Ski Fields in Canada

We've just finished our Spring Break, which is the one week off school between January and June. In order to have such long holidays, school only stops for one week between that time, which means that it is a long stretch. Even though we've only been here for 6 weeks, we still feel like we needed a holiday ... or rather a break from school.

We decided to spend as much time as possible skiing, so we headed to the ski fields a little further from our house. Les Massif de Charlevoix was the destination for the first few days, a little north of Quebec City; then back to Mt Tremblant, about 90 minutes from our house, for the last few days.

Ski fields are just great. They tend not to be called 'resorts' but rather more low key and are just fields. Ski fields are focused on getting Canadians outside and enjoying their winter climate and exercising. The lift ticket prices are reasonable and especially the season passes. They all have a large indoor centre for skiers and visitors to use, with plenty of tables and chairs, and lockers for visitors. Lockers are all free, but most people leave their gear lying around near the tables. There seems to be no issue with security. Food from the cafes is simple but tasty and healthy. Nearly every centre has had a choice of 3-4 soups and then simple wraps/sandwiches, sometimes a pasta bar and usually one or two pizza choices. You are welcome to bring your own food and people come with large bags and set up interesting lunches. Microwaves are provided if you want to heat food. So family friendly!

As we were there during Spring Break, Les Massif provided free activities with an adult mountain guide for the children on one day. A guide took small groups of children to show them different parts of the mountain and give their parents time to ski - all for free! They provided an english speaking guide for our children, who managed to show Lach where some of the best jumps were! Tony and I skied for while, until I decided that warmed red wine at the bar was a much better idea!

Les Massif and Mt Tremblant are the two biggest ski fields in the province of Quebec. Les Massif is funded by the owner of Circque de Soleil so there is a lot of money behind it! It is only 800 metres above sea level and the mountain runs right down to the sea - the St Laurent Seaway. The background of the photos here show the river in the background - semi frozen. The scenery is stunning and the pine trees that line the ski runs are exactly like the images of snow covered Christmas trees. I encourage you to google it and look at the photos taken by professionals - it really is stunning. The runs are long with views the whole way. There is a gondola lift to take you up (= warmth) but the queues were 20 minutes plus ... so often we braved the chair lifts. Temps were around -15 to -20. The two dots half way down the slope in this photo above are Lach and Sophie.

With temps that cold, the "hotties" (hand warmers) were needed for hands and feet, plenty of hot chocolates and a sneaky red wine. 

Closer to Montreal is a well known ski village called Mt Tremblant. It has a beautiful village which looks like it belongs in Austria, which adds significant beauty to the location. It is popular in both summer and winter. It is very popular with visitors from outside of Quebec as well as the USA. We skied there back in February and decided that we wanted to spend more time there. Again, the facilities are fantastic and we were able to take sandwiches and snacks with us. Unfortunately Sophie got sick and spent most of the afternoon snoozing on my lap in the hut. She managed a half day of skiing on our second day, but still wasn't quite herself. Mt Tremblant is located adjacent to a lake, so the views show a frozen lake at the base of the runs.

As well as these big ski fields, there are many, many smaller ones. We have visited some of them but are always noticing more as we are out driving or are being told about them. Montreal is a very, very flat city, but it is surrounded by the Laurentian Mountains. Ski fields appear even on some of the lower ranges - they don't need a high altitude to get the snow! They just need the long slopes. We have been so impressed with these smaller fields also - think Selywn but with great snow and a range of runs - greens right through to blacks. They many only have 20-30 runs, but that is plenty if you are only going a couple of times a season. All of them have these great facilities which make it an easy day out for families.