Discover the Chic-Chocs Mountain Range in Eastern Canada

Let’s discover one of the best-kept secrets, Vertigo-Aventures

You like fresh snow, remote mountain range, you are in for something different.

Eastern Canada is not the number one destination in the world for backcountry skiing. But if you are in the East, this has to be on your radar for its accessibility and the possibility to get very good turns for a fraction of the price to go to Japan.

Discover the Chic-Chocs with this special series on the different location and guiding services available.
We start this series with Vertigo Aventures. This is the destination for serious backcountry skiing. Located in the Western part of the Chic-Chocs, Vertigo Aventures is based at the foot of the Mont Blanc Massif and it get dumped with massive snowfall year after year.

This is the destination for serious backcountry skiing. Located in the Western part of the Chic-Chocs, Vertigo Aventures is based at the foot of the Mont Blanc Massif (Quebec, Canada) and it get dumped with massive snowfall year after year. This is my third season and I’ve seen snowpacks ranging from close to 2 m this year all the way to close to 3 meters in the valley. Ski Runs are very diverse and you can choose from 200m vertical 25 degree

Ski Runs are very diverse and you can choose from 200m vertical 25-degree angle slope all the way to close to 600m vertical and 40+ degree. The terrain is in majority below treeline but you also get some nice open fields above tree at or above treeline. Oh, and the tree runs are just out of this world.
The real benefit is the number of people on this huge territory. You are basically alone. With a capacity of 12 clients, it is actually rare to even see a skin track, and you certainly never have to ski in anyone’s tracks.

If you are in for adventure, if you like remote places, if you’re in for the snow, the terrain, and the quality of the crew, this is my number one place in Eastern Canada (so far! and by far!)

Showers not included

This is the complete guide to choose your ski destination in South America

Today we meet with Serge Berthiaume, A French Canadian living and skiing in South America. I first meet Serge more than ten years ago; ski bumming his way all over North America. I was not surprised when I heard Serge’s plan to ski South America over the summer; it was a bit of a shock when I heard he would go back every year. Saving money, working winters back home just to go back to ski the Southern Winters. After all, most of us were doing the opposite. Serge now lives full time in Chile and skiing is still his main occupation.

Tell us the story behind a Canadian who lives and work in the ski industry in South America

It’s been 10 years since we started our history here in Chile, that was in 2003. When we arrived to Santiago after saving up our money (for a  whole winter), we understood that what we did was the  best choice, skiing 30 inch of fresh snow on our first day.

The first days were hard! Trying to figure where the best lines were, the best happy hours, the best restaurants… well, the best setup for us! Two months after our  return to Canada we realized that we loved our trip so  much that we didn’t’ spend a day without talking about it!  It was done: we were addicted. We had to come back, we never miss a ski season in Chile ever again!