One-Stop Resource for Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Outaouais, Laurentides & Lanaudière…

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Related: Central Quebec Snowmobile Planner & Eastern Quebec Snowmobile Planner

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This Western Quebec snowmobile planner provides info, links, contacts, tour articles & itineraries. These are all the basic resources for visiting snowmobilers to get started riding the snowmobile trails operated by the Quebec Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (FCMQ) in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Outaouais, Laurentides& Lanaudière (listed below from west to east).

With the advantage of the most northerly positioning of any mainland Canadian province, plus many areas with high elevation, La Belle Province is a unique and must-do snowmobile destination.

Its 33,000 km (20,500 mi) interconnected trail network runs through many of Quebec’s 20 tourism regions.

But so many trails and so many regions can make discovering and deciding where to go difficult. That’s why it’s valuable to have my western, central and eastern Quebec snowmobile planners at your fingertips – but remember, I’ve only listed the 13 most popular Quebec tourism regions, ones with the most reliable snow that I’ve toured and written about!

Western Quebec Snowmobile Planner

Abitibi-Témiscamingue (#4 on region map above)

Location: Adjacent to Northeastern Ontario boundary with Quebec, this western region is positioned beside North Bay, Ontario at its south end & Cochrane, Ontario at it north end. With about 4,000 km (2,500 mi) of trails, Abitibi-Témiscamingue is large enough to ride for up to a week, either doing a saddlebag tour or day loops from one hotel as outlined in my Western Quebec snowmobile planner.
Neighbouring Regions Connected by Trail: Baie-James (north – Lebel-sur-Quévillon & Matagami are popular destinations for riders looping north from Abitibi-Témiscamingue), Mauricie (northeast), Outaouais (southeast) & Northeastern Ontario (west).
Fav Snowmobile-Friendly & Trail Accessible Centres: Amos, La Sarre, Rouyn-Noranda, Temiscaming, Val-d’Or, Ville-Marie.
Season Length: January to early April.
Planning Sites: Tourisme Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Bonjour Quebec
Trail Map: paper map file (go to 2^nd page of linked file)
Named Loops: yes (4) loops
Tour Articles: 3-day saddlebag loop from Ville-Marie, Day loops staging from Val-d’Or , 3-Day loops staging from Rouyn-Noranda.
Itineraries: 3-day saddlebag loop

 

Outaouais (#5 on region map above)

Location: Located adjacent to the Eastern Ontario boundary with Quebec along the Ottawa River, this western region sits beside North Bay Ontario at its north end & Hawkesbury Ontario at it south end. It offers about 2,269 km (1,400 mi) of trails, approximately 685 km (426 mi). Of these, are part of a remote trail loop in Outaouais west, while the remainder are located in the eastern and more populated half of the region, which best for day rides from one hotel or as a staging location for a multi-region saddlebag ride. Note: there are no trails in the Gatineau area (across the river from Ottawa).
Neighbouring Regions Connected by Trail: Abitibi-Témiscamingue (north), Laurentides (east) & Eastern Ontario (southwest).
Fav Snowmobile-Friendly & Trail Accessible Centres: Fort-Colonge, Maniwaki, Rapides-des-Joachims (Swisha), Shawville.
Season Length: January to March (shortest closer to the Ottawa River).
Planning Sites: Tourisme Outaouais, Bonjour Quebec.
Named Loops: yes 4
Trail Map: Interactive Map, no paper map.  
Tour Article: 3-day western Quebec saddlebag ride
Itineraries: Outaouais/Laurentides loop.

 

Laurentides (#6 on region map above)

Location: With about 2,500 km (1,500 mi) of trails, many at higher elevations in the Laurentian Mountains, this western region runs northwest of Montreal through the Upper Laurentians. Anchored by Mont-Laurier, Laurentides is home to the famous Sentiers-Coureur-des-Bois (Wood Runner Trails) and numerous loops that make for both great saddlebag tours and day rides as you’ll soon discover in my Western Quebec snowmobile planner..
Neighbouring Regions Connected by Trail: Lanaudière (east), Mauricie (north), Outaouais (west).
Fav Snowmobile-Friendly & Trail Accessible Centres: Ferme-Neuve, Mont Tremblant, Mont Laurier, Nominique, Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts, Sainte-Anne-du-Lac.
Season Length: Southern area – January to March; Northern area (Upper Laurentians): Late December to end of March.
Planning Sites: Tourisme Laurentides, Laurentides blog, Bonjour Quebec.
Trail Map: print map file.
Named Loops: yes (5) loops (go to 2^nd page of linked file)
Tour Articles: Wood Runner Loop Snowmobile Tour
Mont Laurier Snowmobiling Loops
Mont Laurier Quebec Tour
3-day saddlebag loop from Baskatong Reservoir
Itineraries: Wood Runner Loop, Mont Laurier area.

 

Lanaudière (#7 on region map above)

Location: Positioned from just north of Montreal up into the eastern Laurentian Mountains, the Lanaudière Region is home to some of Quebec’s most renown snowmobiling destinations including Saint-Michel-des-Saints & Saint-Zénon. Its approximately 2,127 km (1,322 mi) of trails connect the St. Lawrence River lowlands with the more rugged terrain of the region’s higher elevations – perfect for either saddle-bagging or day looping as shown in my Western Quebec snowmobile planner.
Neighbouring Regions Connected by Trail: Laurentides (west), Mauricie (east & north).
Fav Snowmobile-Friendly & Trail Accessible Centres: Saint-Côme, Saint-Donat, Sainte-Émélie-de-L’Énergie, Saint-Gabriel-de-Brandon, Saint-Michel-des-Saints, Saint-Zénon.
Season Length: South end – January & February; Mid Region – January to Mid-March; North end – late December to end of March.
Planning Sites (co-marketed with Mauricie Region): Snowmobile Country, Quebec Authentic, Bonjour Quebec, Tourisme Lanaudière packages.
Trail Map: print map file.
Named Loops: yes (10), including into Mauricie (scroll down linked page to see).
Tour Articles: Christmas riding in Lanaudière, Day loops in Lanaudière, Day loops from Auberge-le-Cabanon.

Learn about Quebec snowmobiler rescue on FCMQ trails.

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The tips and advice in this blog are the opinions of the author, may not work in every situation and are intended only for the convenience and interest of the reader, who has the personal responsibility to confirm the validity, accuracy and relevancy of this information prior to putting it to their own use.