Chic-Chocs Ski Tur- Winter 2026

Overview

In February 2026 I had the good fortune to enjoy a 6-day backcountry ski tur in the Chic-Chocs Mountains, Gaspésie, Québec, Canada.

I was invited by my dear friend to join a close group of friends on this ski trip. We shared all aspects of this trip together including skiing, meals, and cooking and associated chores. The leader of our group has decades of experience ski touring up there.

This trip was in the “West Sector” of Parc de la Gaspésie- in the Chic-Chocs Range- from Pic de l”Aube in the east, to Mounts Dodge and Logan in the west. We started and finished from Village Grande Nature Chic-Chocs. We skied ~130+km and more than 2500m of climbing (and similar descending) over 6 days.

Ski touring map of West Sector, Parc de la Gaspésie (2025).

On tur, we stayed overnight in backcountry “huts” (Refuges). We also booked baggage transport to each hut, reducing our pack load to emergency gear.

We shared a cabin at Village Grande Nature Chic-Chocs (Saint-Octave-de-l'Avenir) the night before our ski tur began- with baggage dropoff early the next morning, our first day of skiing.

Itinerary

The itinerary for our trip was essentially the “Logan Circuit” (see website for details), plus an extra day up to the Mésange hut:

Feb 9→ overnight at Village Grande-Nature
Feb 10- Day 1→ overnight at Refuge le Huard

Ski to Huard on trail
Off-piste touring in the afternoon

Feb 11- Day 2→ overnight at Refuge la Chouette

Ski to Chouette on and off-trail

Feb 12- Day 3→ overnight at Refuge la Chouette

Full day of off-piste skiing

Feb 13- Day 4→ overnight at Refuge la Carouge

Ski to Carouge on and off-trail

Feb 14- Day 5→ overnight at Refuge la Mésange

Ski to Mésange on trail
Off-piste skiing throughout the day

Feb 15- Day 6→ ski out to Village Grande Nature

Morning ski touring
Ski out to Village on trail

Itinerary notes:

I live close enough that I can easily get to the Village Grande Nature the day before the first day of skiing (some of us in our group had a much longer drive from western Québec)-

I left a day early and stayed near New Richmond-

This put me on site by late morning on Feb 9th, giving me several hours of daylight to prep equipment, scope out the Village and do some skiing to test out snow and trail conditions.

There was no baggage transport to Refuge le Mésange
I stayed overnight at the Village on Day 6, and travelled home on Feb 16- up early and home by 1pm.

General Notes

The weather and snow conditions could not have been more ideal. The weather was stable and cold (highs of -10 to -7C; lows of -24C). There was well over a metre of snow base throughout, with beautiful cold, fresh, soft snow on top that was recharged with fresh snowfall throughout the week. We were able to ski anywhere. We did endless climbing and descending off trail. The skiing in the montane forest is superb if the snow is deep and cold. There is endless opportunity to enjoy downhill skiing, on moderate (ie non-avalanche) slopes- ideal for backcountry Nordic ski equipment.

The snow conditions were ideal for grip and kick wax. We climbed well over 2500 metres over the tur- on grip-kick wax alone. There were only two extended steep and narrow climbs where I would probably use skins next time. Grip and kick wax was the predominant traction method used- I only saw a coupla skiers on scaled base skis (one of which was in our group). See summary notes below for more detail.

I was truly surprised by how “busy” it is up there! Every hut was completely booked, and every trail was tracked out- despite daily fresh snowfall. There were skiers throughout the trail network.

I saw and interacted with many people while on tur- I was the only Anglo and non-Québecois(e) skier that I encountered.

I only saw a coupla pairs of plastic touring boots (one AT, one Telemark)- everyone else was wearing backcountry Nordic touring boots- predominantly NNN-BC (I noticed maybe two pairs of 3-pin boots)- the Alpina Alaska BC was by far the most common boot. There is a growing interest and number of skiers on Xplore bindings. Most people were on traditional BC Nordic skis (eg Asnes Nansen/Cecile, Sverdrup, Ingstad/Tonje; Gamme 54; Fischer E-109, Traverse 78, Excursion 88).

I consistently witnessed some of the most impressive Nordic downhill (predominantly telemark turns) skiing I have ever seen. I was middle-of-the-pack* in terms of my downhill skills- top-of-the-pack in terms of fitness, and more general Nordic skiing skills. Some of those Laurentian Nordic skiers rival the best downhill skiers in the world!

(*I injured my knee early on the second day- causing significant pain and instability. There are endless moderate slopes to enjoy making endless linked turns- so I was able to enjoy downhill skiing despite my injury.)

The skiing conditions were purely sublime.

The scenery is breathtaking.

The hut facilities were superbe.

The company was wonderful.

Special thank you to my dear friend Martin who invited me on this trip!

Many thanks to my new ski-tur-amis Normand, Hélène, Daniel, Sonja, Catherine, et Martin SP! You were all so welcoming, generous, and fun!

Another special thank you to my wife, Rebecca, for looking after our farm and family when I was gone!

Photos

A selection of photos. A complete breakdown of the skiing and summary notes follow.

Tur Breakdown

Day 1→ Village Grande Nature to Huard

Part 1→ Village to Parc Boundary

The trail from the Village to the Parc boundary is shared with snowmobiles. There had been enough fresh snowfall that the skiing on the snowmobile track was pretty decent (it would be very tedious if icy and refrozen). It is a gradual descent (10 to 20%) from the Village down into a stream valley at ~250m elevation. The view of the Chic-Chocs massif is spectacular on a clear day. The low-elevation forest is young and very dense, with little to no opportunity to ski off-piste.

Part 2→ Parc Boundary to Refuge Huard

From the stream valley (at 250m) it is a steep and narrow trail climb over ~3km up to the Lac Thibault plateau (at ~600m). The baggage transport (snowmobile) travels on this trail- it is a sheer cliff on either side, so there is no way to get off the snowmobile track. Again, due to ample fresh snowfall, the skiing on the snowmobile track was decent (would be terrible on an icy frozen track). The 360 degree views are breathtaking. I climbed this section on grip wax- it was fine as the conditions were ideal. It is a sustained climb- definitely worth putting skins on. Skins would be required if the track is icy. Once you reach the plateaus, it is rolling terrain to Refuge le Huard.

Part 3→ Skiing around Huard

There are loads of opportunities to ski off-piste around Refuge Huard- ranging from lake skiing, to glades and snowfields. Next time, I would make sure to get to Huard early, and then scoot up to the Mésange trail (Coupe-Feu). If the snow and trail conditions are ideal, there is enough time to ski up to and back from Pic de l’Aube; and/or ski some snowfields.

Refuge le Huard

Refuge le Huard has a capacity to sleep 16 people. It was full that night- loud and busy- but fun!

There is an open spring for drinking water.

Day 2→ Huard to Chouette

Part 1→ Huard to Chouette on trail

It is over a thousand metres of climbing on trail, from Refuge le Huard to Refuge la Chouette. The winter trail (“Les Lacs”) incorporates a series of lakes that offer spectacular 360 degree views. The trail through the montane forest is narrow and tracked out by the intensive skier traffic. There is ample opportunity to get off the packed out trail on steep, twisty descents (these sections would be very challenging if the trail was hard and icy). There are two trail options from the junction at la Croisée:

a) shorter route up over Mont Louis-Marie Lalonde directly to Refuge Chouette
b) longer route over Deuxième lac des Iles

The route (a) over Mont Louis-Marie Lalonde climbs up into the subalpine, and offers spectacular views of Mont Logan and Mont Dodge in clear weather. This trail is used by the baggage transport, but the trail is wide enough to get off the snowmobile track.

The route (b) on the lake offers spectacular views of Mont des Loupes, and Mont Pembroke et Mont Griscom. The climb out is steep and somewhat gruelling- I recommend skins for this extended climb.

Part 2→ Off-Piste skiing

There are many excellent off-piste skiing opportunities en-route. We took in a number of climb-and-descend forest glade detours.

We had a full day of high-elevation touring planned for the next day out of Refuge Chouette. Therefore, we were happy to take our time and explore along the way.

(If one did not have a full day at high-elevation- and the conditions were ideal- it might make sense to get to Chouette early, and then get out in the afternoon to explore at high elevation.)

Refuge la Chouette

Refuge la Chouette has a capacity for 8 people- therefore we did not have to share it with others. There is no open water in cold weather- melt snow for drinking water. La Chouette has a glassed-in porch that offers a spectacular view of Mont Logan in clear weather.

Day 3→ High-Elevation Skiing

There are many, many options for off-piste skiing from Chouette. They range from glade skiing in montane forest slopes, to open, sparsely treed snowfields in the sub-alpine, to open snowfields in the alpine. Endless exploring and dreamy skiing to do- especially when the snow is ideal.

Be aware of alpine terrain and associated risk.

A dense cold cloud-fog rolled in overnight- rendering visibility to near zero at dawn. Visibility improved to about 50m by mid-morning, allowing us to get out. I have been told reports that this sort of weather can persist during the day, keeping you stuck in the hut.

It was cold- lows of -24C- cold enough to require face protection- I wore a balaclava with glasses. I had ski goggles in my pack in case. It could easily be -35C up there, plus windchill at that time of year.

As I stated above- I hurt my knee early on Day 2- so, unfortunately I did not take in a night ski.

Day 4→ Chouette to Carouge

Part 1→ Off-piste exploration options

There are numerous options with respect to off-piste explorations between Refuge la Chouette and Refuge le Carouge.

The weather was cold, completely clear and the snow was perfect, so we spent half the day exploring at high-elevation, before descending down to Les Lacs trail- enjoying wicked subalpine and montane forest slopes en route! As a result, we did not arrive at Carouge until dusk.

We had hoped to go and explore Mont des Loupes- we did not have enough time→ next trip!

Part 2→ Trail to Carouge

The downhill runs down to les Lacs are wicked.

The ski out the lakes offers spectacular views.

The trail from la Croisée to Carouge was pretty tracked out, and we did not have time to take in any off-piste side explorations en route.

Refuge le Carouge

Beautiful, sheltered spot, nestled in montane forest, overlooking Lac Choc and Mont Jacques-Ferron.

Day 5→ Carouge to Mésange

Part 1→ to Mésange

During the morning we at first focused on getting out to Lac Coté.

We then split into two groups- one group went and explored Mont Pion (avec le Monsieur Pion!); while the other group (including me) headed straight up the trail to Mésange.

(My knee was bothering me- I hope to take on Mount Pion next time!)

It is a good 5km climb up to Refuge la Mésange. The trail is on an old dozed grade that ranges from 10 to 20% slope. The snow was superb and the grip and glide on grip-kick wax was magic- it was an effortless climb actually (it would be a different experience on hard, icy snow). On the way up we spied mind-blowing open snowfields on the south-facing slopes of Mont John A Allen- I definitely plan on taking in those snowfields next time!

The weather was open and clear so we went up to Pic de l’Aube immediately and were spoiled with near 360 degree views including the St Lawrence, the Gulf, the McGerrigles & Mont Jacques Cartier, and Mont Albert.

We took in some sublime glade skiing between Pic de l’Aube and Refuge la Mésange before dark.

Refuge la Mésange

Refuge la Mésange does not have any baggage transport. We travelled ultralight for that night- I didn’t even bring my sleeping bag- I was completely comfortable.

La Mésange has an open multi-sided construction, with huge windows on all sides. Wow.

Day 6→ Mésange to Village Grande Nature

Part 1→ dawn at Pic de l’Aube

We got out before dawn, hoping for a clear sky and sunrise at Pic de l’Aube- it was densely overcast. Still beautiful though! Mon ami et moi took in some sweet glades before breakfast on the way back to Mésange!

Part 2→ Mésange to Huard

5km downhill at 10 to 25% grade→ endless open sweet linked buttery turning- WOW!

Depending on end-of-tur plans, one could easily take in some epic off-piste skiing en-route. This is likely dependent on when one wants to get on the road. Most of my ski group was planning on driving home that night, after we got out. As I stayed at the Village- and then drove home the next morning- I could have spent time skiing off-piste before skiing out (highly recommended- especially if the snow conditions are good!)

Part 3→ Huard down to the stream valley floor

Well, I quickly found out how sore and unstable my knee was-

Remember that 3km steep narrow climb on Day 1?

Well, I had a hell of a time coming down that snowmobile track.

(This hill could be treacherous if it was icy and hard. I have talked to a number of people that describe everything from descending on full-length skins, to walking down with ice cleats!)

Part 4→ up the snowmobile track to the Village

Better part of 10km uphill at 5 to 20% grade on a snowmobile track.

Snow conditions were good- so it was ok.

This ski out could be a bit miserable if it was hard and icy.

There is no way to get off the snowmobile track.

Summary Notes

Skiing Conditions

The West Sector of Parc de la Gaspesie offers truly world-class backcountry Nordic ski touring conditions. There are endless off-piste opportunities to explore, climb and descend- on good snow.

The montane forest is quite open- allowing for excellent glade skiing once the snow pack is deep enough to bury forest woody debris (watch out for what can be exposed though- I twisted my knee when I hit a fallen tree at downhill speed that was exposed by the skier I was closely following). In my local backcountry the glade skiing is typically restricted to open temperate hardwood forests, as the coniferous forests are typically too dense- I was surprised by the excellent coniferous forest glade skiing in the Chic-Chocs!

That being said- the snow conditions need to be ideal to safely enjoy off-piste skiing up there…And the amount of on-piste skier traffic is such that the trails are tracked and packed out- even when the snow conditions are great.

Equipment Notes

Outdoor Survival

The weather can be extreme up there- carry outdoor survival gear with you at all times (minimum→ insulating layers, bivy sac, emergency blanket, water, food, first aid kit, fire starter, satellite communicator, headlamp/flashlight).

Skis and associated equipment

I saw just one skier plodding along with an AT setup and full skins- blah!

The majority of skiers were on mid-width traditional BC Nordic skis- were efficient on-piste, and had no issues climbing and descending. I would say everyone’s ski lengths were on the shorter-steep terrainish-side (ie skier height +~10cm).

I took my 180 Rabb 68 (I am 178cm tall)- they were wicked. They were directionally stable enough for tracked out trails and snowmobile track (good snow mind you- might have felt differently on icy packed out trails…); narrow enough to hold on edge and break on steep packed out trails; wide enough to offer stability, planing and surfy float in deep soft snow. I actually saw several skiers with the Rabb 68 up there, and a number of skiers expressed some jealousy around wanting a pair! That being said, I think that the conditions were ideal for the Rabb, and I am fit enough to make up for their lesser XC efficiency on trail.

Grip-kick wax was the bomb. Effortless grip and glide. Skins weren’t necessary. Scales were not as effective- grip or glide- but the dude in our group with scales was exceptionally fit and kept up no problem. A less fit skier on scales would have REALLY struggled to keep up. Those on scaled bases worked harder overall and had to resort to herringbone technique when climbing steep pitches. (Herringbone technique worked fine on tracked out trails, but would be totally exhausting in deep untracked snow).

I can certainly imagine being up there late winter- early spring- and wanting a scaled ski…

Bring skins- even if you don’t end up using them. Next time, I will use skins on two of the extended steep climbs. But I can easily imagine conditions- especially on steep packed out trails- where skins would be essential. They can also have bottomless deep powder snow up there mid-winter- requiring skins for steep climbing off-piste.

Ski boots

Everyone in my group dealt with wet boots- that did not dry out, even with wood heat and newspaper stuffing. I can see this being VERY uncomfortable in much colder weather.

I took my Lundhags with removable wool liners. I also brought replacement liners in my baggage- didn’t need them because my wet liners were dry every morning. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

As stated above- near everyone I met or observed was in BC Nordic touring, predominantly NNN-BC.

Clothing

I took way more than I needed. The wood-heated hut was wonderful for drying out touring clothes. It was mid-winter cold dry weather though…I can imagine getting sopping wet up there in late winter- early spring…

Drinking water

Melt snow on the wood stove.

Have a clean plastic bag for gathering snow.

Use an avalanche shovel to fill the bag with snow.

Bring electrolyte powder to help cope with dehydration.

Refuge Notes

The huts (Refuges) are clean, comfortable and functional. They are also well insulated- staying warm is not a problem- getting too warm is (especially if you end up on the top bunk!)

The huts are too warm to be able to use the wood stove for any effective cooking- melting snow, and warming food is the limit. Bring enough fuel for all of your cooking/boiling needs.

The sleeping mattresses are remarkably clean and comfortable.

Bring lights and games for after-dark social fun!

Baggage Transport Notes

Baggage transport is not mandatory
Baggage transport booking is tied to a specific hut reservation
Not all huts are served by baggage transport (eg la Mésange)
Size and weight of baggage is restricted- see the SEPAQ website for details
Baggage needs to be clearly and securely labeled
Baggage transport can be delayed in extreme weather
Baggage transport can be cancelled in late winter-early spring

Village Grande Nature Chic-Chocs Notes

Excellent accommodations at a reasonable price
Wifi in the Lodge
Restaurant and bar in the Lodge (le Carcajou IPA, and St Octave Noir are highly recommended!)
Secure ski touring room for baggage dropoff- complete with washrooms, showers, and baggage scale

Reservation Notes

You need to book months in advance in order to be able to secure a planned route with associated huts
The high-elevation hut (Chouette) gets completely booked very quickly.

Travel and Itinerary Notes

For many, it is a long drive just to get to the Parc. It is also a significant trek from Village Grande Nature to get in and out of the mountains. I highly recommend booking a night at the Village on your last day. If the snow conditions are good, staying at the Village on the last day enables one to ski off-piste for half of the day, and then ski out in the afternoon.

I also strongly recommend planning for at least 4 days of skiing. To ski this West sector of the Parc, the first and last day of your trip will be largely dominated by just getting in and out of the mountains- on a snowmobile track.

If you can go in mid winter (late January to first of March) you will probably find good snow and great off-piste skiing from any hut and associated route. Outside of mid-winter, you probably need to book a few days at high-elevation (eg Chouette) to increase the chances for good off-piste snow.

Seasonality Notes

Late January to the first of March is probably the period that best guarantees ideal snow conditions for off-piste touring-

However, you need to be prepared for extreme cold!

March is increasingly bringing highly variable weather and associated precipitation- including warm days, icy refrozen snow and even rain and ice storms- and associated higher avalanche risk.

I had a second trip booked for the third week in March. The weather forecast was for rain followed by a deep freeze. We cancelled.

My friend was up there the same week in March I had booked. He had the Chouette booked for the week, so they were able to stay at high elevation and take advantage of ample fresh snow that came after the rain.

(I was booked at the Huard and Carouge- would have been nothing but hard icy trails and death crust off-piste…)

After this trip, and talking to many people with- in some cases- decades of experience ski touring up there-

It seems that late winter-spring skiing is getting pretty unpredictable and risky. I have spoken to a number of people that describe rain storms; lakes and streams opening up; and hardpacked icy trails. Some people have ended up simply strapping their skis to their pack, and hiking on the trails with ice cleats!

Conditions can get so warm and wet at low elevation that the snowmobile cannot get up there, and the baggage transport can be cancelled.

It is a long way to go in the winter if the skiing conditions are crappy…

Avalanche risk is increasingly worse in late winter- early spring as well…

My current thought is that the time to go for near guaranteed ideal snow conditions is late January through the first of March. Good snow is near guaranteed. The primary risk at this time of year is extreme cold at high elevation, which can be managed through both equipment and staying below treeline if necessary.

Looking forward to going again!!!

Gareth Davies

March 31st, 2026

Snowglade Farm

Stanley, NB