by Marc Guido

Sutton (Québec), Canada (2004) - The region of Québec that borders Vermont is known by two names: The Eastern Townships in English, or l’Estrie in French. The area is a patchwork land of French and English, the latter towns first settled by British loyalists escaping the American Revolution more than 200 years ago. To this day, these pockets of the English language remain, and many of the names reflect their British heritage: Knowlton, Bolton, Waterloo, and Sutton, amongst others. The latter is also home to one of the region’s largest ski resorts, the eponymous Mont Sutton.

by Marc Guido

Stoneham (QC), Canada - “If you don’t slow down, you’re going to give me frostbite!”

Such was Rob’s concern as we speed down perfectly groomed corduroy at Québec’s Stoneham Mountain Resort. It was the American Thanksgiving weekend, and we had escaped the crowds by heading north of the border. When you want to get away from the masses on a holiday weekend, simply travel as we had done to where it isn’t a holiday. As the liftlines grew out of control at other mountains a few hours to the south, here at Stoneham we nearly had the mountain to ourselves – with plenty of elbowroom for zooming down the groomers at warp speed.

by Marc Guido

Chicoutimi (QC), Canada - We pushed through Québec City during the evening rush hour, heading north. Way north.

by Marc Guido

l'Anse-St. Jean (QC), Canada - I’ve never quite understood the attraction to ice fishing. Sitting on a giant ice cube, freezing your posterior and staring at a hole while holding a string and waiting for something to happen just doesn’t seem like fun to me. Sure, some of those ice-fishing huts are lavishly appointed with heaters, television sets and couches, but why transport your living room to the middle of a frozen lake? I’ll buy my fresh fish at the local seafood market, thank you very much.

by Marc Guido

Petite-Rivière-St.-François (QC), Canada - Le Massif de Petite-Rivière-St.-François is a mountain at a crossroads. Throughout its relatively short life, the resort with what may well be the longest formal name in the ski industry has prided itself on maintaining harmony with its natural surroundings and eschewing traditional ski area development. A CDN $24.8 million investment last season, however, places Le Massif on the launching pad to the big time. The first season with the new facilities brought record-setting attendance of 115,000 skier and snowboarder visits to the resort. February visits were up 13% over the preceding year, despite the fact that the 2000-2001 season broke snowfall records throughout the Northeast. Likewise, March visits were up 10% from a year earlier and claimed a one-day record of 3,620 visitors. The mountain’s colossal expansion could be the doorway to its success, or a threat to its very nature, depending upon your point of view.

Story & photos by Jim Crowley

Newfoundland, Canada (April 2001) - I drove seven hours across the island of Newfoundland before picking up Bill, from Lake Elmore, Vermont, at the Deer Lake airport and continuing an hour south, through Corner Brook, to the Blow Me Down Mountains. I had never been to the Blow Me Downs, and Bill had only been there once in the summer a few years ago.

Story and photos by Marc Guido

Bromont (QC), Canada (April 13, 2001) - It seems that small dogs don’t understand their size. What other explanation could there be for a Chihuahua that attacks a Rotweiller? You’d think that the little guy would pick his fights more carefully, but he doesn’t. The fur on his back rises, and he stands his ground. The Rotweiller, recognizing that he could easily crush the Chihuahua with his superior size, usually walks away, leaving the Chihuahua standing proud.

Bromont is a Chihuahua. The resort in Québec’s Eastern Townships has its advantages, to be sure, but the mountain’s management has taken limited resources – a smallish mountain with low elevation, a relatively short vertical drop, and limited natural snowfall - and transformed them into a ski area much bigger than it appears at first glance. OK, so maybe Bromont’s neighbors Mont-Orford, Owl’s Head, and Mont Sutton aren’t exactly Rotweillers in the skiing world, but it’s my analogy, and I’m sticking to it.

by Marc Guido

St.-Philémon (QC), Canada (April. 2001) - It was around 10:30 p.m. when I pulled into the tiny pastoral village of St.-Philémon, Québec. René Godbout, Massif du Sud's general manager, was convinced that I would never find my condo in the dark, and therefore made arrangements to meet me in the parking lot of the hamlet's only gas station. I wasn’t quite sure of what to make of the general manager himself venturing out late on a dark Saturday night to lead a customer to his lodging, but no matter – I had long been intrigued by reports of exciting, unknown skiing at Massif du Sud, and I was anxious to sample its treasures. Arriving ahead of Monsieur Godbout, I felt obligated to explain to the store’s owner why I was hanging out in his parking lot at 10:30 at night. I therefore approached him at the depanneur's checkout counter.

"Excuse-moi, monsieur ... parlez-vous anglais"

"Non."

Uh-oh.

Story & photos by Marc Guido

Mont-Tremblant (QC), Canada - When ski resort conglomerate Intrawest purchased Québec’s Tremblant resort in 1991, it bought a mountain largely thought to be past its prime. A true ski history mogul, Tremblant had fallen on hard times and was floundering financially.

It’s amazing what a measly little $800 million will do!

by Marc Guido

Magog (QC), Canada - We sat around the table chuckling arrogantly at the Mont Orford trail map.  Triple black diamonds are the overzealous creations of a marketing department run amok, and we were certain that Orford's were no exception.  We prepared ourselves for a day of gentle corduroy cruising.  Boosting our spirits was the steady, heavy snow falling from thick, gray skies.  Light and dry, at least it would cover the corduroy.

(January 2000) - In 1960, Canadian construction magnate Fred Korman had a vision to develop a ski resort on Owl's Head, a shark tooth-shaped monadnock on the shores of Lac Memphremagog in Québec, a few short miles north of the Vermont border. He purchased and developed the land, and by 1965 two chairlifts carried skiers to the first ribbons of white alpine ski trails on the mountain.

by Marc Guido

Lac Beauport (QC), Canada - The big eastern snow drought of December, 1998 weighed heavily on my mind as I packed my ski gear. I prepared for my annual pilgrimage from Florida to visit the in-laws in Québec City, and I fretted about what I would encounter once I arrived. My concerns deepened as I spent the pre-Christmas days in northern Vermont surrounded by sparse snowcover, warm temperatures and liquid precipitation.