skategoat Posted January 2, 2006 Report Share Posted January 2, 2006 I'm heading there soon for a family trip. I haven't been there in 15 years so I'm wondering if anyone can share local knowledge and tips. Where are the best groomers for carving? How best to avoid the lift lines? Merci, Henry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobdea Posted January 2, 2006 Report Share Posted January 2, 2006 have fun up there, its been awhile for me too but I did like it when I was younger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skategoat Posted January 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2006 All I remember is how damn cold it was. So cold that that the mountain was practically empty. I'm really hoping it's not -40 this time around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajcannon Posted January 2, 2006 Report Share Posted January 2, 2006 I haven't been there in 15 years or so either. But I did like it very much. It is a good mountain with a lot of trails and lots of different terrain. They had really high tech covered detachable quads and and gondolas and they had these cool bar-code scanners at the lift line where they would scan your lift ticket and give you a printout at the end of the day of how many vertical feet you had done that day (that was 15 years ago - pretty cutting edge back then). I will tell you one insider tip that I remember...in the mornings we used to take the gondola up then ski down the back side. On the back side there was a base lodge that served hot crepes with maple syrup for breakfast. We did that most mornings. Mayeb they still do that. Have fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derf Posted January 3, 2006 Report Share Posted January 3, 2006 The North side is the best place for carving at Ste-Anne. Wide slopes, constant grade, blue level and less crowded. On the South side, most blue runs are OK, but more crowded. Don't go in Le Chemin du roy, it is too flat for snowboarding. If you want something more natural (natural snow, a few bumps but not too much), go to the west side, no crowds, but only a T-bar to get back up. The best sight you can have is La Crête (west end of the South side) at the end of the day, but it is quite bumpy and steep at that time. If you want an example of the sight, here are some pictures I took 6 years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarvCanada Posted January 3, 2006 Report Share Posted January 3, 2006 Derf pretty much summed it up. Mont Sainte Anne is a carving mountain. It is not as pretty as Massif, but for carving, it means business. I'm partial to l'Express and Pichard, which is pretty much where i learned how to carve steeps. If the mountain is empty, l'Express can be downright epic, as well as a lot of the south side trails. Some of them are very wide and very steep. Pichard is a fun cruiser with some steeper sections as well as wide open mellow sections that carry speed well. If there are people on the mountain, the north is where it's at, especially the some of the trails that are sort of difficult to get to where you have to head a bit down the south side on I think La Familiale? and then hang a left onto these winding blue trails that lead to North side. the whole mountain is pretty sweet for carving Le Chemin du Roy = bad bad bad :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linus Posted January 4, 2006 Report Share Posted January 4, 2006 And boarded both Le Massif and Mont Sainte Anne. I really didn't enjoy carving there. First of all, Le Massif had way too many narrow runs with uneven surfaces. Also at about 11am, lift lines get extremely long. And the place is TOO COLD!!! Anyway, Mont Sinte Anne wasn't any better for me since runs were also narrow IMO. If you enjoy fall-line carving, you will be fine but if you like big turns or euro carving that requires wider slopes, just forget it. At last, at about 1pm, I had to wait 30minutes for a lift. FYI, my local Bluemountain resort has wider runs that much suitable for carving. I'm sure I won't be making another Quebec trip for a while. Since I made so much negative comments about Quebec resorts, I'll even them out with some better experiences. I'm sure many people here and my friends that went to this trip will agree with me on this. There was many fine looking ladies everywhere @Quebec And they were really nice to people even when none of speak French. And both of the resorts had amazing scenery that worth a stop for a photo. Overall, it was a great experience at both resorts but I wish both resorts have more wider runs. I need to get some rest now for tomorrow ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarvCanada Posted January 4, 2006 Report Share Posted January 4, 2006 Linus, I think what you experienced was basically the Christmas rush, and maybe bad luck with weather? All my Sainte Anne experiences have been epic in regards to carving... not much freeriding going on there. Every time I've been to Sainte Anne though, I found that between 8-10 I had the mountain to myself, and usually night riding is completely empty. The North Side is indeed not extremely wide, but I find the south side to be way more than wide enough (with nobody on the mountain). With my board that has a sidecut of about 11m, you can definately crank turns out completely across the fall line with plenty of room to spare Have to agree with the girls and cold though :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarvCanada Posted January 4, 2006 Report Share Posted January 4, 2006 I agree with Massif though, there is only maybe 2 trails that are perfect for carving, and you gota get lucky with weather it seems. Beautifuuuuul place though, more for freeriding and bumps... I guess more of a skiers mountain... it's just a beautiful place with not all that much riding, but it's got a great feel to it. Mont Grands Fonds is a close place to Massif which is small, but has great great carving trails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skategoat Posted January 8, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2006 I just got back from a 4 day family trip. I'll agree with most of the comments here except we had only minor waits in the lift lines being post-xmas. However, some of the popular runs were still crowded and got a little scarey due to the number of very fast skiers and boarders at this mountain. The North side was definitely more carver friendly and the length of runs was perfect for me. On the South face, La Crete was truly awesome. Also enjoyed Beaupre and La Montmorency. Grooming was sketchy at best. I think mainly because of the night skiing. Also, it seemed that some runs had these small bumps spaced 10-15 feet apart giving it a washboard effect. It got hairly when you hit those at high speed. The black diamonds, for the most part, were not rideable in carving gear due to the moguls and lack or space - very narrow. La Massif was an awesome experience. Loved the big, new chalets and the scenery. Again, not overly carver friendly but some nice runs could be found - La Petite Riviere, La Richard, L'Anguille. I tried to talk my way onto La Charlevoix where the Canadian Downhill team trains but was unsuccessful. Good thing when I found out later that part of it has a 65 degree pitch. We stayed at Chateau Mont Ste. Anne and I highly recommend it for a family holiday. Food on the meal plan was fantastic (typical meal: Crayfish bisque, escargot, deer medallions, creme brulee). My next trip is to Marble Mountain, Newfoundland in 3 weeks. Right now they have 10 cm base with ZERO runs open. Someone in Newfoundland has made Ullr angry. Time to sacrifice some cod. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fleaman Posted January 8, 2006 Report Share Posted January 8, 2006 I'm sure many people here and my friends that went to this trip will agree with me on this. There was many fine looking ladies everywhere @Quebec TRUE DAT!!!!!! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobdea Posted January 8, 2006 Report Share Posted January 8, 2006 absolute heaven for any straight man, I want to retire there amazing women, great water for both paddling and fishing AND a decent hill to carve near by many places have one or two of the above but very few have all three. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARCrider Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 Linus. Sorry to hear that your Quebec experience was a let down. maybe Christmas timing? I was at leMassif the week before Christmas and had powder with no people throughout the week. If you haven't tried an allmountain board you should. The runs don't seem near as narrow with a 10.5 turn radius. and I liked the Quebec ladies so much that I married one and had Frenglish kids. CarvCanada. Made a day trip to Mont Grands Fonds but it was for X-country skiing not carving. 160k of excellent trails and warming huts with free hot chocolate. Route 362 from Baie St.Paul to Malbaie was quite a scenic drive too. and I'd have to say that for me there are more than just 2 perfect carving runs at leMassif. Another stop of interest in the Ste-Anne area is the parc Ste-Anne X-country trail system just east of the alpine centre. over 300k of groomed skate and classic trails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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