The late CBC radio personality Peter Gzowski—a man with his finger firmly on the pulse of the national psyche—once suggested Canada needed a national holiday in February to break up the winter doldrums. Good idea—not to mention it’s a fun way to keep warm. But until politicians get around to making it official, these favourite outdoor winter festivals give us a license to party when the mercury plummets.

• For about two weeks from January to February each year, visitors can wave the white flag at winter and surrender to all manner of snowy pleasures at the nation’s premier winterfest—the Mr. Christie’s Quebec City Winter Carnaval. (This year marked the 53rd.) Rev your pulse rate with a thrilling ride down the ice luge (but remember to first marvel at the view from the top). Nourish your inner child at the fabled ice castle with its fairytale sound-and-light show. Dance the Quebec two-step to keep your toes warm during the best parade east of the Calgary Stampede. And if that doesn’t do the trick, try sipping a little Caribou. Allegedly once the blood of the animal, it’s now a sweet, whiskey-based libation and the festival’s signature spirit. www.quebecregion.com
• Winnipeg’s 10-day Festival du Voyageurs (Feb. 15 to 24, 2008) celebrates Manitoba’s French-Canadian heritage and highlights Canada’s fur-trade era through traditional music, dance and games at sites throughout the city. The annual fiddling and jigging contest, and the opening night torchlight parade from The Forks, appeal to all ages. The specially created Voyageur Park near the Red River offers big family fun à la tubing, snow golf, sleigh rides—and plenty of rib-stickin’ food. www.festivalvoyageur.mb.ca
• Only a cold heart wouldn’t melt at the sight of the Ice Hog Family mascots of the 29th edition of Ottawa’s Winterlude. The Winterlude unfolds Feb. 1 to 17, 2008, at four locations across the nation’s capital region. Every year, more than 650,000 visitors turn up for the party, almost a third of them out-of-towners. For many Canadians, it’s a lifelong dream to glide along the famous Rideau Canal, the world’s largest naturally frozen ice rink. But for the skating-challenged, there are plenty of other distractions—a giant snow maze, massive snow slides, a Snowbowl concert series and a national snow-sculpture competition. www.winterlude.gc.ca
• Each February, the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous Festival beats back the winter blahs backcountry-style with dog howling, ice carving, axe-throwing, flour-packing, dog-sled racing and chain-saw chucking competitions. Head over to Main Street—aka Rendez-ville—for live entertainment and hot food. Make sure the kids (or the kid in you) don’t miss the Sugar Shack between Third and Fourth Avenues. www.yukonrendezvous.com