Le Massif-3/22/16

[JimG.]

I was really excited about this part of the trip. David told me repeatedly that I had to calm down. When we turned into the access road off of 138 he thought I was nuts. Parking at the summit was a real twist and I liked booting up and putting my skis on and taking a run. It was colder today, -11 to -5 C, but it was also much sunnier and by the PM it was Bluebird.

The views here are breathtaking. I was told more than once that there are people who are afraid to ski here because of the sheer drop to the water. It was awesome. There is no picture to really do it justice so I just enjoyed gawking at it.

The new gondola is deluxe, a real luxury Gondi with see through sides. We took a few warmups here and then headed to the Grande Pointe HSQ.

It was here we stayed the whole day. Conditions were similar to the day before at MSA but the sun had a real impact in the PM. There are trees to ski everywhere in this area. A few on the map were La Tourelle, L'Artimon, La Chaudiere, and La Coursive. But you don't need a map really because all the trees here are skiable. Most of my pics are in unmarked areas.

This was a great day, and it really made me feel better about the bad winter we had. When you see the snowbank pic, consider that all of the locals I spoke to told me that this winter was "well below average" regarding snowfall.

 

[granite]

Yes, when you come up to a lip on the groomers, it looks like you can jump off it and land in the sea.

 

[thetrailboss]

Schweet.

 

[JimG.]

Yes, when you come up to a lip on the groomers, it looks like you can jump off it and land in the sea.

That's the view...with the shoreline down below.

 

[steamboat1]

Glad everyone is now excited about the area. Been talking about it for years. Le Massif didn't even have a lift when we first ventured there.

 

[cdskier]

Yes, when you come up to a lip on the groomers, it looks like you can jump off it and land in the sea.

Ok...this alone is enough to make me want to add this to my "must ski at some point in the future" list!

 

[JimG.]

Ok...this alone is enough to make me want to add this to my "must ski at some point in the future" list!

The skiing alone is worth it but the views are astounding.

 

[granite]

Did you ski La Charlevoix or any of the double blacks over by that run? La Charlevoix is the FIS downhill trail they have there?

 

[steamboat1]

Did you ski La Charlevoix or any of the double blacks over by that run? La Charlevoix is the FIS downhill trail they have there?

I skied that before they built the pyramid or had a chair over on that side. Quite an exhausting traverse to get over there at the time & once you got there it was a long bump run. Between the two I was wiped out after just one run & this was over 20 years ago when I was younger.

 

[JimG.]

Did you ski La Charlevoix or any of the double blacks over by that run? La Charlevoix is the FIS downhill trail they have there?

Skied the double blacks, cone was closed the day we were there. Quite the staircase.

 

[Zermatt]

That place looks awesome, and I'm not easily impressed. Reliable snow, fully modernized lifts, great views...

Where exactly do you park? Is there a road at the base or only at the top?

 

[JimG.]

That place looks awesome, and I'm not easily impressed. Reliable snow, fully modernized lifts, great views...

Where exactly do you park? Is there a road at the base or only at the top?

Only thing at the base other than a warming station and lift related structures is a railroad. Only road is at the top and we parked just about 100 yards from the summit of the gondola. All beginner terrain is kind of above that parking lot and there is a lift that services that area and also accesses the hike to terrain and some more pretty nice on map glades.

It is an impressive area. I will be back next season for sure.

 

[Cannonball]

Only thing at the base other than a warming station and lift related structures is a railroad. Only road is at the top and we parked just about 100 yards from the summit of the gondola. All beginner terrain is kind of above that parking lot and there is a lift that services that area and also accesses the hike to terrain and some more pretty nice on map glades.

It is an impressive area. I will be back next season for sure.

Actually there is a full lodge at the bottom with lift ticket sales, a bar, etc. That's where I parked and started my day.

 

[Zermatt]

Agreed, I see it on satellite images.

 

[Cannonball]

But parking at the top is definitely better.

 

[JimG.]

Actually there is a full lodge at the bottom with lift ticket sales, a bar, etc. That's where I parked and started my day.

How did you get a car down there? I did see buildings but not cars.

 

[Cannonball]

How did you get a car down there? I did see buildings but not cars.

There is a medium sized parking lot at the bottom of the quad, maybe holds ~100 cars. They actually open the lift at the bottom at 8:15 so that you can be up top when the slopes open at 8:30.

We were staying in the village along the river so it made sense for us. But in general it's better to park at the top. The biggest downside for us was that we couldn't hang out for the apres scene up top. They won't let you ski down after 4pm so we had to get down to the bottom before then. The bar at the bottom only stays open until ~4:30 and doesn't have any music or anything going on. I understand why they don't let you ski late, but It would be cool if they ran the gondola for a few extra hours so you could download to your car after hanging out for apres.

Another downside to lodging at the bottom is that the road getting down there is a pretty intense hill. I imagine that any significant snowfall could either trap you down there or prevent to from getting down to your lodging.

 

[granite]

There is a medium sized parking lot at the bottom of the quad, maybe holds ~100 cars. They actually open the lift at the bottom at 8:15 so that you can be up top when the slopes open at 8:30.

We were staying in the village along the river so it made sense for us. But in general it's better to park at the top. The biggest downside for us was that we couldn't hang out for the apres scene up top. They won't let you ski down after 4pm so we had to get down to the bottom before then. The bar at the bottom only stays open until ~4:30 and doesn't have any music or anything going on. I understand why they don't let you ski late, but It would be cool if they ran the gondola for a few extra hours so you could download to your car after hanging out for apres.

Another downside to lodging at the bottom is that the road getting down there is a pretty intense hill. I imagine that any significant snowfall could either trap you down there or prevent to from getting down to your lodging.

I was thinking about staying down by the river the next time I go, didn't look at these aspects-thanks for the info. I wonder though if locals have a way around this. What else is down that way, a lot of homes, villages or anything? The two times I was up there we stayed in the village of Baie St. Paul, about a 15-20 minute drive further north on Route 138-the road that goes up and over Le Massif. Baie St. Paul is a pretty cool place, quite a few shops-restaurants-inns, etc.

 

[JimG.]

Now that you mention it I do remember the parking lot at the bottom of the HSQ and I thought for a second about how the cars got there but that was it. Good point about getting trapped during snowstorms.

 

[Cannonball]

I was thinking about staying down by the river the next time I go, didn't look at these aspects-thanks for the info. I wonder though if locals have a way around this. What else is down that way, a lot of homes, villages or anything? The two times I was up there we stayed in the village of Baie St. Paul, about a 15-20 minute drive further north on Route 138-the road that goes up and over Le Massif. Baie St. Paul is a pretty cool place, quite a few shops-restaurants-inns, etc.

The village at the bottom is Petite-Rivière-Saint-François. There is pretty much nothing going on there but it is fantastically quaint. The village is largely shuttered up for the winter, many of the places seem to be summer homes. Our group was 4 dudes. We weren't really looking to party hard, but it wasn't the best fit for us since we at least wanted some beer and music in the evening. We ended up driving to Baie St Paul for that.

We stayed at this place http://www.aubergecourtepointe.com/en . The people were incredibly nice. The restaurant at the the Inn is pretty much the only thing happening in the Village. It was was quite full every evening and packed Saturday night and after church on Sunday morning. The only other place in town is a small pizza place that looks like mostly take-out but does have a few tables and serves beer.

I plan to go back and stay at that inn again, but under different circumstances: 1) with my wife instead a bunch of guys, 2) in the summer or fall when the snowy hill is not an issue. For skiing I would plan to stay somewhere up top.

The hot tub at the Inn overlooking the St Lawrence:


The village from the railroad tracks that we XC skied on. Le Massif in the backgroud: