7 Epic Alpine Touring Destinations in Quebec

Lanaudière

Parc Régional de la Forêt Ouareau

Just an hour from Montreal, the Parc Régional de la Forêt Ouareau unveiled a ski touring sector in the winter of 2023–2024. This new backcountry zone is the first of its type in Lanaudière to be developed with the FQME. Blessed with a snowy microclimate, the site features three open glades in a mixed forest and a cozy warming hut. This is your new go-to spot near the city for wilderness immersion and secret powder stashes.

Vertical gain/drop: 150 metres

Skier level: Intermediate+ to advanced

Fees: FQME membership ($10 day, $65 annual) + $14 access fee

Gaspé Peninsula

Mont Porphyre

Murdochville, population 643, is a remote outpost in the middle of the Chic-Choc mountains on the Gaspé Peninsula. The former mining town has been reborn as a mountain sports paradise. These days, the mother lode is the seven metres of snow that fall on the surrounding mountains.

You can access Mont Porphyre and its embarrassment of powdery riches just a few kilometres north of town. Three skin tracks take you to the top. The ridgetop, denuded by mining and logging activities during the area’s industrial era, gives a 360-degree view over the Chic-Chocs, the town, old mine sites, and wind turbines. The area offers endless lines through sparsely treed snowfields and twelve evergreen glades. Thrill seekers will love the two wooden jumps.

For some well-earned burgers, beers, and poutine after a day in the mountains, head to the Resto QG du Chic-Chac. Their festive après-ski starts at 3:00 p.m.

Vertical gain/drop: 300 metres

Skier level: Beginner to expert

Fees: Membership in the FQME ($10 day, $65 annual)

Mont Lyall

Thanks to the hard work of Coop Accès Chic-Chocs and other partners, a high mountain nirvana awaits skiers on the broad reaches of Mont Lyall. After a 45-minute approach, several skin tracks lead you through a fir forest, into a transition zone of scree and krummholz, then above the treeline. The views will make you wonder if you fell through a wormhole somewhere after Sainte-Anne-des-Monts and ended up in the Rockies. Many steep lines drop into alpine bowls and run through a skein of interconnected trails and glades.

Vertical gain/drop: 390 metres or (520 metres including approach from the trailhead)

Skier level: Advanced to expert

Fees: Membership in the FQME ($10 day, $65 annual) + contribution also suggested on site ($10 day, $40 annual)

Saguenay

Les Sommets du Fjord

A local committee in Petit-Saguenay, with support from the FQME, has been transforming the rugged terrain around the village into a backcountry ski haven. The Sommets du Fjord now boasts three interconnected sectors and eleven runs. In the Cœur du Village area, you can skin up to a rocky outcrop with a view of the village and surrounding wilderness. Several runs have steep sections that will make your heart pound. Open woods on runs like Chaga and Chanterelle invite skiers to bomb downhill on fast, fluid lines. They’re also good places for novices to get the hang of tree skiing.

After a day of laps, head to the Camp de Base in L’Anse-Saint-Jean to refuel. Their menu features artisanal smoked meats, vegetarian options, dishes with local ingredients, and a selection of microbrews.

Vertical gain/drop: 250 metres

Skier level: Beginner to expert

Fees: Membership in the FQME ($10 day, $65 annual)

Quebec City Area

Parc National de la Jacques-Cartier

A deeply carved glacial valley runs through the centre of the Parc National de la Jacques-Cartier. On its steep mountainsides lie three broad backcountry skiing zones. The majestic crowns of venerable yellow birches and maples create natural downhill lines. But skiers should be comfortable weaving through tight trees and avoiding undergrowth.

The Belleau sector is just across the bridge from the welcome centre (a good spot for lunch or warming up). The largest of the three, it covers 100 hectares. The Sautauriski sector lies two and a half kilometres north, just beyond the confluence of the Jacques Cartier and Sautauriski rivers. A more gradual pitch makes it the best choice for less experienced skiers. Highly motivated powder hounds can reach the Matteucie sector—the best bet for untracked snow—after a seven-kilometre approach. The last two areas have access to cozy huts perfect for warming up and lunch breaks.

Since the park is only a 45-minute drive from downtown Quebec City, après-ski dining options abound. The whimsical microbrewery la Korrigane is an excellent place to top off a day in the backcountry.

Vertical gain/drop: Belleau 300 metres, Sauteriski 200 metres, Matteucie 330 metres

Skier level: Intermediate to expert

Fees: $9.85

La Vallée du Bras du Nord

This winter the Vallée du Bras du Nord will be opening a self-guided ski touring zone along with the existing guided option. Mountain bikers familiar with its grandiose trail network know that the VBN doesn’t do things halfway. True to form, the outdoor sports cooperative developed an entire mountainside to create a vast wilderness playground—cutting just enough trees for smooth skiing while keeping a natural aesthetic. The area features both gentle slopes to the north and serious steeps on its southern end. The longest descents begin in evergreens, and all of them end in broad, steep-sided hollows where skiers can improvise playful lines through gnarled, towering maples.

If a day of deep pow has you in a Hokkaido state of mind, you may need to stop by Sushi M on your way through downtown Saint-Raymond for both traditional and Portneuf-inspired sushi.

Vertical gain/drop: 400 metres  

Skier level: Intermediate to expert

Fees: Membership in the FQME ($10 day, $65 annual) + to be determined access fee

Eastern Townships

Ski Mont Hereford

Ski Mont Hereford offers two backcountry skiing zones in the heart of the northern Appalachians. The Piments sector, located above the parking lot for the Forêt Hereford hiking trails, features spicy runs through a mature maple grove. The 600-metre wide skiable terrain, with varied slope angles, gives skiers a broad canvas for creative expression.

An hour approach from the same parking lot leads to the base of Mont Hereford and the Trois Dames sector. Forty-five minutes later, the mountaintop offers a 360-degree panorama with the classic New England mountains Jay Peak and Mount Washington, and Quebec giants Mont Sutton, Mont Mégantic, and Mont Orford. Then you plunge through a mixed forest of evergreens and hardwoods. You’ll rip through some open areas, make quick turns through tight trees, and perhaps drop a few small cliffs. The return to your vehicle is a long, slow glide.

Vertical gain/drop: Piments 200 metres, Trois Dames 250 metres (485 m including the approach from the trailhead)

Skier level: Intermediate to expert

Fees: Membership in the FQME ($10 day, $65 annual) + Circuits Frontières access fee ($10 day, $50 season)