A Gondola Ride to Casino de Mont Tremblant

Today was the last day at Mont Trembant.

It was bitterly cold so instead of heading up the mountain for snowshoeing, we decided to grab a bite to eat and take the gondola over to the casino. We`re not big gamblers but we wanted to have a look around and maybe play a few spins of roulette.

We had a great lunch at Pizzateria. My pizza was pepperoni, mushrooms and green pepper. It was loaded!

Then it was off for a ten minute gondola ride to the casino. The pictures are a little dull having to shoot through the glass but the view was incredible. The gondola is unheated and our butts were quite cold when we reached the other side.

We arrived and I was surprised to find a couple of ski runs there. Perfect for afternoon skiing as there was hardly anybody on them.

The casino wanted us to check our coats and knapsacks before going in. As we were packed to go home and had our laptops and Kobos in them, we decided to pass. I went up to the parking lot to take a shot of the casino, the picture at the top of this post, but on the way down slipped on the driveway, felt my left ankle twist under me as I went down, and there it was, one sprained ankle. Teena helped me up and get me back to the gondola for the ride back.

It was another great day.

Now we are back home where I am resting and icing my ankle. Look at how swollen it is. I am quite lucky that this happened just a couple hours before heading home and not on day one.

Now I have visited Mont Tremblant in the summer and the winter. Both times of year are spectacular there but the buzz is much better in the winter.

Le Kandahar, Mont Tremblant

This was home for the past couple of nights, Le Kandahar Hotel in Mont Tremblant. It's located at the bottom of the village but is handy to everything. In fact, if you are feeling a little tired or lazy, you can catch the free lift to the top of the village.

The room was amazing! Without paying any extra fee, ours was a one bedroom, two story, with a fireplace. The fireplace didn't work, which was OK with us. Yes, those are stairs that you see!

Our bedroom was upstairs. There was an entrance to the hallway from there also. There was a full bathroom with a tub downstairs and a bathroom with a shower upstairs.

It was a nice, well kept hotel which i would recommend to any going to Mont Tremblant.

Snowshoeing the Summit of Mont Tremblant

This afternoon Teena and I took the gondola to the summit of Mont Tremblant to do some snowshoeing.

The temperature this morning was minus -15C in the village and another five degrees colder at the 875 meter (2870 ft) summit of the mountain. With the wind chill, it was between -25C and -30C.

How cold is that? Teena's camera froze along the way!

It was a beautiful sunny day as we headed up but when we were about a couple of hundred feet from the top, we entered into a kind of haze. It was very surreal. Here is a picture when we reached the top and another taken when it cleared a few hours later.

We started along a trail called Tour du Timber, which wound through the forest. The problem was that as beautiful it was, it was steep as we went down into the canyon and we were cutting a trail through fresh snow. I took a couple of falls on the way down and when we hit an extremely steep section, decided we should turn back and try another trail. I think we made the right decision.

It is so hard to describe the beauty of the forest but here are some pictures from along that trail.

We then headed along a trail called Les Sommets. It too wound down into a valley then up to another summit, then back. We broke off part way and headed around a lookout tower. It was frozen and beautiful.

We came upon this guy painting a view of the valley below. I wonder how he kept his paint from freezing.

 

Did I say that it was cold?

 

Before we headed down the mountain, we had this picture taken.

It was a fabulous day. I am so that Teena thought of this trip. There really is nothing like being up on top of a mountain!

New Years Party 2013

Tonight Teena and I hit the New Years party at the Café d’Époque, Mont Tremblant's only nightclub. It was to feature:

Free souvenir mystical winter photo shoot with high-res download 
Free hats, mask, noisemakers and other party favors for every guest 
Largest Balloon drop on the mountain!! 
Champagne Toast at midnight 
Mystical Winter Sweets Station Raffle drawing with amazing prizes 
A must see magical winter midnight countdown 
Amazing resident DJ Xstream and special guest the legendary DJ Double J 
Beer, shooters, champagne, and mixed drinks (non-premium) $3!!! 8pm to 1am 

They did come through with the hats, the $3 drinks and perhaps DJ Double J, who really didn't seem that legendary. There was an indoor snow fall which was cool but the place was way overcrowded, although everyone was having fun and quite friendly.  They fell through on their promises.

Our hotel is only a two minute walk away so we left our coats back at the room and, yes, a snowstorm had come in. This in itself is not bad but the gatekeeper to the bar was so slow in letting in people, even though we had tickets. We stood outside with no coats, others were dressed similar.  I was in a short sleeve shirt and although only maybe six to eight people were ahead of us, it took about 10 minutes to get in!

The New years countdown was almost non-existent and there was no champagne. Still Teena and I did our best to have a good time and even danced on the GoGo stage. Needless to say, we did not close the place.

Here are a couple of pictures. I do wish everyone out there a fabulous 2013!

Mont Tremblant Walkabout

Mont Tremblant is a beautiful place. Teena and I were here back in the summer of 2006, so seeing it in winter sure was different. The vibe in winter was more fun and people were everywhere. It has been a very long time since I skied and was in a winter ski village.

Here is Teena by the fire in the main square at the top of the village.

Here we are having a hot mulled wine by the fire. The two women behind us had driven up from New York.

After supper at the La Diable Brewpub, more on the beer from there later, we walked up to the top of the hill to watch the fireworks.

It was a great way to start our trip. next up tonight is New Years at a club a few doors away.

Mont Tremblant International Airport

This is outside of Mount Tremblant International Airport at the shuttle pickup area.

Not your normal airport for sure! This airport is unique as they have a single airstrip plus a man-made lake to land pontoon planes.  Very cool. It definitely was not what we were expecting. Very quaint, for sure.

Here we are coming in from the plane.

When they bring in your bags, the bags never see the the inside of the airport. Instead the truck pulls up with the carts full of our luggage and parks so they are protected under this cover.

The inside of the airport.

Here is our plane. It looks like we are in the Arctic!

Finally, this is the view when you step out the doors of the airport. Certainly different from Pearson International.