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What a perfect day on the slopes! The temperature was just right, and the sun was shining. Today I visited Sommet Saint-Sauveur, a ski mountain that holds a special place in my heart. There is just something magical about every visit, and this time was no different. With an early departure at 8am from Gatineau, I arrived at the mountain at 10am. The parking was already starting to fill, despite having only opened at 9am in the morning. Gearing up at the car, and strategically parking close to the Côte 71 chairlift, I started skiing shortly before 11am. I must confess, this is my first visit back to Sommet Saint-Sauveur in around 3 years. The arrival of our child and the pandemic put a temporary pause on my skiing. Having skied at Saint-Sauveur for many, many years (feeling like a second home every weekend), I had impatiently waited for quite some time to return and see what had changed... so that was what I quickly did before heading up for my first run. No doubt, the two biggest changes are the new Sommet Express (six-pack detachable chairlift with heated seats) that replaced the legendary Atomic Express back in 2019. The old customer service building, which originally housed a double chairlift, way back when, was replaced this year with a new Atelier Les Sommets, regrouping part of the boutique with the ski shop and the lockers. It also features a small café and an outdoor terrace, only steps away from the Sommet Express. I also noticed that Red Bird (the main beginner trail) now has permanently mounted snowmaking guns from top to bottom, which is great news and will surely help get that trail open sooner, and ensure great conditions all season long. Long story short, the mountain is always improving and innovating, with an emphasis on the ski experience. Finally, it was time to hit the slopes. I started with La Plagne (beginner trail) which passes alongside many beautiful homes. I proceeded to work my way across all the trails towards La Dévaleuse at the far left of the mountain. I was stunned, all the open trails (which consisted of nearly all the trails except the glades) had virtually full snow coverage. Sure there was the occasional bare spot here or there, but that was minimal. You could easily believe it was mid-March, but here we are in mid-April 2022 where anything is possible. Of course, the standout trails are the usual ones, such as Côtes 70 Est and Ouest, Jay, Côte 68 and Dévaleuse. But in all fairness, you can't go wrong with any trail at Sommet Saint-Sauveur. For those wanting a quieter experience, Epervier and Tom Barbeau are wide-open trails that always seem less frequented than the surrounding trails. A small snowpark with modules and jumps was set up in the SilverPark (located between Côtes 70 Est and Ouest). For those looking for moguls, the Stadium trail (accessed to the right near the final pitch of 70 Est) had big deep bumps for you to enjoy. I even saw a skier take them telemark style! Overall, the trails were well-groomed, and as the sun warmed up the air and snow, the slopes became softer as the day progressed. The snow held up quite nicely until I called it a day around 3pm. It was important to bring a change of clothes or to layer so that as the temperature and sun-warmed up, you could remain comfortable without getting too hot. Lineups at the lifts were minimal, with the Côte 71 and Flèche d'Argent having no wait loading all day and the Sommet Express having at most a 2-3 minute wait during the busiest moments of the day. A fantastic day out on the slopes, which likely will be my last for the season. Having said that, Sommet Saint-Sauveur has no shortage of snow and will easily make it into the month of May. I would expect this week and next weekend to be the last for many of the ski trails before they concentrate on the traditional final two, that is Côte 70 Ouest and Nordique. Once the skiing ends for the day, the ambiance at the mountain base takes you in. The half-moon terrace with a barbeque, DJ and plenty of picnic tables out in the snow let you enjoy the spring sun amongst family and friends. As the sun sets on another ski day, I wonder what new improvements and innovations the mountain will have in store for next season. Take care and happy skiing! Below are some photos of this visit. You can go further down below to see videos taken on all the main ski trails (which also give a great indication of the ski conditions). The famous spring ambiance Côte 70 Ouest Côte 68 Stadium moguls as seen from the Sommet Express The snowpack of Côte 70 Ouest Côte 71 T-Bar 70 terrace The summit of the Sommet Express Red Bird Jay The moguls of Stadium Côte 70 Ouest Côte 71 Côtes 70 Est & Ouest and Nordique Top of Côte 70 Ouest and Nordique Dévaleuse Côte 70 Est Côte 70 Est Top of 70 Ouest Côte 71 The half-moon terrace before everyone showed up. Côte 70 Ouest Dévaleuse Côte 70 Est Côte 70 Est Nordique

Just announced on the Sommet Saint-Sauveur Facebook page, is an investment by the Quebec government of $3 million. This investment will support several projects, one of which is the arrival in 2019-2020 of a new six-pack (6 passenger) heated detachable chairlift. It will be built by Doppelmayr of St-Jerome. This new lift will replace the Atomic Express, the busiest and most popular lift at the mountain, which was built in 1985. This is great news, and something that really excites. The lift will have heated seats, allowing a warmer ride back up the mountain. It tentatively could be the first heated chairlift in Quebec if no others are installed before this one, so another first at Saint-Sauveur. I have been wondering when the Atomic would be replaced, and now we have our answer. What do you think?

To end the 2018-19 season, a trip to Sommet St-Sauveur was in order today. Leaving Sherbrooke at 6am with overcast skies, I actually drove through some snow by Mont Orford and there was a dusting on the ground. We have not had the best of weekends in the townships lately, and the 4 major areas are now closed. It was a smooth drive through the city and arrived at the mountain a touch before 8:30 to overcast skies and a temperature of +4 degrees. The dismantling of the Atomic Express is in progress as all the chairs are now off the lift line and placed in the lot behind the lift. There were racers training on the Nordique early, and the Etoile lift was spinning not yet open to the public. The lift was opening at 9, so I took my time to get ready and have a nice wind down from the drive. 8 trails were announced as open along with 2 quads and the Magic Carpet for the beginners area. The first run was down the 70 West. The trail was not groomed, however the snow was a nice soft spring granular. It was a great warm up for the legs. The coverage was still pretty deep, and not ready to give up even with the rain received lately. Then it was onto the La Plagne. The trail was groomed with good coverage for this time of year. A nice coverage of spring granular, and a bit firmer with the cooler temperature at the start of the day. On the ride up the Cote 71 Quad, It was noticeable that spring is on its way as there were some spots that were bare on the edges and some of the cut over trails were roped off. The Cote 71 trail was also groomed with spring granular with a few touchy ice spots but nothing that one could not avoid. The Cote 72 was pretty much the same. These actually ended up being the favourites for the day. The top of the Cote 70 West: La Plagne: Cotes 71 & 72: The snow really started to soften up more by 10:30 and you were skiing on mashed potatoes, and any snow piles that were made, you were pretty much skiing though them they were so soft. Nothing slushy. The wait was non-existent at either lift which made it easy for making quick laps. By noon my legs were starting to feel it with skiing in the soft spring snow. Park Daze was rescheduled to today from Noon 'til 4:00 pm at the bottom of the Silver Park. This was a great end to the season which was a long one and still going strong here at St-Sauveur. Until next season! Here are some additional scenes from the day: