Author: Tom V

It was our traditional Thanksgiving weekend hike at Oka last Sun.  Twenty-two of us gathered under cloudy skies and a temp of 12 C.  There was a breeze and we were all taken aback at how cold we felt in the parking lot.  But we knew that feeling would quickly dissipate once we started hiking uphill in the shelter of the trees.  Besides, we had a mission!  There were apples and cheeses waiting for us at the top.  And maybe chocolate?

We got a passer-by to take our group photo at the trail head.  By the way, this passer-by was passing by on roller skis!  He was already training for ski season.  Us Beaver Tailers are dedicated skiers, but we’re not *that* dedicated!

Off we went on our quest for free local produce.  Most of the climbing comes during the first 3 km before we reach a small clearing with a couple of picnic tables.  This is marked as “Le Sommet” on the park map.  It is actually the highest point of the hike, but the clearing is surrounded by trees so there is no viewpoint.  We attempted to regroup here, but people were consumed by thoughts of possible chocolate at the lookout and they could not be held back!

The next 3 km was easy going, except for when the trail kicked up for the final approach to the lookout with the three chapels.  The bad news — no chocolate this year!  But there was a cornucopia of Spartan apples and large cubes of Oka cheese.  The bounty was being portioned out by park personnel as part of the park’s annual celebration of local culture and history.  While we snacked we enjoyed the view and remarked how the leaves were slower to be changing colours this year.

It was another 2 km down the gently sloping Sentier du Calvaire, past the small chapels with bas-relief wood carvings depicting religious scenes.  The stats: 7.9 km from 10 am to 12:15 pm, with a temp range of 12 C to 15 C.  A great little hike for a busy holiday weekend!

It was bike riding weather on Friday, but that night the weather veered back towards winter one last time.  We had a nice blanket of damp snow on Sat morning.  I went for a solo ski at Cap St Jacques at 11:30 am.  The trails had not been groomed, but several other skiers had already passed and had established tracks.  There were not too many bare spots, but there were some puddles to skirt around.  It was fun to be out at CSJ one last time.
On Sun at Mont St Bruno, four of us could not resist the prospect of an April ski outing.  The fact that we were able to ski this late in the season on the South Shore, instead of having to travel up north to the Laurentians, made it all the more special.  I know there were many more of you who would have wanted to be there if you had not been preoccupied with Easter holiday activities!

The parking lot and waxing room were much quieter than usual when we arrived at 10 am.  Amazingly, all 27 km of the classic trails and all 8 km of the skate trails were open.  The trails were all rated as “passable”.  The coverage was thin, Continue reading “2015 04 05 — Four BTers Out For a Rare April ski at Mont St Bruno”

On Sat afternoon and evening we kept an eye on the weather.　 The temp hovered around the freezing point with snow and rain falling, depending on just where and when one was checking the weather.　 But it became clear that, while there was rain mixed with the snow in town and points south, in the Laurentians they were only getting snow.　 So at the End of Season Party on Sat evening, we quickly reached a consensus that Gai Luron would be the place to go on Sun morning.　 A tweet to this effect was duly issued.

It definitely did not feel like the second day of spring as we arrived at Gai Luron at 10 am on Sun.　 The Swix thermometer at Gai Luron said it was -12 C, but our car dashboards were reporting more like -15 C.　 However the sun was out and that helped.　 There was a reported wind of about 25 km/h, but it was from the west and the Gai Luron chalet sits on the east side of the big hill with all the trails, so we did not feel the wind at all.　 What’s more, they had received 3-5 cm of powdery snow and the trails were all freshly groomed.

There were only six of us who gathered in the chalet at 10 am — me, Mickey, Scott, Ghyslaine, Roy and Dennis.　 There were several more members at the EOS party the previous evening who had expressed their intent to join us, but that was earlier in the evening, before the effects of a late night of eating and joviality apparently caught up with them!

After applying green(!) wax to our skis, we were off Continue reading “2015 03 22 — Amazing “Spring” Skiing at Gai Luron”

We were expecting 20 cm of snow to fall up north last Sat night, but not also in the city.　 There was a lot of snow to clear off the cars on Sun morning and as a result we all arrived 10-15 minutes late at Parc des Campeurs for the scheduled 9:30 am arrival time.　 With the cold winter we have had, the temp was a blessedly mild -3 C under cloudy skies. It pretty much stayed at that temp the whole time we were there.

With all the new snow that had only just stopped falling as we arrived, the ski centre was behind in their grooming.　 With so much snow on the ground, they elected to first do a quick pass on the green and blue trails by snowmobile so they would be flattened (or “tapé” as they called it in french).　 So when we started skiing, it was on those flattened trails, but with some shallow tracks created by skiers who had already gone ahead of us.

We all started out together on the trail that winds through the campground, in between the snow-covered trailers.　 We got a couple of great group shots of all of eight us (in two photos, seven at a time).　 Sharon then went off to do her own thing while the rest of us took the green Stonehaven trail.　 The trails were beautiful, with much fluffy snow sitting gingerly on the tree branches.　 It happened several times that a slight breeze would nudge the overhead branches and unleash a small cascade of snow on top of us.　 One of the photos captures Continue reading “2015 03 15 — Snowy Day at Ste Agathe on the Ides of March”

We have often been frustrated in recent years in timing　our trips to Montagne Coupée with good conditions, especially since we usually visit in early March.　 Too warm, too cold, too icy — we’ve had it all.　 Last year was a long winter and we had good snow although the descents were a little fast.　 This year, we got it right.

It was sunny and -10 C with low winds　as the ten of us met at the chalet.　 We broke up into two groups. 　eight of us looking to go hard and long, while the remaining pair opted for a more measured pace.　 We all opted to start with trail 9.2. 　(The trail numbers at MC correspond to　the distance of the trail, to one decimal point.).　 This begins with a 2-km long plunge to the L’Assomption River.　 This descent can be uncomfortably fast, but the trail had well groomed and no one had any difficulty.　 At one point, if you look left through the trees, you can see the new monastery to which the monks from Oka relocated a few years back.

Our octet followed the loop that brings us back along the river a second time.　 We then embarked on the long steady climb back towards the chalet.　 When we reached the road about 1 km short of the chalet, we turned off to follow trail 7.2.

This trail, like the first one, takes one through a pleasing mix of woods and open fields.　 We spend most of our time skiing through the woods, we sometimes forget how lovely snow-covered hills and dales can be.　 Of course, it’s not as appealing when a cold wind is blowing, but that was not the case on this day.

It clouded over and got a bit breezier　as we made Continue reading “March 1st — Ten BTers Cutting Through the Mountain Trails at Montagne Coupée”

It’s hard to believe that it had been four years (Feb 2011) since the club last had a weekend trip to Mont Ste Anne.　 We had gone there every year without fail for over 10 years until then.　 But then our favorite place (Hotel Val-des-Neiges) got sold to a condo developer and we decided to take a break from Mont Ste Anne.　 This year we decided it was time to try going back.　 Joanna offered to investigate and found us a good deal at the Chateau Mont Ste Anne, which is right at the base of the downhill ski center, instead of 1 km down the road like our old place.　 It was a bit surprising then that only 11 people signed up for the weekend.　 But there has been a trend in the club in recent years to travel shorter distances to our weekend spots.　 At the last minute, one person had to stay home due to a work conflict, so in the end we were only 10 people at Mont Ste Anne.

We all drove up Friday afternoon and checked in.　 The rooms are very comfortable and are all equipped with a small galley kitchen, so you can bring your own food if you want.　 But we all opted to meet in the lobby at 6:30 pm and start the weekend with another old tradition — dinner at the St Bernard Resto Pub down the road near the place we used to stay.　 It was as good as we remembered it.

The next morning we enjoyed our buffet breakfast in the dining room while admiring the view of the ski hill through the full-length windows.　 Saturday was going to be the big ski day for all of us and we plotted how to attack the trails.　 It was -16 C with low wind, which Continue reading “2015 02 21-22 at Mont Ste Anne — As Great As Always!”

We made the right call last week to switch the destination from Far Hills (Val David) to Gai Luron (Saint Jerome).　 Being just 30 km further south made a big difference in the weather.　 Sure, it was still cold at Gai Luron, with a temp of -18 C at 10:30 am.　 But it was -21 C at Val David, and the entire region north of Ste Adele was under an “extreme cold” weather advisory.
When the initial four of us arrived at Gai Luron, it was indeed a bit chilly.　 But it was sunny and, as usually seems to be the case at Gai Luron, the wind was much less than what was in the forecast.　 At 11 am Mickey, Glenn and I set out on the L trail, while Sharon stuck to the shorter loops.　 As soon as we got into the woods, the wind ceased to be any sort of issue.　 Indeed, when we paused briefly on the trail 2 km into our ski, Glenn exclaimed, “It’s not so cold!”　 Please note, I did not do or say anything to elicit this statement.
The trails were in the perfectly groomed condition we have come to expect at Gai Luron.　 At the 3-km point, we opted to take the first extension to the L, called “Boucle B”.　 It’s a single track that lopes through the woods for 2.5 km.　 It has lots of dips and curves, but all the short, sharp descents are followed by enough of a straight runoff stretch, and so there is never any cause for concern.　 We then did the rest of the L, for a total of 10.6 km.
When we got back to the chalet, Den and his son Chris had just arrived and were ready to join us for the next go around.　 Mickey and Glenn were up for more skiing, but not me.　 I thought taking six days after doing the marathon would be enough to get “back on the horse”.　 Boy, was I wrong.　 I had to drag myself around the L trail, and came off it feeling tired and hurting.　 I promptly prescribed myself another week off from skiing!　 But the remaining five stayed a while longer to enjoy more of the great conditions.

It was another cold day last Sun, but like Sat it was sunny and the winds were low.　 That makes a big difference in terms of skiing comfort.

With a temps of between -20 C and -18 C, I was expecting a small group to show up at the Viking Ski Club in Morin Heights, but we ended up being a dozen strong BTers ready to take on the trails.　 The Viking trails have their fans among the BTNSC and it had been three years since we last paid a formal visit there.　 We assembled in the Viking club house at 10 am and discussed route options with our Viking Ski Club host, Derek Wills.　 At 10:30 am, we set out across the road and skied down to the lake to start the trails.　 At the first junction, Jessica B, Luc, and Vivian decided to split off and go for a shorter and more relaxed ski.　 That left nine of us BTers to follow our Viking tour leader, Derek.

It certainly was good to have Derek at the front, especially since the connection from the initial trail to the Crown South trail took us along the side of a road and was not obvious.　 We then got going on the Crown South trail proper.　 That takes one through the woods and across lakes and marshes.　 The Crown South trail is single track, but it is well-groomed.　 So it is not back-country skiing in that sense.　 But compared to a typical ski center, where you have the sense of security of being in a place with distinct boundaries, the trails at Viking have a wilder feel because they just go off into the countryside on public (i.e., crown, or government-owned) land.　 If one does not pay attention to the map and the trail markings, you can get well off course.　 But with Derek’s guidance, Continue reading “Feb 1 A Delighted Dozen at Viking”