NH-Moose Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 (edited) Playhard and I rode out of Icemans house In Notre Dame du Mont Carmel near Shawinigan on Sunday AM as a dynamic duo, Iceman was unable to attend. Riding day 1, to St Felicien. Pipeline and through Lac Eduard were smooth. Has been chilly, maybe -5 to -10F but felt colder for some reason. Fair amount of traffic as it was a Sunday, but everyone was well behaved. Day 2 Monday hit the 93 loop up past Lac Au Jim, Dolbeau, 93, some orange trails to Onatchiway, then down to Passion for the night. Amazing day, passed only 2 snowmobiles and 1 groomer ALL DAY from bags on to bags off. Most of the day were on fresh groomed or very lightly ridden trails. It was a ripper, Quebec at its finest. Windy so some solid drifts in some fields, but manageable. Lac Au Jim / Dolbeau area was like an Indy track, definitely in the zone for long stretches. Bras Luis was still roughed up from the weekend, the lest few miles into Valinuet were shamefully still whooped for a Tuesday. That was pretty much the only rough trail of the day. Not sure what's going on in the Valin area, west of the parking lot to Bras Luis, and north were not pretty. We will test the east side Wednesday. The people and food at Passion are fantastic!! Pizza amazing, it's simply a great stop. Vincent and Lise have done a lot to make our stay enjoyable. Glad we decided to stay here 2 nights. Day 3 Tuesday, hearty breakfast at Passion with simply everything, all excellent, but simply couldn't finish it all. Then rode up to Onatchiway, topped off the gas and entered the private forest trails (ZEC) for our first time. Met Mario and his wife at the gatehouse, terrific and friendly people, two word description would be "extremely enthusiastic". Gave us a personal tour of the groomer in its garage, and got the scoop on the trail system. Day pass is $30 and it's definitely worth it. The private trails are fantastic, and have different, more peaceful vibe, you know what to expect for trials and traffic. Hundreds of camps sprinkled through hundreds of lakes. Rode the west side trails north (by keeping left at the intersections) then up to Pipmuacan. Played with the cutest puppy and drank hot chocolate. Rode the east branches south back to Onatchiway for a splash of gas with 130+ miles on the tank. Back in to the ZEC finish up a couple of the scenic dead ends, then exited the trail system onto Bras Luis and back to Passion for the night. Warmer today, +5F, practically tropical. We passed 1 snowmobile on trail today, and saw 3 others out. Tonight I had the Chicken Nachos, David has the Smoked Meat, both were excellent. Met a couple mountain riders from Ontario area, great times at supper discussing our motoring adventures and mishaps. Pipmuacan is a fantastic target. The trail, either through the ZEC, or the public trail skirting the ZEC will delight. Then it's a 16 mile dead end to the outfitters door. It's about the journey, and it's a great run. From what we've heard, the western outer loop outside the ZEC is groomed, and the Eastern is not, we can verify the portion of Bras Luis above the map is ungroomed. Wednesday we're planning to end up at the Delta to meet up with Bill, taking the long route via Tadousac. Thursday's plan is back to Shawinigan via 23 LeTape Pictures to follow, Edited February 18, 2015 by NH-Moose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 So Jealous. Wish I was with you boys. Ride On! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vt_bluyamaha54 Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 Great riding and a great place to stay with excellent food - snowmobiling at its finest! Sounds/looks perfect. Enjoy. Wow, Mario takes very good care of that groomer. Can't believe how little wear is on the cutters on the drag - the paint is hardly worn off!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
800steve Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 Nice pics Moose, and the puppy is much better looking than the guy you left behind in Shawinigan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman Posted February 18, 2015 Report Share Posted February 18, 2015 Nice pics Moose, and the puppy is much better looking than the guy you left behind in Shawinigan. Puppy got no thumbs. Woof. Good one Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trailblazer Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Nice run guys, would love to get up that way and ride those well spoken of trails. Thanks for sharing JG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markusvt Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Jealous too, nice run guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeusand Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Puppy got no thumbs. Woof. Good one Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeusand Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 no way the puppy can get throttle therapy with no thumbs lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 no way the puppy can get throttle therapy with no thumbs lol Exactly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NH-Moose Posted February 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 (edited) Left Passion after another hearty breakfast. Trail up to Chapelle was not great, but not fully whooped - luckily. After KM31 it got better, and Pelchat was even better. Just love the Pelchat to Escoumins. Lots of reroute north of Tadousac, but passable. The ferry ride was really quick and we were back on the trail before we knew it. Thinner conditions near the water on 3. 383 not enough bumps to clear the tunnel ice, that's always a good sign 😄 Edited February 19, 2015 by NH-Moose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Pelchat oh yes. Groomed is good. Goat path one sled wide by 2' deep hmmmm not so much eh moose? Seen it all. For sure. Bring it on home guys. See you tmmrw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groomer Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 hi john and david !!! thx for sharing pic of groomer + drag !!!...nice drag btw !!! jean-guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smclelan Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 That is a kick ass drag. I like the way they drop the sides to make a wider cut!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NH-Moose Posted February 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 My pleasure JG Day 5: Delta hotel to Chez Iceman, 438km, what a rip for a finale. 7am, Bill was entertaining guests at breakfast. The buffet was fantastic with chocolate filled croissants, bavarian creme filled crepes with maple sauce, and the ham were the standouts. Skidoo towels and a hair dryer next to the back entrance to the sled pen was very thoughtful! Nice renovations at LeTape, area was a bit busy, but otherwise the trails were smooth and we made good time. Apica has moved, it's 9km north and 3km off 23. We didn't stop in, but saw the old place on the highway closed. Roquemont for a late lunch, beautiful renovations and Playhard was quick to notice they brew their own beer, starting 3 weeks ago. The brewing operation is behind glass for all to see. White out snow conditions for the last few miles. Most of the day the light was flat, but so was the trail. Not much drifting south of LSJ. 1309 miles on the Skidoo odometer for the 5 days. Until next time ;<) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groomer Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 great thx again !!! like the wings on drag !!! on my way to groom shortly !!! i wish i could have his garage !!! jean-guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
800steve Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 no way the puppy can get throttle therapy with no thumbs lol If you turn the throttle around on that 900, the puppy can ride it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman Posted February 21, 2015 Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 If you turn the throttle around on that 900, the puppy can ride it. Got me there. True. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NH-Moose Posted February 21, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2015 Good one Steve, but no way he can see over the GPS pod or Ultra high windshield ;<) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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