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2016 Jack & Sandi's trip


revct1
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Sounds good Jack & Sandi.

Keep the train running.

Thanks for sharing. How about some pics Jack? Gotta keep up with the technology eh?

Hi Tom,

Sandi tells me I should update to; my watch has hands and my phone has a dial. Oh well.

Jack

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15 -20 cm of snow today . . . . . . . . . . Oh that was at home in Connecticut. Sorry. Send it up here - please!

This morning it is -18C which feels cold but is more like normal. The snow has a crunch to it and the sky is clear.

We head across the two dams and turn on 367 up to St Ambroise. 367 is nice. We usually aren't this lucky with 367. Turn left on 93 and we stay on this all the way out thru St Monique onto the power lines. Fresh groomed and perfect. Turn left onto 367 again thru Peribonka and then after crossing the river in Dolbeau we take a left onto 701. We work our way over to Relais des Buttes. The river crossing is fine.

All the trails are fresh groomed and perfect. This is what Quebec riding is all about. Lunch at the relais. A good place to stop. We talk to two guys from NY state and two other guys from CT a couple of towns from where we live.

After lunch we U-turn and go back 701 and 367. We run over the local trail to St Jeanne D'Arc for gas and take 93 back thru St Monique. For a change we turn left on 367 and run thru the blueberry fields. This trail is almost always great and it is today. A little change in trail 328 in the Labrecque area. We don't stay on 328 so we're not sure how it is rerouted there. We turn right on 555 and drop down to 93. From here we follow our morning route back to the Delta.

Today was definitely one of our best days of riding this season so far. The trails were perfect, the weather was great and the traffic was light. Winter is here at Lac St Jean.

Two more days of riding for this trip. I hope they are as good as today was.

Jack & Sandi

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Thanks for the positive report Jack & Sandi! Sounds like we need to start planning our next trip in that direction. Tom, are you still sitting beach side, or back north?

Hey neksledr,

Got back to FL yesterday. Gonna hit the links in a bit. I'm back up in PQ on March 3rd for a 9 day ride. How about you?

Tom

Edited by Florida Snowman
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Sledding, then beach, now golf? Quite envious! My sticks still in locker at club, won't see daylight till April probably! Molly and I planning a trip somewhere for next week, not sure where yet. Hope to spend as much of March as possible north of the border...

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Today we leave the Delta and are heading to Milot for lunch.

It is Saturday and we have to pick our route to avoid the traffic. We cross the two dams and turn right onto 134. Things are looking good. As we approach the junction with 93 we notice a lot of sleds stopped there. Oh, one of the sleds has a flashing red light on it. It is free weekend isn't it.

We pull up behind two Canadian sleds in front of us. Between the trail security, which we see occasionally, and the Police, there must be 25 people plus another ten sleds with riders. Two security workers walk over to us and ask for our paperwork. Sandi takes hers out and I show him my papers. Luckily I knew right where they were after looking for my lost credit card yesterday. He took a quick look at the paperwork, checked the vin and said we were all set.

The security worker pointed down trail 93 in the direction of St Honore and quietly said there are more Police in that direction. I thanked him very much and we headed north staying on 134. I'm guessing the Police may have been running radar on that long straight away of 93 to St Honore.

134 is groomed and we behave all the way up to 328. I figured if we didn't see any Police by then we were good to run. Sandi picks up the pace and we turn left on 328 over to 367 north. 367 has been changed a little so you don't have to climb that long, tall hill.

We stop in at Mont Vilain for a coffee break. Mid morning and there must be thirty to forty sleds there. Mostly Quebec plates. The locals are out for their weekend ride.

We jump back on the trail heading to Milot. This also was groomed last night. As Bill had mentioned, a lot of the woods have been cut. The trail is in the same place but it feels much more open. Starting to see a lot of oncoming traffic. Big utility type sleds with two people, luggage and provisions. Maybe they are heading to their camps for Super Bowl weekend?

We stop at Milot for lunch. A few people here but not packed with workers like it would be during the week.

After lunch we continue on to St Augustine and turn left on 93. We stay on 93 until we get to the St Charles turnoff. There are two signs stating trail closed. Is the river not froze? 93 has been fine so we stay on 93 instead of taking a run into St Charles to see what's up.

Good until St Ambroise and then the rough stuff begins. We've seen it worse but after being on such good trails all day and yesterday, this isn't good. We bounce along to the bridges and then scoot back to the Delta. We are in a little early but figure the pen will be full tonight being Saturday and free weekend.

The day was another great ride. Late in the day we did notice a few thin spots but nothing to cancel a trip for. Just wondering if it will start to burn thru a little if more snow doesn't come soon.

One more day to ride which will be back down 23 to St Raymond to the truck.

Jack & Sandi

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Another great report guys! Thinking we might head that way towards the end of next week, appreciate all the info. Is Sandi feeling more love for the new sled yet? When we talked in Levis a few weeks ago it seemed like maybe the jury was still out!

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Today we leave the Delta and we're running back to St Raymond to get the truck.

85, 383 crossing the barrage is just fine. 368 is groomed to perfection. This trail is a "10" this morning. A few sleds at the junction of 23. We take a short break and a few more sleds pass heading south. We start up and 23 is not a "10" today. It has seen a lot of traffic yesterday. We are still running along at a good clip but it is rough and icy in the corners.

Mt Apica is jamming. 10 sleds at the gas pump and we pull up in line. Top off the sleds and who is behind us, Jeff and Sandy. The four of us go inside for a bite to eat. The club could have built this twice as big. It is full and the crew is pumping out the food fast.

After lunch the four of us head south. The bumps are getting worse. 23 gets so much traffic on weekends and today is no exception. At L'Etape we stop to split up. Jeff and Sandy are going to the Four Points via 369 and we are staying on 23. We say our goodbyes and wish each other a safe trip.

I'll finish up on the Quebec forum.

Jack & Sandi

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We are back at the Delta. Yesterday, we leave the Delta with Bill, Farmerold and MichRev. We ride 83 to 383 out to Ski Bee Doo. Boy is the wind blowing. The trails are good but very windy. We continue on 23 to 383 towards St Gedeon looking for the trail at the edge of Lac St Jean that will bring us to Alma. Too windy trying to find the trail. Really white out at times. Just barely finding the next pair of red stakes in the fields. We U-turn and go back to 23 and up thru Alma. Once out of the fields, not too bad. We cross the river on the car bridge and continue up local 555 to Labrecque.

328 has been rerouted to north of Lac Labrecque. What was 328 on the south side of the Lac is now closed. We run up and around the Lac and stop at Relais des Lacs for a break. Mid afternoon so some sleds but not packed.

We continue down local 554 to 93 and turn left to St Ambroise. I'm picturing my nemesis trail 367 from St Ambroise to the two bridges. It is Saturday afternoon and wow, it is smooth. Maybe not table top but this is good for this piece of 367. Off we scoot to the bridges and back to the Delta.

The blowing snow this morning was tough but the afternoon was a very nice ride.

Jack & Sandi

Edited by revct1
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Today Farmerold, MichRev and myself leave the Delta. Sandi is feeling a little stuffed up so she is going to sit in the hotel today and get some rest. She said I could take her snowmobile as long as I was nice to it.

Oh its cold, -29C. Maybe that is why Sandi stayed in? Our sleds started but quite a few were having problems. A little chilly last night. We cross the two dams and run 367 to St Ambroise and take 93 west. The trails are smooth and they are like cement. It is good running thru St Henry and St Monique. Not many sleds out. Either the sleds didn't start or the riders are staying warm inside.

We turn left on 367 and stop at Vauvert for Lunch. A few people here but quiet for lunch time on a weekend. After lunch we run up 367 just a little and take the local trail over to St Jean d'Arc. Boy is this trail nice smooth, flat and gentle curves.

At 93 we turn right, go back down to St Monique and then turn left onto 367. This is one of my favorite trails. Not a lot of traffic and it is usually in great shape. Today is no exception. We drop down to 328 and stop at L'Ascension for gas. U-turn and run 328 to Relais des Lacs. We were here yesterday. A quick stop to warm back up. The high today has been -24C. No wonder it has felt chilly but the machines love it.

We continue on 328 to 93 and down 134. All this is just fine. We cross the two dams and get back to the Delta.

Nice riding today, low traffic and rock solid trails. Another great day in paradise.

Jack & Sandi (she feels better tonight)

Happy Valentine's Day

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That is good to hear, when will you be picking up yours! Speaking of....we stopped at doo dealer in joillette on way back Friday and all new sleds were being discounted 30%. Between this discount and the American dollar value, the savings seemed unbelievable! Any idea what bringing back to the states would involve, and more importantly cost? Molly's bday is Fri and I could see a 4-stroke in her future!

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Yesterday there is a big group of us. Besides Bill, Sandi, myself, MichRev, MikeRider, Snowcrazed we also had three additional riders; two from NY and one from CT.

We leave the Delta and head out 83 and down 383 across the barrage. We take a right onto 368. We are on our way to L'Etape. Trails are great. On the cool side but that makes the trails good. A break at the junction with 23 and then head south. We stop at Mt Apica to top off a couple of sleds with gas and then run the rest of the way to L'Etape.

A good ride all the way. L'Etape is a little busy but not packed. After lunch we U-turn and head back up 23. This time we stop and go to the top of the new lookout at Mt Apica. First time I have been up there. What a 360 degree view. Pick a clear day and to the east you can see the windmills along route 175, to the northeast you can see Monts Valin and all around the peaks of all the other mountain ridges. This is a must see when you are in the area. The trail is off of 23 only 1/2 mile north of Relais Mt Apica. It is an easy 3 mile ride to the lookout from 23.

After our breath taking views, we take 23 back to 368 and stay on this to 83 where we turn left. For a change we stop in Chicoutimi at La Cage for supper. We each had a plate full of ribs! Good food.

After we eat it is only a few miles back to the Delta for the night. What could be better, a good ride with good people and some of that fantastic scenery that Quebec has to offer.

Jack & Sandi

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That is good to hear, when will you be picking up yours! Speaking of....we stopped at doo dealer in joillette on way back Friday and all new sleds were being discounted 30%. Between this discount and the American dollar value, the savings seemed unbelievable! Any idea what bringing back to the states would involve, and more importantly cost? Molly's bday is Fri and I could see a 4-stroke in her future!

Buy it and leave it in Canada

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Today six of us take off, Sandi, myself, MichRev and the three (NY, CT) riders from yesterday. Snow and possibly freezing rain is in the forecast so north to Mont Valin to stay where it is cooler.

We cross the two dams and take 367 to St Ambroise. I take back the bad things I said back in December about this club because they are now kicking butt. 367 and 93 are gorgeous. 93 going into St Honore is so much fun in the big rollers. We continue on up to Valinuet. 93 is just perfect. A few other sleds enjoying the fresh groomed trail. We top off the tanks at Valinuet. (3 after Valinuet is so beautiful where the trees are all dressed in snow and the trail is wide. A winter wonderland here. We stay on 93 to La Chapelle.

Lunch time and the place is about half full but it is a weekday. We were reminiscing about the toilets that were in the gas pump building that were heated by the exhaust from the generator. Boy things have changed.

After lunch we head back down 93 and take the connector over to Bras Louis. Ah, Bras Louis was groomed last night and there is about four inches of fresh snow on it. Giddy-up ponies we are off to the races.

We get back on 93 to go down the mountain and return the rest of the way on the same trails we went up on.

Talk about a great ride today. This is snowmobiling in Quebec.

Jack & Sandi

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Hi Terry,

We were up on Mont Valin today because of the forecast. It was snow all day until we got back to the Delta around 4:00 PM. Then it changed over to freezing rain. It is forecast to go back to snow overnight for a few more cm.

No damage done here.

Jack & Sandi

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Today it is Sandi, myself and the three guests (NY, CT).

The ice last night left a coating of 1/4" - 1/2" over everything. Chip, chip, chip to clean off the sleds. It is mild out, -12C. We load up and head out crossing the two bridges. In St Amboise we turn left on 93. Nothing is groomed as expected. The groomers will probably wait until tonight to hit the trails. A pretty good layer of ice on the fresh snow from yesterday. A few tracks ahead of us.

As we approach Alma we notice that the ice layer is thinner but the snow is getting deeper. We top off the sleds at St Henry and on 93 in the next big fields, the snow is a foot deep or better. A little different riding than yesterday. We feel more like we are in a boat floating on top of the snow.

We turn right on 367. Our goal is to have lunch at Mont Vilain. The beginning of 367 is fun thru the woods and hills swishing in the deep snow. About 10 miles in, the snow drops down to more like 6". A little reroute at the blueberry fields. The road is plowed part way north so the trail zig zags thru the woods bypassing the plowed road. Not too far up the trail gets back on the unplowed road and runs the rest of the way to Mont Vilain.

We go in and grab a seat. While we are waiting for our food, we notice the groomer going by on 367 in the direction that we are heading. As we finish up eating, in comes Bill and company. We chit chat a bit and then go out and hit 367.

The trail is fresh groomed but we are taking it easy because we know the groomer isn't too far ahead and we don't want to come around a corner with a surprise sitting in front of us.

A few miles and there he is. First wide spot he pulls over and lets us go by. The trail obviously isn't groomed but isn't too bad. It has had a fair amount of traffic on it today. We run 367 down to 93 where we turn left. We follow 93 a little and turn right onto local 134 down to the two bridges. We cross them and arrive at the Delta.

A good day with a variety of conditions. A few snow flurries during the ride but no accumulation. Forecast is for warmer temperatures but not high enough to hurt the trails.

Jack & Sandi

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