Patrick
Well-known member
After hearing about this place from Andy and Brendan in Chile, I wanted to check it out myself.
2 hours (according to Mapquest) outside Ottawa driving West. 120km for 130meter vertical. Was it worth it? Why bother? Andy had convinced me that this place was the best local (although it's not really local). The previous night a plan trip got nixed when I found out that potential partners from Ottawa weren't coming , 2-for-1 wasn't good on Saturdays and Slides were closed on the Friday.
There was Chilly on this big snow year. After seeing my daughter off to her music lesson, I drove West, west to the Pontiac. Chilly is in a remote end of Quebec, it's at the end of the Pontiac just before the road ends into forest. On the other side of the Ottawa River is Ontario where the community of Pembroke is.
I make it to the parking lot across the road from the ski hill at around noon, maybe 5-6 cars are in the lot. $18 for the day ticket sold over the counter of the snack bar inside the chalet. This hill is pure vertical, no flats along the fall line. I got to the t-bar and the lift is started by the owner/founded with a German accent. The owner talks to me. 'Are you from Pembroke?" A snowboarder gets on the lift with me, he's the patroller. He said I can ski run #4 even if it's roped off, he didn't want kids to adventure themselves on less than perfect conditions.
He also told me that when there is a storm, many powderhounds from Ottawa come down to Chilly. Chilly doesn't have a snowmaking system and doesn't really groom. Chilly is also only open on Wednesday and weekends + Holidays.
Once we get off, the lift is stopped again. Started skiing the first run, a run called #1, the easiest trail. A fun, narrow and twisting trail. The trails, the hill has an ambiance. The runs get steeper/harder and more direct down the fall line has the number increase. There is a few variations in the 4 main trails.
Trails has a dusting of snow on the refrozen base. Easy to edge. Run 3A was a glade, surface was tricky and needed either some more fresh snow or to warm up so it can soften up. Run 4 is a steep run with a few rolls, not the type of run in today's manufactured ski industry runs.
As the afternoon went by, a few more skiers showed up. The hill going be more "mom and pop" operation. The mom is behind the counter of the snack bar, pop sometime give the t-bar, the son helps in the kitchen and is also another patrol. I skied with him for a few hours until the lift closed at 5ish. I was expecting to close at 4pm, but the son told me that it looked like they could close later. He told the great story of this place, he also told me that on a really good year many years ago, they kept the lift running until May. I didn't ask him if this could happen this year? The snowpack is deep. Sunday's conditions would have been really good. Once the snow soften up, conditions are going to be amazing.
This place is really refreshing. Definitely going to come back. Mont Chilly is to the Outaouais what Mont Alta is to the Laurentians, however Chilly is less commercial. :wink:
History of Mont Chilly - Pontiac website
2 hours (according to Mapquest) outside Ottawa driving West. 120km for 130meter vertical. Was it worth it? Why bother? Andy had convinced me that this place was the best local (although it's not really local). The previous night a plan trip got nixed when I found out that potential partners from Ottawa weren't coming , 2-for-1 wasn't good on Saturdays and Slides were closed on the Friday.
There was Chilly on this big snow year. After seeing my daughter off to her music lesson, I drove West, west to the Pontiac. Chilly is in a remote end of Quebec, it's at the end of the Pontiac just before the road ends into forest. On the other side of the Ottawa River is Ontario where the community of Pembroke is.
I make it to the parking lot across the road from the ski hill at around noon, maybe 5-6 cars are in the lot. $18 for the day ticket sold over the counter of the snack bar inside the chalet. This hill is pure vertical, no flats along the fall line. I got to the t-bar and the lift is started by the owner/founded with a German accent. The owner talks to me. 'Are you from Pembroke?" A snowboarder gets on the lift with me, he's the patroller. He said I can ski run #4 even if it's roped off, he didn't want kids to adventure themselves on less than perfect conditions.
He also told me that when there is a storm, many powderhounds from Ottawa come down to Chilly. Chilly doesn't have a snowmaking system and doesn't really groom. Chilly is also only open on Wednesday and weekends + Holidays.
Once we get off, the lift is stopped again. Started skiing the first run, a run called #1, the easiest trail. A fun, narrow and twisting trail. The trails, the hill has an ambiance. The runs get steeper/harder and more direct down the fall line has the number increase. There is a few variations in the 4 main trails.
Trails has a dusting of snow on the refrozen base. Easy to edge. Run 3A was a glade, surface was tricky and needed either some more fresh snow or to warm up so it can soften up. Run 4 is a steep run with a few rolls, not the type of run in today's manufactured ski industry runs.
As the afternoon went by, a few more skiers showed up. The hill going be more "mom and pop" operation. The mom is behind the counter of the snack bar, pop sometime give the t-bar, the son helps in the kitchen and is also another patrol. I skied with him for a few hours until the lift closed at 5ish. I was expecting to close at 4pm, but the son told me that it looked like they could close later. He told the great story of this place, he also told me that on a really good year many years ago, they kept the lift running until May. I didn't ask him if this could happen this year? The snowpack is deep. Sunday's conditions would have been really good. Once the snow soften up, conditions are going to be amazing.
This place is really refreshing. Definitely going to come back. Mont Chilly is to the Outaouais what Mont Alta is to the Laurentians, however Chilly is less commercial. :wink:
History of Mont Chilly - Pontiac website
