2016-2017
34 topics in this forum
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- 8 replies
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Wow what a great ski day!. 15c by midday, loads of snow coverage and killer spring skiing. Skyline and the Valley were both open with a dual slalom race on slalom. Even Swan Dive was still skiable with all natural coverage. Snow was corn but not slush, fast and fun.
Last reply by Paul, -
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The choice today to pretty much end my 2016-17 ski season was Mont Orford. I have ended 3 of the past 4 seasons here and what a day to close out the year! Today had been announced that Orford would be closing for the season due to the weather for Easter Sunday and Monday not being great with rain in the forecast for the Townships. Beautiful bluebird sky to start, really mild, and true spring skiing at its best were to be had. 2 lifts were spinning, the Hybride, a 6 seater chair/gondola serving the Trois Ruisseaux and Grand Coulée trails on Mount Orford, and the Mont Giroux North Quad serving the Magnum, Jean-Davignon, Magog and Pente Douce trails. The condition…
Last reply by Shane, -
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Here we are, at the end of the ski season in the Ottawa-Gatineau region. With the snow nearly all melted from the city and the heavy rain received over the past week, you could easily think that the skiing is over. This is definitely not the case. In fact, I can't remember the last time I skied at Easter at Camp Fortune where they had this much snow, and the skiing conditions were this great. Even more surprising, the Valley is still open, with Pineault and Allen's Alley, in addition to the trails on Skyline. I started skiing shortly after opening at 9am. The first trail I tried was Heggveit, the classic double diamond of Ca…
Last reply by Paul, -
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I have to say Mont Chilly is a hidden gem. Yes its rather far from Ottawa and it only has a T-bar for hill access but its a got a great vibe, friendly locals and some great terrain. I got to the hill around 10:30am after a scenic drive down 148. Watch for deer there were lots out in the farmer fields. Anyway the t-bar was just starting after purchasing the $20 lift ticket. Condition wise the snow was sticky from a couple cm's of fresh snow but as the day progressed the conditions got faster becoming typical spring skiing like. Now for the cool news, there is a new run at Chilly, #5. Its on the far side of #4. You have to traverse a trail at the top marked with pink f…
Last reply by Robert, -
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April is famous for its spring skiing, and for me, there is no better place to go than Sommet Saint-Sauveur. They really know how to put on a great show, from the legendary ambiance on the outdoor terrace, to the entertainment and friendly competitions of all sorts, to offering the longest ski season in the province and being last to close. This year they are aiming to stay open until May 14th, that gives another month and a half of skiing to go. Arriving at the mountain slightly before 8:30am, the parking was already approximately 1/3 full. There was a competition to take place on 70 Ouest so it was understandable. That said, there was still much fewer people …
Last reply by Gordo, -
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With the day off work today, and taking advantage of that, Mont Sutton was the choice of destination. I left Sherbrooke at a little after 7 under partly cloudy skies. When I arrived at Sutton for 8:30, it was cloudy and about 2 degrees above zero. The conditions were a bit more tricky that I was anticipating, as the mild temperatures from yesterday and the freeze from last night made for some hard surfaces. 57/60 trails were announced as open with 2 lifts, Chair 2 the main Quad and Chair 4, the fixed grip Quad were spinning today. The wait in line for either lift was non-existent. The day began on the Sutton iK and the Mohawk to warm up. The Sutton iK was groom…
Last reply by Shane, -
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We raced up to Fortune in the hope of getting a bunch of runs in before the freezing rain hit. We were rewarded with perfect grooming and no lines. Though a little colder then the gorgeous day on Saturday I suspect the snow was better today. Heggtveit was our number one pick and we GS styled down it half a dozen times to get the blood flowing. The rest of the runs were in great shape with only Swan Dive closed on the Skyline side. I'm hoping Fortune can extend the season to the Easter weekend, fingers crossed. Heggtveit in all its groomed glory The Valley Lower section of Clifford The park We almost …
Last reply by Gordo, -
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After a couple of weeks of no skiing, tonight I needed a ski fix, so Mont Bellevue was just what the doctor ordered. Mont Bellevue, located in the heart of the city of Sherbrooke is operated by the Municipality and offers a small variety of trails, 10 in all. You are not going to find many challenges here as there are no trails marked any higher than Intermediate. The hill is a popular spot for mostly families with small children, and teens. The cost of a lift ticket here for residents of Sherbrooke doesn't run higher that $16, with proof of residency, for a full day ticket. Non-residents do not pay much more than $20 or so. Bellevue has 1 fixed grip Quad, new this season…
Last reply by Shane, -
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Wow what a beautiful day! Today's plan was Mont Gleason. This mountain is located in the town of Warwick about 1 hour from Sherbrooke. I left this morning at 7:30 to be there early enough for decent parking and to beat the rush to get some early runs in. Gleason has 5 lifts in all, 1 fixed grip Quad, 1 double chair, 2 t-bars serving 20 trails, and a Magic Carpet for the learning zone for beginners. I met up with a friend of mine with whom I skied with at Whaleback a month ago. We hit the Quad lift a few minutes before opening at 9:00. This is usually the first lift to open and the double follows soon after usually by 10:30, but today was different. We expected this to be …
Last reply by Shane, -
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Heading outside at 8:55am, I made my way to the Lakeview quad to start my day. Upon first glance, the trails were all nicely groomed and the snow is impeccable. I line up and make it to be on the first chair up the mountain. Mission accomplished! While heading up the mountain, I look in the direction of Black Donald, my first destination, and the big reason for coming today. For those not familiar with Calabogie, this trail has the best views of the Calabogie Lake in the distance. For almost half of the descent, you get stunning views, especially during the section leading in at the summit. Conditions overall were firm base, that was slightly softening up as the…
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I pulled into Mont Ste Marie around 9:30 expecting lots of cars and the place to be busy. Not so even though its Quebec March Break. The conditions were surprisingly good as the mountain got 12cms of fresh snow after the rain on Wednesday, if fact it was snowing a little when we arrived. No lift lines and great conditions resulted in a great day of skiing. The temperature was around -12 with a little wind so you had to bundle up but I've skied in far colder conditions. Formidable and a section of Tornado with 12cm of ungroomed snow were our favs of the day. After we drove over the top (Trans-Outaouais Road) to a cottage on Lac Sam. Fun Times!
Last reply by Shane, -
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- 1 reply
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Nothing like night skiing in a blizzard! Wow was it windy at the top of Skyline but the skiing was great. I arrived around 7pm and we had about 6cm of fresh snow on top of hard pack. Just enough snow to the crust. I stuck to Skyline and I have to say I have never seen Bud, Canadian and the Chute so well groomed. Not a single bump or mogul anywhere so smooth and flat. This must be because of the Ontario Provincial U14 races this Wednesday and Thursday. Anyway the skiing was wicked and I'm glad we got that storm, this morning Camp Fortune is saying close to 20cm fell and its still snowing. I didn't take many pictures as my hands froze pretty quick out of the gloves. BT…
Last reply by Shane, -
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- 6 replies
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Today's Destination was Whaleback Mountain located in Enfield, NH, about 15 minutes south of White River Junction, VT right on Interstate 89, to meet up with a friend who had been skiing in the region the past couple of days. I left Sherbrooke this morning at 6 am for the journey, 95% all autoroute for this trip. Whaleback is very easy to find and easily accessible. Whaleback has 1 double chair, and magic carpet serving 31 trails and 700 foot vertical with a variety of different levels of ability and glade skiing. You will notice the trail names named are in relation with a sea and the whale theme. The mountain has seen a number of closures over the past number of years, …
Last reply by Gordo, -
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I finally made it out to Calabogie Peaks for the first timer this year. We had a bluebird Sunday with almost no wind. The mountain has a lot less snow then Mont Ste-Marie but the machine groomed granular was holding out well enough. You had to pretty much stick to the groomers though as anything else was pretty much glare ice or exposed rock! The area needs snow and it looks like they have been making some but no snow guns were running on Sunday. Finnegan, Whistlin Paddy and Black Donald were in the best shape, great long cruisers with nice fall lines. The extra vertical on the runs does make a difference. Overall a totally sun filled enjoyable day. Also of note Cal…
Last reply by Gordo, -
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Today's Destination was Owl's Head. My second home from 1989-2001. The temperature was around -10 degrees and cloudy upon arrival at 8:15 this morning, and to a few cars in the parking lot. The weatherman had announced for a mostly sunny day. It did clear out later on during the morning. Being that it is school break this week, I was expecting a lot more cars than what I saw. With the weather we had this past 7-10 days and everything being practically brown, people may have the wrong perception on what is out there. There is snow still to be had on the mountain. The conditions today were pretty good considering what we've had. Just had to watch where you ski in some areas…
Last reply by Paul, -
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Last week we had almost 50cm of fresh snow on the ground. Since Saturday its been a total meltdown. We've lost over 20cm of snow pack and the worse is yet to come. Regardless the snow base is holding out at Camp Fortune. I went up night skiing to check on the conditions. The snow is soft and fast but not slushy and there is no ice. I was getting depressed at the winter meltdown but Fortune helped kill my blues. All the light runs were open and it was a beautiful night for skiing with a temperature of about 4 C. I'm crossing my fingers that it will get cold next week and snow!
Last reply by Gordo, -
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With spring like conditions and lots of snow you would have thought I'd be out on the ski hills this weekend. Well I wanted to go to Mont Chilly but got stuck in town. This was kinda a good thing after looking at the webcams at Camp fortune and Mont Ste-Marie, it was crazy busy up there. Instead I checked out Carlington Hill and discovered Alpine skiing, back country skiing and powder filled glades in downtown Ottawa! The Carlington Hill is a water reservoir but it was also a mini ski hill with a t-bar from 1965-1990. Some t-bar pillars and pulleys can be seen in the photos. The hill used to be called Anne Heggtviet Hill for a while. Anyway I put on my snow shoe skis …
Last reply by Jake, -
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Previous report of my ski day at Mt. Abram, ME that was posted on another ski website forum. The Choice of Destination - Mt. Abram, Maine. The day began with my departure from Sherbrooke at 5:30am via Colebrook, NH and Balsams Wilderness, (route 26) with a brief stop to visit the closed ski area, and I arrived at Mt. Abram at 08:30. I noticed that there was no cellular service from Colebrook, NH to Newery, ME, (Sunday River) on Highway 26. It is a remote area, not a lot of cars travel this road. Balsams Wilderness, NH: Today at Mt.Abram, there was telemark racing (USTSA – the United States Telemark Skiers Association) with their Telefest, a day of fre…
Last reply by Jake, -
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Just got home from a fantastic morning at Camp Fortune. About 30cms dropped over Sunday afternoon into the night resulting in some beauty powder for Monday morning. I grabbed my fatties and made it to the hill for almost first chair. Heggtveit, The Chute and Duffy were left un-groomed for the powder hounds. Craigsmarc and Swan Dive were busy with "free riders" including Craig himself. Got in a bunch of runs on Heggtveit and the Chute before they became chopfest. The snow was light though so even the fresh made moguls were easy enough. Went over to the Valley later, it was a ghost town, but lots of powder was to be found on Duffy and in the trees between the runs. Kill…
Last reply by Gordo, -
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What an incredible day at Ski Vorlage. I have been trying my best this season to be at the mountains in time for opening but this is the first time this year I had first chair (after the ski patrol that is). Let me tell you right from the start, the conditions were perfect. A light snow was falling during the morning and the previous night had left some fresh snow as well. For nearly the first hour, I was treated to perfectly groomed corduroy slopes all over. I started my visit by riding up the blue chair, and taking Snow Dance and then Chute and finishing off on North Slope. The drop on Chute is really something, gives you a big burst of speed and makes …
