On Friday our last day, took our time. Left the Delta at 10:00 had lunch at Mont Apica where we saw about 30 snowmobiles. Mostly guys from Quebec City going to mount Apiica for lunch and then back to Quebec City. The trails on the way back today were about an eight from all the traffic but who's complaining. All in all fantastic trip 1,016 MI. With the warm up this Saturday and Sunday being in the 50s up there all the parking lots and roads will be completely bare but they're still tons of snow in the mountains. There must have been five to six feet in the mountains.
Thursday we did the Clermont Express as Saguenay Bill used to call it and went to the Auberge du Ravage for lunch. Today we passed about two dozen sleds. Trails were a ten all day again.
Here’s what I learned about our trip to Damville. You jump on the river at Lac à Jim that takes you to a local trail for about 25 km then you on a single trail for another 25km with adequate signage to get you there. If l was to do it again, l would have taken up their offer to meet us and take us in…which they offer more than once. They will take you down some road and cut across a lake that would have made it a lot easier at the end of the day. There is a warming hut 15 km in and clubhouse on a river 25 km in. I would have them meet me at the clubhouse.
Left Oliphant Saturday morning, March 8th, after the Moore’s grandbaby FINALLY arrived. Drove to Saint-Raymond with minimal traffic except for over the island of Montreal due to a protest downtown that afternoon.
Left the Roquemond (St-Raymond) and rode to Auberge Eva; lots of deer on trail and a huge amount of weekend cottages returning home with sleighs full of everything from gas tanks, dogs and PT cruisers. Good accommodations as always, sleder’s meal plan was excellent with lots of variety.
Day 2, after a good breakfast headed out to Pourvoirie de La Doré took the trail to Branche-Ouest, not much to see other than very large switching station but I have to admit that it was pretty impressive and on this trial we saw, for the first time ever, nordic grouses.
Arrived at Pourvoirie de La Doré before dark and shown to our cabin where the girls finally won a game of Euchre and boy were they happy and celebrated for days!! The food was exceptional and for anyone that travels there, the caesar salad is a must.
A typical 10 a.m departure but this day there were giant flakes of snow! Headed to Pourvoirie Damville. Took a variety of trails to get to Lac a Jim where we then rode a local trail 47 km north to the lodge. A bit of an adventure to get there but definitely worth it, amazing lodge, food, staff and service. In hindsight, when offered to be met and be led in, we should have accepted as Nicolas escorted us out the next morning through a shortcut that saved lots of time.
Rode 285 km today to Otis Nature, great trails with a lunch stop and check in by 5. Weather is holding out good for us and the trails have been great.
The FCMQ aims to cut 5,000 kilometers of trail from its overall network over the next 5 years.
The Fédération des clubs de motoneigistes du Québec (FCMQ) is planning to cut back on the maintenance of thousands of kilometers of trails across the province.
However, the general manager reassures us that it will be up to the clubs to decide.
The FCMQ plans to withdraw some 5,000 kilometers of trail from the provincial circuit over the next five years, in order to "face the music", according to General Manager Stéphane Desroches.
"It's not the Federation that's going to come in and tell the clubs to close this or that trail.
We're here to support them in the challenges they face year after year, and it's up to the clubs to decide," he says from the outset.
All trails in the province could be affected, whether regional, local or provincial.
Desroches illustrates the situation with a question of ridership on trails that may be less used in the network.
"If there's no more local traffic, who's going to pay for trail maintenance?
An issue every second
Stéphane Desroches is constantly on the lookout for provincial and regional issues relating to club financing and survival.
"I have one every second," he remarks humorously.
He sums it up by talking about declining membership numbers, hard-to-find money for both the FCMQ and its clubs, and volunteerism that's no longer adapted to today's market.
When I hold regional meetings and meet the gang, I present them with figures that hurt," he explains.
I have no choice but to come down to reality, and I have no choice but to talk about money.
It's extremely expensive to keep this 33,000-kilometre network in good condition.
Keeping our heads above water
The FCMQ wants to raise the awareness of clubs that spend a lot of money to maintain trails for a very short time.
"That's what we're going to have to talk about, and we're going to have to sit down together and work along those lines," announces Mr. Desroches.
Still with a view to "tidying up", the FCMQ is not ruling out the possibility of building new trails in areas where there is more snow, to the detriment of regions that have seen their snow cover diminish over the years.
"The economic situation means that the government won't give us an extra envelope to create new trails.
Together, we're one big family, and we're going to have to make collective decisions," reminds the general manager.
The FCMQ says it wants to keep its head above water and continue to support its clubs as things move forward.
North Shore (cote nord)
Although it's a little early in the process, the general manager is reassuring about the Côte-Nord region, which has its own particularities and a fairly linear path compared to other regions of Quebec.
"There's a long trail along the Côte-Nord and it goes from one shore to the other.
If you compare it to regions like Abitibi, where there are three Trans-Québec trails that go all the way around the region, there's definitely more to cut back on in those corners," illustrates Stéphane Desroches.
However, the general manager notes that the provincial government's willingness to invest in energy on the Côte-Nord could bring its share of complications.
"Will we soon have to reanalyze the network because of the government's desire to put a lot of money into sustainable energy with dams?" he questions.
"There might be problems building bridges that cost millions.
We'll have to analyze the network and see what we want to do at that level," says Stéphane Desroches.
Drove in and hit the trails by noon. Took the river trail west then to 5W to Les Pistes club for lunch…then back east to 561 past Explourers to 526 to 85 and back. 526 had some logging but the trail was mint all but some crossovers to avoid the logging areas. Maybe one of the flattest and fastest conditions I have ridden overall. Zero slush. No real snirt.
so….the road crossing are good…maybe 2’ at roads edge but mainly frozen. The bad news is it won’t take much warmup or direct sun to go into full spring riding conditions. One day could change it. The next few days should be excellent but the warmup is in the forecast. It’s 5 degrees Fahrenheit and a high of 14 today so it should be great and super flat.
Let me start by saying that I am not new to sledding. My first sled was a 1964 OMC SnoCruiser. I will be turning 70 in April so it was time to do something before I start to fall apart.
I started dreaming about doing this last year. I went on a guided tour from Cochrane Ontario to Fort Albany and back in January this year. I took my Skidoo expedition 600 ACE sport on that trip. It was 1400km and the 600 averaged out 13.9 liters/100KM. I purchased a 2024 Skidoo Expedition SE 900 ACE in the spring. It was used but only had 3 KM on it, yes 3. This was a heavy sled with a 20 inch track and I had it loaded.
I knew I was going to go solo on this trip because it’s hard to find someone you can count on to go . It’s harder to find someone who can commit to going for an indeterminate amount of time. And it's even harder to find someone who doesn’t want to just bomb from one place to the next. I wanted to take it easy, stop and smell the roses and see the sights that you are going to miss at a constant 80+ KM/Hr.
The sled was at my cottage just south of Parry Sound Ontario, near Georgian Bay. I could have left from there but that would mean my truck would be far away if I needed help. So I decided to scour the map of Quebec for a decent sized town that had good trail access and wasn't too far from Ontario. I chose Maniwaki Qc for a starting point. Maniwaki wasn't too far from a place that I always wanted to visit and that was Devil’s mountain.
Remembering that this sled had 6 km on it, I wanted to take a dry run around Maniwaki to make sure everything was OK with the sled and return to the same motel for the second night.
I had my massive Linq box packed tightly with my duffle of clothes on one side, a 10 liter gas can in one corner, Food/snack/utensil bag in another corner and a tool kit separating the two. I also had some foam blocks that I wedged in there to keep stuff tight. Since I was spending two nights in Chateau Logue in Maniwaki, I brought my duffle and food bag into the room and left them there for the day in between. So I prepared for the first day riding and checked the Linq box. All I had was a bungee cord to secure the gas can from flopping around. It looked good so away I went.
I had the Imotoneige app on my phone and was prepared to wing it. From Day, I should have realized how bad the signs in Quebec are. It seems they take the signs down every year and put them back up the following year but they don’t put the same signs in the same places. So a sign that might have said Maniwaki this way, 20 KM might say Manikwki this way and 48 KM the next year. I saw this over and over throughout my trip.
So I stopped at the first intersection to get my bearings and popped off my helmet to hear some nearby guys talking. One guy was obviously English trying to get directions to Devils Mountain from a local Quebecois in French. That’s when my high school French kicked in and we got the directions straightened out. These guys couldn’t believe it when I told them where I was going. We rode together to Devils Mountain. Quite the place and very cold on top of that tower. They went into the Relais and I headed down the other side of the mountain towards Maniwaki.
After about 150 KM of riding, I was thankful that my fuel usage had dropped for an initial 50L / 100KM to around 36. Still high but dropping. I stopped at a wide section where the trail followed a bush road for a break and checked the Linq box. HOLY CRAP! My 10l gas can had fallen over and the lid vibrated off. 10 Litres of gas sloshing around in my tools at the bottom of my Linq box. These Linq boxes are waterproof!! What the hell am I going to do now? I couldn’t get the Linq box off because it was locked on and the key couldn’t access the lock because it was behind the wrap around bumper. So it took everything I had to flip the 600 lb sled on its side and drain about half of the gas. I couldn’t get it tilted any father over. It's a good thing I still had those foam blocks in there as I used them as sponges to squeeze out almost all the gas. I drove back to the hotel with the Linq box door open to evaporate anything else. I threw my tools openly in the back of my truck to let them dry out overnight and the tool bag as well. I thought to myself, It can’t get any worse than this. Well….
Got up the next morning and packed up and checked out making sure it was ok with the lady at the front desk to leave my truck at the motel for at least 14 days. She said “Bon Voyage and off I headed to the next stop, Auberge Le Cabanon, 292 KM. I punched it into the Imotoneige app and away I went , leaving the safety of my truck.
I picked my way in the right direction after carefully checking every intersection. I came to a Relais at Lac Chaud. I was going to get gas but there were 20 sleds lined up for gas and my gauge still read ⅔ so off I went thinking there has to be another gas station soon. This trail runs through a park to St Michel des Saints. Lots of signs pointing to St Michel and gas BUT none of them said St Michel was 140 km away. So after running slow and in ECO mode I eventually ran out of gas in the middle of nowhere at around 3pm. Remember my gas can that I had in the back that emptied itself and I didn’t re-fill? So I waited and waited. Some guys from Ontario stopped but none had any spare gas in cans . One asked me if I had a siphon hose. I did have a jiggler but I traded to a native for some beaver mitts on my last trip up the side of James Bay. I told them I’d be ok because somebody would come by soon. Well they didn’t. No cell phone coverage. Thank goodness I had my GlobalStar satellite phone. I finally broke down and called 911 on my Sat phone. I explained the situation to the 911 operator who is not a normal 911 cellphone operator. Within 5 minutes I had someone from the Quebec Provincial police call me and ask about my situation. I told them I was in no danger and all I wanted was for someone to contact the local snowmobile club or wherever to try and bring me 10 litres of gas. I didn’t need a helicopter or anything like that. People kept calling and I kept giving them my GPS coordinates and kept telling them where I was right in the middle of the snowmobile trail and that they couldn’t miss me. So finally the volunteer fire department calls me and says they are sending someone out.
It is so strange when you are in the bush and stranded waiting for help. You see a bright glow above the trees thinking that you are close to a town and maybe I should start walking. Then you see lights coming from the other direction between a slot in the trees and you think, someone is coming. But as the lights dim away you realize they were only Northern Lights.
It was 11:20 pm and I was starting to give up and was just about to start digging a hole in the snow for the night when I heard a sled coming from the opposite direction to St Michel. It was a volunteer firefighter with gas for me. All of a sudden I am a happy camper again. He
told me I was going the long way to town and if I went the other way, I probably would have made it. I said but the sign says this way! He said “I’ll have to talk to the snowmobile club about that! Anyways he put 18 liters of gas in my sled and guided me into town. When we got there I had him call La Cabanon to tell them I was coming but there was just an answering machine. He put me on the right trail to La Cabanon and I got there just after midnight. They let me in and had my room ready for me. I am on a first name basis with many Surete du Quebec Officers and firefighters from St Michel now. The trip was boring after that.
Next stop Ste Foy Quebec at the Super 8. Not really set up for sleds because it is so far from the trail in an urban setting. Expensive too. But Mr Jean Marc was waiting for me to shuttle me across the St Lawrence to Levis. He is a really nice guy and we traded conversation in my broken French and his broken English but I would recommend him to anyone. He dropped me off at a trailhead on the eastern side and we wished each other Bon Chance and away we went.
I was only trying to book motels 2 or 3 days ahead of time in case i ran into a snag and didn’t want to screw up my itinerary.
Next stop, Motel des Mariniers in Kamouraska, right on the St Lawrence. Nice place with a warn bar and restaurant. Very friendly innkeeper. 283 km
Next stop. La Gaspesiana, St Flavie 263 KM
Next Stop L’Amarre in Mount louis. This is the cutest example of Quebec Hospitality. An old hotel but all modernized and very friendly hosts. Getting there was a chore. You start to get into the Chic Chocs and it’s up the hill down the hill, up the hill, down the hill and repeat. The trails here were NOT groomed . 9 ½ hours to go 325 KM. That night in the hotel the winds were howling all night at 90km/hr. I had visions of trees down all over the trails but that was not the case the next day, snow drifts were
Next stop was going to be Chandler but it was a long way and included the bucket list required picture of Roche perce’. I think 3 of us started out up the mountain and got to a point where the trail just disappeared . I mean it was nowhere. There were snowdrifts 8 feet high where the trail ended. Soon there were 15 sleds backed up with nowhere to go. We all walked in different directions at the top of the mountain until one person found a way through to a logging road. We followed the road to where it hooked up to the trail and we were on our way again. Everybody else went towards Murdochville but I veered off to follow the coast around the Gaspe. There was a bridge out but the snowmobile club provided a free shuttle over the bridge and I was on my way. I got to the cut off to Perce and it was getting dark. I wanted that picture so bad as I had been there in Summer but I wanted proof that I made it there by sled in winter. The sign said Perce 59 KM ! Dam!!. It was only about 30 KM but I got the shot. Nobody was around to take my pic so I had to do the selfie with my short arms. Rolled into the Chandler Motel late after 530KM.
Next Stop was Auberge L’Abri just outside Carelton sur mer. 208KM. You see that I am slowing down. It was a beautiful day of riding on perfect trails and stunning views of the Baie d’ Chaleur. This was another nice hotel on the outskirts of town but absolutely no signs
anywhere on how to get there from the trail. I talked to a guy I met out walking his dogs and asked him how to get there. He said he never heard of it but when I showed him the website on my phone he said “Ah Tournez à gauche aux chevaux” Turn left at the horses! I finally found the place after running some side streets. I asked the check in lady why she had no signs up directing snowmobilers in. She said that was up to the town to do. OK.
Next stop, Matane and leave my sled at dealer for a first service overnight. I got there early too. The service guy took me in and I explained exactly what I wanted done as the sled started out brand new and needed to be looked at. I wanted it to run like new. Oil and filter change, chaincase oil change, inspect and adjust as necessary track, belt and drive chain. He did all that, added scratchers and changed the sliders for around $600. He also drove me to the motel and picked me up in the morning . Big shout out to Andre halls and sons, Skidoo dealer in Matane. I picked the sled up in the morning and had a couple hours to kill before the ferry left at 2PM so I sledded over to Walmart and picked up some Tylenol, instant porridge, instant coffee and they had Valentine's candy on sale for 75% off. I picked up three boxes of individually wrapped Turtles. The ladies love turtles. Check in Ladies, chamber maids and checkout ladies all got Turtles.
Got to the ferry at 1pm and the wind was howling but I went in the lounge until they called us. Snowmobiles got on first and you didn’t really need wheels on your sled but it helped. 2 ½ hours to cross to Baie Comeau and another 9 km by trail to the Travelodge where I met a bunch of guys who had come from Nova Scotia. The Travelodge had a laundromat so I spent Saturday night in Baie Comeau doing Laundry. Woo hoo. Sounds like a Stompin Tom song.
Next stop was the Motel Coronet in Riviere sainte Marguerite. Nice place, reasonably priced, Gas station but nobody there!
Next stop was the Comfort Inn in Alma. I called and they assured me that you could snowmobile right to the door so I booked it. This area is adjacent to the Saguenay Fjord. I had been up there on a cruise ship to LaBaie. I met some people on the trail and asked if you could ride up the bay on the ice or at least cross it. They said that no, it is not possible. When I got to Alma I followed the IMotoneige trai shown on the app and it just ended ½ a KM before the Comfort Inn. I asked a guy if you could just sled down the road to the Comfort Inn and he said no because it was a major two lane road. He suggested that I try and get in the back way so that’s what I did. Picked my way through a ditch, down some backstreets, crossed through the Mario Lemiux sport complex and through the fire department to the Comfort Inn 246 KM
Next stop was La Tuque. Another glorious sunny day running farm fields around Lac St Jean and then south. As I came down the hill towards town, there they were, the Police and they pulled me over. I said “Je suis Anglais” He said no problem. He just asked for my drivers license and insurance and I told him where I’ve been and where I was going. He called his partner over to meet me and wish me luck. I told him I was staying in downtown LaTuque and he knew exactly where. He said don’t follow the trail and just follow this road. He says you will go under a bridge and the hotel will be right there. He was right. The hotel was right next to Canadian Tire gas and a Maxi soi I could stock up on cookies again. It was the Hotel Marineau Central. It didn’t look like much from the outside but very nice rooms. 251 KM
Next stop was the infamous St Michel des Saints 258 km away. Again the signs were confusing just outside of town. I was following 33 sud but there were two 33 sud signs pointing opposite directions and I was parked there scratching my head until a nice couple came along and told me to go this way. I followed the trail right into town and the trail led right through the parking lot of the Hotel Central. It is an older place but comfy. It was Tuesday night and the bar was dead but it looks like a happening place on the weekends. In the morning I filled up with gas and started to take the exact same trail back that I ran out of gas with but with 10 extra liters in the back.
The next stop was Chateau Logue in Maniwaki where my truck was. The weather was turning warm and heavy rain was expected. I picked up a can of Scotchgard in Canadian Tire in Alama and had thoroughly sprayed my suit just for this occasion. I don’t know what it was about that day but there were deer everywhere on the trail that I had to stop for along with countless turkeys. It started to pour around 1pm and I only passed 3 sleds that day. I made it back to my truck with just the gas in my tank as the low fuel light came on. 271 KM
Towards the end my fuel economy had improved to 15.5 liters/ 100 KM. That explains why I didn't run out of gas on the same trail coming back. 4018 KM in total
I loaded the sled into the back of my truck in the pouring rain. I then went into the motel room to dry off and freshen up and went out for a St Hubert Chicken dinner.
If you don’t take that first step and aren’t prepared to look danger in the eye, you aren’t going to get it done.
I drove back to my cottage the next day reflecting on it all and what's next?
Rolled through today, 50 miles ungroomed, the remainder pretty much first tracks on it, groomed beautiful. The 50 in between wasn't bad, ridden much worse in Quebec, tried to widen it out a lane wider to make it easier on the next group. If you're slightly adventurous it's very easy and had plenty of gas using just one fuel caddy.
Day 4, left Lebel sur Quevillon at 6am under the light bars, snow to start at 11am in Chibougamau. Had fresh groomed til Chapais section. Somehow got turned around at their clubhouse and ended up in Ouje Bougoumou and had to backtrack, 26 mile total oopsie but fresh groomed. Ate all dressed chips at the gas station outside Chibougamau at 10am, 180 miles in 4 hours. Left there and had fresh groomed for 31 miles, just like glass and first sleds down it most of the way. Then came to the trail "closure" and it started snowing hard. Tried to widen the path by a sled width since we brought enough gas to break trail in 18 inches of snow through here if we had to in the trip planning, make it easier on anyone else who wants to try it. After 50 miles of that, was fresh groomed all the way into la dore and first tracks on that the whole way, only met 2 sleds from Lebel to La Dore, probably closed trail notice scaring em off. Rolled into Roberval at 4pm, good 365 mile day.
Days 2 and 3 since I was too tired to post last night. Day 2 left Drummond Island around 7:20am after buying Ontario passes and waiting for it to get light enough to see on the lake well. Took the ice bridge to the "phone booth" to call customs in Canada. Went through St Joseph Island and headed over to Bruce Mines with Thessalon down the lake as a goal to avoid a trail closure. Well, after 10 miles we all stopped and determined the lake seemed awesome with perfect conditions, so let's run it as far as we feel comfortable with the ice conditions. Ended up being 135 miles of Lake Huron total down to Little Current then across to the trail east of there. Ice was perfect with 4 inches of snow on top for lube. Trails were much less desirable with 8 million corners and zero corner signs on big straight aways with 90 degree corners at the end. Ended up rolling into Sturgeon Falls around 7pm and tired after a 302 mile day.
Day 3 woke up and got on the trail at 6am with light bars working great, had mostly great trails our 70 miles in Ontario over to Temiscaming, then it was really game on. Just absolutely phenomenal conditions from there up to Val d'Or, Senneterre, and up to Lebel sur Quevillon. 309 was an unexpectedly nice trail thanks to the app underselling the condition. Rolled into the hotel with 375 miles in less than 12 hours, a day that you live for as a snowmobiler. Could have probably rode another 100 easy. Tomorrow heading for Chibougamau and Roberval and it looks like the just reopened 93 today (we were going to run it closed) so hopefully another great day in store!
We took the shuttle late last week.
the driver was great and quick. We waiting < 5 mins to be picked up for the first two and maybe only 5 more minutes for the second two of our group to arrive !
they are making the best of a difficult situation
Schooter
On the trails today, 30 miles to go heading to matane on quebec 5 east. Snowmaster2112, Motonick, Emily and Andre. Trails are great, sun is bright, Snow is deep, the air is cold, perfect day.
Second trip to Quebec 2025
Day 1. Landed in Pointe a la Croix from Nova Scotia about noon Tuesday with 8 riders! How it ended up being that many is another story...ending with me never saying no. Headed out on the TQ5 west to the 587, first stop St Irene store/pub. From there dropped on the 591 to Matane and into the Quality Inn.
Day 2. Loaded on the ferry to Baie Comeau from there took the TQ 3 toward Forestville. The new rerouted trail before the Betsiamates River is awesome to say the least. Some beautiful viewscapes. Gased sleds and bodies at Forestville and pushed on. Took the short cut eliminating running down to Portneuf sur Mer and the second one to the Escomins club. Landed at the Coronet about 5:30.
Day 3. Left early from Coronet and within 3 miles one of the sleds was overheating and puking antifreeze. One guy went back to town for a jug while we tore the sled apart looking for the problem. Ened up driving it into a drift to get the nose in the air force coolant to the skid. Started working again, figure it air locked some how. Rode the TQ 93 to Mt Valin and the Chapel, it was first time there for a few in the group. They understand now why it is a must stop destination. Left at noon headed back down the local toward Forestville, on to the 330 then took the short cut across the river to the other orange trail rolling us into the Econolodge late afternoon.
Day 4. Took the orange trail right out of Forestville to the outfitter at the end. Heard the trail was called the "Canyon", it did not disappoint, spectacular views. Back down to some of the other orange trails and into Forestville for gas. Gas and go back to Baie Comeau for the night.
Day 5. Left early for the 11am ferry in Godbout. Of course this is when the sled mentioned earlier overheated and puked antifreeze again. Got the nose in the air and back underway. At this point we realized the thermostat is sticking closed then open because the sled won't come back to temperature. Made the boat with time to spare, the trail was freshly groomed. The boys know why that is called the roller coaster trail. Off the ferry west on the TQ 5 then on the 587 over the mountain, into the lookout/ghost trees and to the Select in Amqui for the evening.
Day 6. Woke up to about 8" of fresh powder, first track right to the Cable Bridge. From the likely met 30 sleds getting back to Pointe a la Croix.
Overall there was a ton of snow everywhere, amazing grooming, and perfect weather. Largest group I have traveled with in many, many years but actually went very well. From the fasted sled to the slowest never more then 3-4 min wait to have everyone catch up. I will try to post picture in sequence.
mccaffrey reacted to zeusand in 5 Day ride 3/10 - 3/14