon, a spokesperson for the PMO in an email. “We do not have any details to share.”

An RCMP Astar B3 helicopter was stationed in Lake Louise for many days. It reportedly was moving RCMP members and supplies on a limited daily basis, but was not to be used for the prime minister, his family or friends unless it was for a medical emergency.

RCMP also did a lot of sledding in and out of Skoki.

Dan Markham, director of brand and communications for Lake Louise Ski Resort – the owners of the 1931 lodge – said he is unable to give out information about guests at the lodge.

“This is not something I can speak to,” he said.

A ski and snowboard instructor at Whistler in the late 1990s, Trudeau is a sports enthusiast and passionate about boarding.

During winter, the mountains around Skoki are a skier’s paradise, with plenty of light, legendary Canadian Rockies’ champagne powder.

Skoki Lodge – considered the birthplace of skiing in Canada – is a national historic site. Because of its remoteness, it has become popular with high profile people seeking privacy.

In 2013, Prince William, the future King of England, and Kate spent 24 hours at Skoki during a whirlwind trip to Canada.

With no running water, Parks Canada allowed construction of small building with flush toilet and bathtub near the Riverside cabin, one of three cabins. Trudeau did not require the same treatment as The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

This Christmas holiday was without controversy for Trudeau, unlike the fallout of his 2016 vacation on a private island in the Bahamas owned by the Aga Khan, the spiritual leader of Ismaili Muslims.

The federal ethics watchdog found he violated several conflict of interest laws when he accepted an invitation from Aga Khan to holiday with family and friends on Bells Cay from Dec. 26-Jan. 4, 2016 – and used a private helicopter to get there.

Outgoing Ethics Commissioner Mary Dawson, who investigated Trudeau for almost a year, said the prime minister would have known the extent of Aga Khan’s official dealings with the federal government and that should have raised alarm bells.

She concluded the Christmas vacation and another trip could be seen as an attempt to influence Trudeau, particularly when the Aga Khan’s Foundation was registered to lobby the PMO. There was clearly official business between the federal government and Aga Khan.

Following the findings, which were released last month, Trudeau apologized and promised to check with the ethics commissioner if there was any conflict of interest before booking holidays in future.


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