SKI OVER THE SEA
The Traversée de la Gaspésie, a cross-country odyssey along Canada’s stunning east coast, proves an unforgettable experience
WORDS Colin Nicholson
Skiing over the frozen sea, I could see on the horizon the roofs of Gaspé. The name means ‘end of the world’ in Mi’kmaq, the language of the indigenous Amerindians. And here I was, skiing right on the edge.
I was not alone. Every year, for the last week of February, 175 cross-country skiers and snowshoers come to this town on the eastern shore of Quebec to start one of the most convivial ski odysseys I’ve ever experienced.
The piano playing and dancing had already started at breakfast in a fishermen’s café at l’Anse au Griffon, a short drive north, where Claudine Roy, who founded the event 17 years ago, set us off along the snow-covered beach. A tour of the Gaspésie peninsula has been ranked by Lonely Planet as one of the world’s top five coastal journeys, and we were soon climbing up to magnificent views of white cliff faces jutting into the azure water.
The 6km route ahead seemed impassable, and at times we took off our skis to walk up the narrow path cut into the cliffs. A final gentle descent over even terrain led us to the frozen bay of Gaspé.
Have accordionist, will limber up in style…
As we skied across the frozen sea, some sections were choppy, with the snow sitting in waves on the ice, which meant I couldn’t glide as beautifully as I’d hoped. But the sun shone, unlike last year, when everyone had to be roped together in a blizzard. Even so, the breeze was picking up, enough to send kite-skiers and snowboarders whizzing in front of us.
Eventually we reached Gaspé, with its cross erected in honour of the French explorer Jacques Cartier, marking it as the birthplace of Canada in 1534.
In town the winter festival was in full swing, and all week long the music never ceased, from the pianist who entertained us that evening over dinner at the Pouliot school, to the accordionist whose tunes greeted us at each of the refreshment stops set up by the organisers.
Colin hits the Gaspésian trail
Most poignant was when the accordionist was joined by schoolchildren singing an anthem, specially composed for our trip, to send us on our way the next day, again across the sea, over the bay at Barachois.
CRÊPES AND CLIMBS
Apparently 7cm of ice is a safe thickness for skiers, while 12cm is required for the skimobile drivers creating our trails. Nonetheless, as the temperature hit 5°C I was glad to make it to the beach, where steam was rising off the open water. “Dive in, I’ll follow you,” everyone joked. And indeed, having working up a sweat, the water beyond the ice looked inviting.
We were following an old railway line, which went bankrupt after the Great Recession of 2008-9. Gaspésie, like so much of rural Quebec, is being devastated by depopulation, and is crying out for tourism to keep alive the traditions of this most welcoming of regions.
An inn next to a railway halt has been beautifully restored, its rooms waiting for guests. And it was here we were greeted with the most delicious maple syrup crêpes I have tasted to sustain our climb into the mountains.
As always, we could stop and catch the buses after 16km, but I climbed on, given the promise of magnificent views of the rock formations at Percé. Alas, soon the wisps of cloud turned to mist, and the mist to fog, until I could only see a metre around me. So I was overjoyed to spot the purple jacket of Naomi ahead of me. Insofar as there was a typical participant in the event, she was it – a friendly Montrealer in her forties. And she was happy for me to snowplough down behind her to Percé.
Soon we were joined by Julia, one of the 75 volunteers, who was acting as the ‘sweep’, collecting the pink flags that marked our route as she went.
Naomi guided me again in the microbrasserie where our team of 250 had gathered – my glasses fogged up in an instant. We did finally get sight of the arches and pillars of rock out at sea, from the Maison de Pêcheurs restaurant, where we dined on excellent osso buco.
That venue was fancier than the school canteen where we’d dined the previous night, but the food was excellent throughout the trip, with each day’s menu given in as much detail as the ski route. Breakfast was back at the school the next morning, where we watched the sun rise over the frozen sea. As always, I was thankful for jet lag – the 5.30am starts equating to 10.30am UK time.
This was where we bade farewell to the coast, loading our bags on to the buses to head 50 miles inland to the Chic-Choc mountains, the snowiest part of Quebec. It is also one of the best for wildlife and, as if on cue, a partridge scuttled in front of us half way round York lake.
Keen ornithologists and hikers might want to try the late September version of the Traversée, when more animals can be seen among the autumn colours, and whales are spotted off the coastline.
SNOWSHOES, POWDER AND ELKS
We skiers had only been socialising with the 50 or so snowshoers in the evenings, as we did that night at the large and comfortable Gîte du Mont Albert, our home for the next four nights. But the next day was the last with guaranteed sunshine, so all but a handful of us donned snowshoes to join their climb of the Monts Vallières de Saint Réal.
This is a spectacular white ridge that rises out of the forest, like the body of a giant animal half hidden in the foliage, its spine connecting the peaks of its shoulders and flanks. With steep drops either side, the path is too narrow to ski for most – though I felt a pang of envy when I saw three ski tourers swish down the bowl.
I turned back after the fourth peak, as the wind was biting, but was put to shame that evening by Wendy, a pensioner from Utah, who having misunderstood the announcements – which are all in French – had done all seven peaks little realising she then had to retrace her steps. (There are many people happy to translate!)
The next day the promised blizzard came in fast. In the wooded trails around the lodge we were protected, but after an exposed section over a low bridge I was glad to make it to the tiny Pergélisol refuge, 8km from the gîte, where everyone huddled around a guitarist while clutching hot drinks.
I had to drag myself out into the horizontal snow and resolved to cross back over that bridge fast – only to be blown straight off and into a snowdrift. I wasn’t hurt, so didn’t require the little ambulance cabin towed by one of the snowmobiles. But I was grateful for the masseur that evening.
When we woke, the roads were blanketed in snow and I was told I’d just missed an elk ambling past the gîte. This time our goal was the base of Mont Albert itself.
The avalanche risk meant our snowmobiles couldn’t prepare a track all the way. This was fine going up, but snowploughing down in deep powder was near impossible. At times I simply pointed my skis straight down, feeling like an amateur mogul skier as I bounced off bumps. After that I needed a second massage before the fancy dress party that closed the week.
Most people, bleary-eyed, boarded coaches back to Montreal, while I hitched a lift back to Gaspé. There, looking across the sea, I vowed to come back next year – and for 2022 there was talk of doing the Traversée by ship again, just as they have done twice before.
My trip was pre-coronavirus. Perhaps the next event will require physical distancing, but I’m sure that’s not beyond the organisers.
As Claudine told us: “My parents and grandparents taught me that living by this expanse of ocean deepens and widens your eyes to what is possible.”
FACTFILE
The next Traversée de la Gaspésie (tdlg.qc.ca) is due to take place from 20 to 27 February 2021, with full details and registration available from early October. Last year’s event cost from C$1,500/£877 (shared room) to C$3,300/£1,929 (single) for full board, excluding flights or ski hire.
Air Canada (aircanada.com; 00800 6699 2222), offers returns from Heathrow to Gaspé from around £640, or £720 allowing stop-offs in Montreal, Ottawa or Toronto and Quebec City.
SKI CANADA WITH THE SKI CLUB
Freshtracks is running two trips to Canada this winter. The 10-night Alberta Adventure Peak Experience trip from 25 February takes in Marmot Basin, Mount Norquay, Lake Louise and Sunshine Village. From £1,499, including B&B in a three-star hotel, coach transfers and eight days’ social skiing.
For the backcountry skiing holiday of a lifetime, the 10-night BC Powder Adventure trip from 20 February takes in the legendary Whitewater resort and Red Mountain, and includes cat skiing.
From £3,150, including B&B in a three-star hotel, minibus transfers, three days’ cat skiing and five-six days’ social skiing
WHERE TO LIMBER UP
While you don’t need to be a good skier to do the Traversée, you need some experience, particularly of snowploughing on cross-country skis to get downhill safely, and using your poles as brakes. Given that you will either fly to Montreal, Ottawa or Toronto, then Quebec City, you have a number of places to practise.
City centre skiing is possible in Montreal, at Mont Royal Park (lemontroyal.qc.ca), which has 11km of trails, and in Quebec City, where the Plaines d’Abraham (lesplainesdabraham.ca) has 14km of trails. Unique as those experiences are, they can’t match in variety the 200km of trails in Ottawa’s Gatineau Park, which also has the Nordik Spa (lenordik.com) for aching muscles. All offer ski hire. For snowshoeing no experience is required.
EQUIPMENT
At the rental shop, first ask for classic (‘classique’) rather than skate (‘patin’) skis, as the latter are only for short outings on wide, smooth surfaces. With classic skis you generally follow two
tramlines in the snow created by a snowmobile.
Then ask for skis with a short stretch of touring skin (‘peau de phoque’) underfoot. This stops one foot sliding backwards as you kick the other forwards, and greatly aids climbs. In much of Europe, many skis instead have a fishscale effect on the bottom.