gowser Posted February 16, 2016 Report Share Posted February 16, 2016 Left Auberge Canadienne for the Forestel / Val D'or Friday am. 63 was groomed so the boring stretch up to 309 was better than usual. Stopped for lunch in Laforce (best poutine of the trip in the little restaurant at the gas station) 309 to Val D'or was great all the way save for maybe a km or so of logging operations where the road was plowed....no biggie by any means. Rolled into the Forestel at 2:30. Hadn't stayed there for a few years and was pleasantly surprised by the reno. Was fortunate to have a few beverages with the owner in the bar that evening...he told me the bar and the restaurant area are next on the list for redo's. Had the table d'hote for dinner which was very good. Woke up the next morning to -32 / - 57 windchill. Needless to say booster packs and hairdryers where prevalent in the parking lot all morning. Hotel staff was phenomenal in assisting all with the myriad of issues that were taking place....some entertaining lobby conversations for sure. One staff member was even kind enough to use his personal vehicle to provide boosts to those in need. In the end every sled there eventually fired. Despite the cold....NO QUITTERS we are or maybe just dumb? off we went to loop Louvicourt, Senneterre, Barrutte and run the 309 back into Val D'or for another night. Probably should have thought things through and done the reverse of what we did instead of taking on the run to Louvicourt first thing in the am...Brrrrrr. 83 all around was decent....little choppy out of Louvicourt to Sennettere but not bad otherwise. Especially good across the top from Senneterre through to 309 and back into Val D'or. Was glad to see the Forestel again when we got there. Had planned on staying at Camp Rononda (based on an earlier posting here) and was disappointed to receive a message upon our return from Saturday's ride from Maggie (owners wife) informing us that ALL of the plumbing had frozen the previous night and NO water was available. Poor woman was beside herself as hubby was away. Thanked her for calling told her we would stay there next time. Ended up booking a cabin at Le Bannik instead. Left Val D'or Sun am heading to R Noranda, Ville Marie to La Bannik. Ran 83 all the way. Colder than you know what on the long straight stretches after Presissac through Mont-Brun and into Clericy. Trail was great all the way. Had lunch in RN and headed south to Vaille Marie. Again 83 was great save for a couple of windblown fields and the one big lake run before Remigny. Again nothing to complain about. Pulled into Bannik at 4:30. Had another great meal.....beautiful dining room. Daytime view out to the lake is spectacular. Nice cabin as well. Left Bannik yesterday for a straight shot down the tracks and back to the truck / trailer at Auberge Canadienne. 63 was pretty much beat which you could sort of expect after being pounded all weekend. Anyway, logged somewhere around 700 miles on what would have to be described as near perfect trails. We're never in danger of breaking into a sweat at anytime given the temps! Ps....saw a couple of nasty offs. Ride safe & enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florida Snowman Posted February 16, 2016 Report Share Posted February 16, 2016 Nice ride & report Gowser! Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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