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Back to skiing it was, since the trip to New Hampshire (Black Mountain) earlier in the month. Took a bit of a break. Today was at Mont Bellevue for what is to be their last weekend of the 2022-23 season. Tomorrow is supposed the last day. We arrived at the hill at 8:30 to a few cars in the parking lot, and were the first skis on the rack. The morning had started out sunny, but progressively was clouding over as the morning went along. Lots of space in the chalet to get ready as it wasn't crowded, and to print our tickets from the portable kiosk they have there. A simple scan of the bar code from the e-ticket that's emailed to you when you purchase online. It had been mild, and rained a bit during the week. Coverage was still pretty decent considering, and conditions were machine groomed granular over a firm base. It skied fast for the first few runs but started to soften up as the morning progressed. There were a few icy patches that were forming however, but there was plenty of space to avoid them. The snow was consistent were ever you skied. Absolutely zero line up at the Quad. It has been a great season at Bellevue. I don't think I've skied here as many times throughout the season as I have had this year. Usually it has been a couple of times at most during a season. This year it was seven! With the kids starting their first year of skiing this has been an excellent place for them to start. Even though the terrain at Bellevue fairly easy, its a great place for beginners. It is not expensive to ski here, and very friendly on the pocket book for families. We are very lucky to have a hill like this operated by the city of Sherbrooke, and close by. Even though the Poma was down all year, the line up at the Quad was really decent. I am uncertain what the future of the Poma will be, as it is need of major repairs. No word as of yet if it will be replaced or simply dismantled. Thank you to Bellevue for a great season, and for making it affordable for Abby, Lukas, and myself to ski here. We will be back again next year! Some More Scenes From the Day: Here is a blast from the past - hanging on the wall in the chalet is a photo from what looks like the 1960's or maybe early 1970's of the chalet at that time!

Off with the kids again to Mont Bellevue. Seems like this is getting to be a weekly outing now. I don't mind as skiing here is quite affordable. It's also a great activity to get them out of the house for some exercise, and fresh air. We arrived at the hill just after 8:30 just before everyone arrived, to get a decent spot to get ready in the chalet, and to get a spot to place our bags. It was a fresh -18 degrees to start the day but it quickly warmed up. The Quad and the Magic Carpet were in operation. The Poma is down for the season unfortunately. The conditions were fast as we had some freezing rain Friday during the day with a light dusting of snow on top. The trails were of groomed granular snow over a firm base. They did a great job of grooming this morning after what we've had these last couple of days. We skipped the warm up on the Magic Carpet, and went straight to the Quad. Abby and Lukas were eager to get the day rolling along. As the trails are numbered, and not named, we started the day on Trail 1, and then on to Trail 3 which is under the lift, then veering to the left on to the bottom of Trail 4. I didn't see any ice patches anywhere during the 2 hour block I reserved for us. Under The Quad (Trail 3) & The Lower Part of Trail 4: I let Abby & Lukas go do a couple of runs by themselves, and after each of their runs alone we met at the bottom of the Quad. There was absolutely no line up at the Quad. You could practically ski down, and ski on to the lift. I went off to the snow park to check what they had set up. I hadn't been on this side of the hill yet at all this season. I was also checking out if the kids would be able to ski this section. As they are beginners, there were a few pitches that they would not like to do just yet, and wait until later in the season with a little more practice. The Snow Park Section: After a few more runs our time was up. We had a great time even though it was short. By the time we were done it had started to cloud over but it had warmed up nicely. Grooming was really well done considering what we had these past few days. It had been mild this week, and some freezing rain yesterday. Booking on line is a breeze, and you can print your lift tickets at the kiosk inside or go to the ticket windows outside, and away you go. Another enjoyable day at Bellevue! Here Are Some Other Scenes From the Morning: An Old Trail Map of Bellevue Hanging Up Inside:

Mont Bellevue - some scenes from last night February 2, 2023. Great little community hill in the heart of Sherbrooke, QC

Back at Bellevue with the kids! They had been wanting to go again, and asking multiple times this past week so off we went. I had booked another 2-hour block online last night along with rentals for my son. We had gone last night to a shop in Sherbrooke that I get my skis done, and they were having a moving sale so we went to check it out. We walked with a new pair of skis, and boots for my daughter. She was pretty happy, and couldn't wait to try out her new stuff. We arrived at the hill for 8:30 to mainly cloudy skies with the sun trying to poke through. It was fairly mild, just at about -5 degrees. What a difference a couple of weeks make! We did get some snow throughout the week and a bit but not the dump we desperately need. 5 of the 10 trails were open along with the Quad & Magic Carpet. The conditions were great with a groomed packed powder on a firm base. Not a patch of ice anywhere. The warm up was on the Magic Carpet for the kids for a couple of runs. Once this was completed, we headed over the Quad. It was my son's first time on the lift, and seemed quite nervous at first about being so high up, but that wore off quickly. We headed down Trail 1, a nice easy trail that comes out by the front chalet. Lukas, by the fourth run wanted to take a break so he headed for the fire pit, and Abby & I went back to the Quad for a couple of more runs. Trail 1 Looking Up and Down: We went under the Quad chair for Abby's first time on this trail, and back over to the chalet. Looking around by the fire pit we didn't see Lukas anywhere until we saw him coming down trail 1 in front of the chalet. He had done a couple of runs by himself up the Magic Carpet. The line up at the Quad was not more than 2-3 minutes at most. Trail 3 Under the Quad & Heading Back to the Chalet: The Lineup at The Quad: We did one more trip up the Magic Carpet to end off the morning. We were done by 11:00 and the parking lot was full. People were parking on the street that enter the lot at both ends. Everyone had a great morning of skiing, and we'll most likely be back a few times before the end of the season! A Few More Scenes From the Day:

Today's visit was to Mont Bellevue, our local ski hill in the heart of the city of Sherbrooke. The weather has been absolutely horrible as of late with very little snow, and what snow that has fallen, has since melted with warm temperatures and rain. We are in desperate need of a good old fashioned dump of snow. 4 of the 10 trails at Bellevue were opened with the Magic Carpet, and the Quad. The Poma has been closed for the season, and won't be operating. I haven't heard the reason why for the closure. Today was a family day for skiing as my daughter, and son were asking to go. So Bellevue was it. It is a great hill for beginners to "cut their skis" on as most of the terrain here is easy. We arrived at 8:45 to get the kids set up for their rental skis, and boots. It was cloudy and just below freezing. The trails were groomed during the night however with the temperatures dropping, there was a light crust. This crust was no trouble with the amount of skiers today as it was turning to a loose granular snow. It was laps up the Magic Carpet with the kids to start. I purchased a 2 Hour block to start us off with as this was the kids first time skiing this year. It was my son's second time on skis. He skied last season for an outing with his school at Orford. My daughter was on her fourth time on skis, so they are true beginners. We took our time not to rush, or to crash! After about three runs my son decided to hang out by the fire pit, and rest. My daughter, after her runs decided that she was ready for the Quad, and head to the top. We made only 1 run up as we were nearing our time limit on our ticket. Trail 1 from the top was of loose granular over a firm base. The was no wait at the Quad. There were a fair amount of children today taking lessons or like us skiing with their parents. We where done by 11:00 o'clock as it was time up for our 2 hour block. We had a great time, and a great introduction to skiing for Abby and Lukas. Bellevue is a great place for them to learn how to ski. We are very fortunate to have this hill not to far away from our place. Looking forward for another trip with them later on this season. Here Are Some Other Scenes of the Day: