Saint-Sauveur, Quebec: 2018-11-11 and 11-12

I've always been fascinated by the string of ski areas that line Autoroute 15 north of Montreal. We'd usually pass by at night, on the way to Mont Tremblant, one hillside after another lit up for night skiing.

Mont Tremblant & Far Hills (XC), Quebec: 01/13 - 01/15/2018

It's hard to beat the package Tremblant can deliver for a family ski getaway: a big mountain with lots of variety, quaint pedestrian village that's consistently ranked tops in the east, and oodles of slopeside lodging options. Throw in a favorable exchange rate and the opportunity to experience a different language and culture within driving distance of home, and it's easy to see why Tremblant is so popular with east coast snow sliders.

Whistler-Blackcomb: 01/26 - 01/28/2017

Whistler seems to be on every avid skier’s must-ski list, and I was lucky enough to enjoy my first visit there last week on my annual "guys' trip." It’s hard to describe Whistler-Blackcomb if you’ve never been, but “big” is a good start. With 8 thousand skiable acres, 5 thousand vertical feet and two huge mountains, 3 days of skiing was barely enough to just scratch the surface.

Mont Tremblant: 01/14 - 01/16/2017

“Head for Canada!” has been frequently heard around the Saratoga Skier household since November, but it has nothing to do with the presidential election. It’s all about the snow – north of the St. Lawrence was the jackpot for eastern snowfall last winter (about 130% of normal), and that trend has continued into this winter as well.

Mont Tremblant, Quebec: 02/15 - 02/19/2016

Sometimes you get lucky. As lousy as this winter’s been, we scored a week of stellar conditions over the February break. Of course it wasn’t pure luck. We stacked the odds in our favor by heading 5 hours north to Mont Tremblant, in the Laurentian mountains of Quebec.

Ironically, the locals apologized for low snow conditions upon our arrival. Apologize, for what? With 30 inches of snow on the ground and the mountain 100% open including glades and natural snow trails, it seemed like we had stepped out of late November right into mid-winter.

Mont Tremblant, Quebec: 03/17 & 03/18/2011

Day 1: Thursday, St. Patrick's Day:

Summit fog, 8am

I've always wanted to take advantage of the First Tracks program that some ski areas offer. Apparently I'm not the only one, because all eight of my companions on a multi-day trip to Quebec's Mont Tremblant decided that First Tracks sounded like fun. I was skeptical last night that we'd all make it, but sure enough, all nine of us boarded the gondola in the fog at 7:45 this morning to head up to Mont Tremblant's summit.