For what would most likely be my last day of the 2021-22 ski season, I felt that it was appropriate to end it at my home mountain. With the forecast for the next few days of rain and warm temperatures, it was time to take advantage and not wait. I arrived at the mountain early at 8 under a beautiful blue sky and temps already above 0. First ride was up the Alfred Desrochers Quad for a warm up lap on the Toussiski and then over to the bottom of the Super under the Hybride Chair. The coverage was still pretty good since it has been warm and sunny Monday and Tuesday. In the shade the snow was still a bit firm, but once out in the sun it was soft. The brooks were running which made for a nice soothing ride on the chair.  The Toussiski, and a view looking up the Maxi and Mont Orford. I caught up with my ski buddy Christian for a run up the Hybride for the 4KM trail. Again coverage was pretty good and was also groomed. Not all trails were groomed so we stayed on those trails. The s...

With the long range forecast anouncing warm, and wet weather for the next few days I made it out to Orford today before it gets messy. I arrived at the mountain for 8:15 and the parking lot was filling up fast. The temperature was mild already at just about freezing under partly cloudy skies. Booted up at the car, headed off to the Hybride for first runs until I saw a crowd already waiting. I turned my attention to the Alfred Desrochers Quad and headed that way. I made third chair up for first runs! I ended up making 3 laps here. The conditions were sweet with groomed loose granular over a firm base that was softening up quickly. Warm up run on the Toussiski over to the bottom of the Super then back up the new Quad for the Grande Allee.  The Toussiski and Grande Allee: From here it was over to the Giroux North Quad for a run down the Magnum. I then headed over to the Giroux East Quad via the Passe Montagne trail which I have never skied before in all the years skiing at Orfor...

Today with the day off I got out to Mont Orford for visit number 2 of the season. I arrived at the mountain at 8:15 and the parking lot P2 was filling up quickly! On a Wednesday! I still managed to get a decent spot so the walk wasn't too bad. It was a fresh -14 degrees under a cloudy sky. While I was booting up at the car, you could hear the wind blowing around the mountain. The wind wasn't bad at the base. The Hybride, The Giroux  North & East Quads, and the Alfred Desrochers Quad were in operation today.  Normally I would have taken the first run up the Hybride to warm up, but this time I did something different. I rode the new Alfred Desrochers Quad for first run. The ride is quite nice on this new lift compared to the old Double Chair. The first run was down the Tousisski. The wind was blowing a bit up near the top of the ride. The conditions were of groomed packed powder over a firm base. Coverage was really nice. From there I crossed over to the Hybride f...

The start of my 2021-22 season began today at Mont Orford. I arrived at the mountain at 8:15 to a cloudy sky with some lingering flurries, and the temperature was -8 degrees. The P2 parking lot was quite busy at this time as cars were arriving all at the same time to get the first runs of the day. It had snowed a bit the night before, at least an inch of new snow was on the ground. The Familiale, Magog, Jean-d'Avignon, l'Acces, along with la Mitaine (the Pente Ecole) were opened. The Giroux North Quad was open along with the double Magic Carpet for the Pente Ecole. A total of 5 trails in all. The mountain ops crew has worked really hard to get what was opened considering what we have experienced in the Townships this early season so far. Great job! The line up at the beginning of the day was non-existent. The ride up the chair was nice, not windy at all, however at the top it was blustery. The first run was on the Familiale to warm up. The conditions were really nice. The tra...

Well, my Day 2 of this extraordinary ski season is in the books. An outing to Mont Orford today was absolutely needed as it had been over a month since the last time I had gone out. I had arrived at the mountain at 8:15, and the parking lot was already starting to fill up. The temperature was a nice mild -5 degrees under a mostly cloudy sky, however. Booting up at the car is nothing new for me as I often do this at most hills I go to. The chalet on four wheels! Once booted up, masked up, and dressed it was time to head off to start the morning of skiing. 25 of 44 trails announced as open with 3 lifts spinning, the Hybride, the Giroux East, and North Quads. Surprisingly enough when I arrived at the Hybride, there was already a lineup for first turns. It looks rather large at first with everyone respecting the 2-metre social distancing rules. The wait time wasn't more than 5 minutes. I met up with my ski buddy Christian for the first two runs of the day. The first runs of the day were on...

Well my 2020-21 ski season has begun....finally! The weather recently in the Townships has not been the best, and upcoming weather reports aren't any better. So off to Mont Orford this morning for a few early season laps. I arrived at the mountain at 8:15, and it was already getting mild with a temperature of +2 degrees, and skies were partly cloudy to start. With the new Covid protocols in place, we are required to dress, and boot up at the car. Access to the chalet is limited for 15 minute breaks. Masks to be worn in the lift line, chalet, and on the lifts. Outside on the terrace there were a few spots where there are fireplaces set up with a couple of places to sit and relax. What was pretty cool was that they had was a shipping container converted into a serving area for drinks and other items you could purchase without having to enter the chalet. The terrace was set up nicely to have a break. Now onto the skiing. There were 5 trails available with The Giroux North Quad, The Hybrid...

Day 2 of the season brought me to Mont Orford today. I had heard of the major construction project on the chalet, snowmaking system, and the new domed double magic carpet for the beginner's area that was installed, and has some finishing touches to go before it is up and running. I needed a sneak peek at what was done. I arrived at the mountain just after 8:30 with sunny skies and a crisp -11 degrees at the base. Once out of the car I noticed there was a bit of a breeze which made it colder than what it really was. With the rain and the warm weather this past week, and a wet weekend, I knew today was going to be a day where the snow was going to be hard and fast. Good thing I had a tune-up on the boards a couple of weeks ago! My buddy Christian contacted me to say that he would be there, and we met up to ski in the morning. The Giroux North Quad was open serving the Magnum, Familliale, Magog, and the Jean-Daviginon trails today. At the base of the mountain it was breezy, but as you rod...

I woke up early this morning to a beautiful sunny bluebird sky, so I made the decision to head out to Mont Orford. The mountain had received up to 40 centimetres of new snow Friday and into Saturday, so today was the day to go and see what they had. I arrived at the mountain a few minutes after 8 and the main parking lot was already filling up. The temperature was pretty mild at -2 degrees at the base of the mountain. It was quite windy as I was walking across the parking lot to the chalet, and was wondering what would be on wind hold. When I bought my ticket I was informed that the Alfred Desrochers double and the Rapido Triple were the only lifts open because of the wind. The access would have been up the Double and over to mid mountain to the Rapido to access...

Mont Orford was the destination choice today to start off the 2018-19 season. There were other options that were thought of that involved a bit of travel, however I decided to stick to something nearby. This would be Orford's second weekend of operation. With the dump of snow this past week Orford was a good choice. All of Giroux North was open counting for about a dozen trails with the Giroux North Quad giving access. I arrived at the mountain at 8:45 under cloudy skies and the temperature hovering around 0 to -1 Celsius. I met up with an old friend of mine from my Owl's Head days so this venture was not a solo one. There was a decent crowd, but the wait in line was no more than a minute or so if that. I wouldn't even consider this a wait. Everything was flowing smoothly in line.  Today you were skiing on a mix of groomed man made and packed natural...

Today's choice of destination was Mont Orford. What a beautiful bluebird sky! I arrived at Orford at 8:15 and the temperature was just below 0 but felt warmer in the bright sun. Spring was definitely in the air today. Parking was pretty decent and the walk was not long to the chalet. Crossing the foot bridge from the parking lot to the chalet, the brook was flowing with a strong current, and the sound of spring welcomed you to the mountain. The Hybride, Giroux North and East Quads, and even the double chair on Alfred Desrochers was in operation. The coverage was still pretty decent with a few typical spring icy patches starting to appear, along with some bare patches on Alfred Desrochers. The start of the day was on groomed granular snow on a firm base but that quickly softened up as the morning progressed. There is still snow in...

Being a big fan of skiing in the Eastern Townships, today's destination was Mont Orford, known for having one of the highest vertical drops in Quebec. This was my second visit ever to Orford. The drive was smooth with no traffic, although a bit long from Gatineau (about 3h40). Taking the highway 30 to bypass Montreal definitely saves a lot of time and frustration. Arriving at 10am, the mountain was already starting to fill up with cars but nothing major. The weather was much warmer than it has been recently and the sun was starting to shine. Heading into the main chalet, I was quickly impressed by the sheer size of it, spread across 4 levels, that begged me to quickly drop my bags and go explore. Of particular note, there is a nice sandwich/coffee bar on the same level as the customer service.  Quickly putting on my boots and gear, I...

After the Siberian like deep freeze we just experienced this past week and a bit, and with the announced temperature of -10 or so today, a trip to Mont Orford was the selected destination............. like everyone else had the same idea! I arrived at the mountain at 8:20 in hopes of finding a decent parking spot. There were cars from both directions rolling in and it wasn't about to slow down anytime soon. I did manage to find decent parking before the mad rush. Temperature on arrival was -11. A lot more bearable than the -20 or so with the last outing. 30/44 trails were open along with 8/17 glade trails were open along with the Hybride six seater/gondola combo lift and the Giroux North Quad. The Alfred-Desrochers double chair and sector was not open. The first runs were up the Hybride to ski the 4km trail and then the Grande Coulée. There...

Mont Orford, the highest mountain of the "Big 4" of the Eastern Townships in terms of skiable vertical terrain, is located a little over an hour from Montréal, just minutes from Autoroute 10. A total of 44 trails and glades are waiting for you served by 8 lifts; 2 Quad chairlifts, a Triple chair, Double chair, a 6 seater/gondola hybrid, and 3 Magic Carpets. Orford consists of 3 summits, Mont Orford, Mont Alfred-Desrochers, and Mont Giroux. There are 2 faces on Mont Giroux, known as Giroux North and Giroux East. In the main chalet, you will find the Groups and Client Services counter and seating area on the main floor. Upstairs on the second level is the cafeteria, and two halls, Salle Giroux and Salle Alfred-Desrochers. The daycare and Slalom Pub are also found here in the main chalet. Lift tickets are purchased at the windows outside. In the secondary chalet, the Boutique and Rental shop along with the ski school are located here. Lodging can be found at the base of Giroux East for gu...

The choice today to pretty much end my 2016-17 ski season was Mont Orford. I have ended 3 of the past 4 seasons here and what a day to close out the year! Today had been announced that Orford would be closing for the season due to the weather for Easter Sunday and Monday not being great with rain in the forecast for the Townships. Beautiful bluebird sky to start, really mild, and true spring skiing at its best were to be had. 2 lifts were spinning, the Hybride, a 6 seater chair/gondola serving the Trois Ruisseaux and Grand Coulée trails on Mount Orford, and the Mont Giroux North Quad serving the Magnum, Jean-Davignon, Magog and Pente Douce trails. The conditions were fantastic, true spring skiing with corn snow on a soft base. The first runs were up the Hybride to the Trois Ruisseaux (3 Creeks Trail) and the Grande Coulée. Trois...