Looking for something else then park riding, QC has a lots to offer if you are seeking for pow turns, pillows and steep big mountain lines. With the slow winter start out West, I found myself driving around QC in search of pristine Champaign and chaotic terrain where skiing is more then working on your park skills in the middle of corduroy land. In the next few weeks, I’m hoping to help you guys find out abound QC many backcountry possibilities. If you can’t afford a plane ticket to Whistler, Fernie or Revelstoke ski resorts, no worries, in a “short” drive from home, you can get a bit of what big resorts and outbound area offer out West, all that with the famous Frenchie’s taste.

First stop, Le Massif ski resort, 45 minutes east of Quebec City. With a 915cms snowfall last winter, 49 runs, 770m of vertical drop and 2 brand new backcountry areas, spending a few days at Le Massif is probably the easiest way to get a taste of high speed pow turns, face shots, tasty pillows lines and cliff drops. After 3 days shooting and touring at Le Massif in early January, I realized that this area offers much more than just a great in bound ski adventure.

In fact, within a few minutes of hiking or touring, you can access all sorts of trails and open areas in the outlayin areas of Le Massif ski resort. Don’t feel like getting lost in the woods, or having to walk back to the lifts kinda slow you down in your outabound appetite, no problems, Le massif just opened 2 new backcountry zones, the 550 and the 800. But make sure you get in those zones with 2-3 friends in case you get lost or injured. For the not too much adventurous persons or if you don’t feel like bootpacking all the way up there, stop by the Massif Ski School and get yourself in a pair of brand new Rossi’s touring skis and poles (with climbing skins), a great package that could be upgrated with a friendly guide if you want to spend a few extra bucks and maybe get into the secrets pow fields that only our guide and a few locals know about.

The snow was deep, light and trackless. With only a meter or so of snowpack, the terrain on the 550 zone reminded me of a famous pillow line out West in Roger Pass Park, BC, but with a bit more trees and the St-Lawrence River right in front of us.There are small drops and stumps everywhere and not much people hike that area so you can get pow turns even a few days after a snowstorm.

After honestly the best lunch I ever had in a ski resort cafeteria (far away from pizza and poutine), we put our skins on once again for another short climb to the 800 zone, a much steeper area with some parts approaching 65 degrees, enough to get a bit of adrenaline. Three chutes have been cleared and they will get you deep in some of the best snow out East.

Even though there wasn’t enough snow in some parts of the run (note that the zone official opening was scheduled only a few weeks after our trip), the turns were great and challenging enough for my early season legs.

On our second day, we went to the same zone (800) but a bunch of local dudes took us into a secret zone called the “érablière”. Not as steep as the official 800 area, the run was filled with fresh snow and pillows all over the place. Trying to get a bit of the action with my camera, I took pics of the guys who had built the run. Watching those Crazy Canucks shredding the untouched pow of the “érablière” help me understand why they put in all that work cutting trees and branches to built it.

Because of bad visibility, we couldn’t get in the next area, a deeply secret one west of the Charlevoix run, but it’s just a matter of time before I get back there and ski one of the dozen trails that these guys have cut in the past few summers. Just perfect!