Active Pursuits

Ste-Adele

Lac Rond is the center of summer activities: Canoes, sailboats, and pédalos (pedal-powered watercraft), which can be rented from several docks, glide over the placid surface, while swimmers splash and play near shore-side beaches.

Mont-Tremblant

Mont-Tremblant, the mountain, is the highest peak in the Laurentians at 968m (3,176 ft.). In 1894, the provincial government began setting aside land for a "government forest preserve," establishing Parc Mont-Tremblant. The foresight of this early conservation effort has afforded outdoor enjoyment to hikers, skiers, and four-season vacationers ever since: The park is the largest in the province, at 1,510 sq. km (583 sq. miles). It has 400 lakes and 6 rivers, along with 196 bird species and a forest primarily of sugar maple and yellow birch as far as the eye can see. The mountain's name comes from a legend of the area's first inhabitants: Amerindians named the peak after the god Manitou, and say that when humans disturbed nature in any way, Manitou became enraged and made the great mountain tremble -- montagne tremblante.

The Mont-Tremblant ski resort (www.tremblant.ca) draws the biggest downhill crowds in the Laurentians, and is repeatedly ranked as the top resort in eastern North America by Ski Magazine. Founded in 1939 by a Philadelphia millionaire named Joe Ryan, it's one of the oldest in North America. It pioneered creating trails on both sides of a mountain and was the second mountain in the world to install a chairlift. The vertical drop is 650m (2,133 ft.).

When the snow is deep, skiers here like to follow the sun around the mountain, making the run down slopes with an eastern exposure in the morning and down the western-facing ones in the afternoon. There are higher mountains with longer runs and steeper pitches, but something about Mont-Tremblant compels people to return time and again.

Today, the resort has snowmaking capability to cover 253 hectares (625 acres). Of its 94 downhill runs and trails, half are expert terrain, about a third are intermediate, and the rest beginner. The longest trail, Nansen, is 6km (almost 4 miles).

There is plenty of cross-country action on maintained trails and another 112km (70 miles) of ungroomed trails in the adjacent national park. Many enthusiasts maintain that some of the best cross-country trails are on the grounds of the Mont-Tremblant monastery Domaine du St-Bernard, 545 Chemin St-Bernard (tel. 819/425-3588; www.domainesaintbernard.org).

In warm weather, watersports are almost as popular as the ski slopes are in winter, thanks to the opportunities surrounding the base of Mont-Tremblant. They include Lac Tremblant, a gorgeous stretch of lake, and another dozen lakes, as well as rivers and streams. From June until October, Croisières Mont-Tremblant, 2810 Chemin du village (tel. 819/425-1045; www.croisierestremblant.com), offers a 70-minute narrated cruise of Lac Tremblant, focusing on its history, nature, and legends. Fares are C$18 (£9) for adults, C$15 (£7.50) for seniors, C$5 (£2.50) for children ages 6 to 15, and free for children 5 and younger.

Other summer options include golf at the renowned Le Diable and Le Géant courses, as well as tennis, boating, swimming, biking, and hiking.

There are some well-regarded cultural offerings here, too. Right in the pedestrian village, the Tremblant Film Festival (www.tremblantfilmfestival.org) spans 5 days in June. Also in the pedestrian village, the Tremblant International Blues Festival (ww1.tremblant.ca/blues), which celebrated its 15th year in 2008, hosts up to 150 free shows for 10 days with artists such as Johnny Winter, Keb'Mo, Ana Popovic, and Pinetar Perkins. Five stages are set up throughout the village.

A new summer diversion is the downhill dry-land alpine luge run right at the pedestrian village. The engineless sleds are gravity-propelled, reaching speeds of up to 48kmph (30 mph), if you so choose (it's easy to go down as a slowpoke, too). Rides cost C$10 (£5). The village has other games and attractions that can keep visitors occupied for days.

There's also the opportunity to participate in a real cattle roundup. The adventure lasts 5 hours and takes place at Ranch Mont-Tremblant (tel. 819/681-4848; www.ranch-mont-tremblant.qc.ca), 40 minutes from the mountain. Cost is C$150 (£75). Teens and young adults tend to love it.

With Apologies to Monty Python: "SPA, spa, spa, spa . . ."

Spas are big business around here: They're probably the most popular new features at hotels, especially in the Mont-Tremblant area, where people have money to burn and are looking for other things to do (and new ways to pamper themselves) beyond dropping a lot of money on skiing.

At some hotels, innkeepers might say they have a "spa" on-site when what they've got is an outdoor hot tub. What we're talking about here, though (and what we mean in the hotel listings when we say a facility has a spa), is a complex that features therapeutic services, particularly ones that involve water.

The spa industry, it turns out, has some clear definitions of what constitutes a spa. In Québec province, the organization Spas Relais Santé (www.spasrelaissante.com) distinguishes between facilities like day spas and hotel spas, which offer massages and estétique services such as facials and pedicures; destination spas, which often involve overnight stays and healthy cuisine; and Nordic spas, which are built around a natural water source and include outdoor and indoor spaces.

In the Mont-Tremblant region, many hotels have an on-site spa. The facility at Quintessence (tel. 819/425-3400; www.hotelquintessence.com) is open only to guests and includes an option for a four-hands Swedish massage conducted by two therapists. Fairmont Mont-Tremblant houses Amerispa (tel. 819/681-7680; www.amerispa.ca), which offers rain massages and aromatherapy, and at Hôtel du Lac's Spa-sur-le-Lac (tel. 819/425-2731; www.hoteldulac.ca), you can try the "chocolate package" -- a truffle bath, exfoliation with Dead Sea salts, a chocolate body wrap, and a back massage with vanilla oil

If you've never experienced a European-style Nordic spa before, try to set aside 3 hours for a visit to Le Scandinave Spa, at 4280 Montée Ryan, Mont-Tremblant (tel. 891/425-5524; www.scandinave.com). It's a tranquil complex of small buildings tucked among evergreen trees on the Diable River shore, and is as chic as it is rustic. A C$43 (£22) fee gives visitors (18 and older only) the run of the facility. Options include outdoor hot tubs designed to look like natural pools (one is set under a man-made waterfall); a Norwegian steam bath thick with eucalyptus scent; indoor relaxation areas with super-comfortable, low-slung chairs; and the river itself, which the heartiest of folk dip into even on frigid days. The idea is to move from hot to cold to hot, which supposedly purges toxins and invigorates your skin. Bathing suits are required and men and women share all spaces except the changing rooms. For extra fees, massages and yoga classes are offered.

Couples, mothers and daughters, groups of friends, and folks on their own all come to "take the waters." The spa is year-round, and few activities are more relaxing than being in a warm outdoor pool as snow falls, the sun sets, and the temperature plummets. (That stroll back to the locker room is another story, though.)

Biker's Paradise: The 4,000km Route Verte

Québec is bike crazy, and it's got the goods to justify it. In summer 2007, the province officially inaugurated the new Route Verte (Green Route), a 4,000km (2,485-mile) bike network that stretches from one end to the other and links all regions and cities. The idea started in 1995 and is modeled on the Rails-to-Trails program in the U.S. and cycling routes in Denmark, Great Britain, and along the Danube and Rhine rivers. It was initiated by the nonprofit biking organization Vélo Québec with support from the Québec Ministry of Transportation. Route Verte won the prestigious Prix Ulysse, one of the grand prizes given annually by the Québec tourist office, right out of the gate. To boot, the National Geographic Society declared it one of the 10 best bicycle routes in the world.

Included in the network is the popular P'tit Train du Nord bike trail that goes north into the Laurentians to Mont-Tremblant and beyond. It's built on a former railway track and passes through the villages of Ste-Adèle, Val David, and Ste-Agathe-des-Monts. Cyclists can get food and bike repairs at renovated railway stations along the way and hop on for a day trip or a longer tour. Access fees have been eliminated -- since 2008, use of the trail is free of charge.

The Route Verte website (www.routeverte.com) provides maps of all the paths and links to places to rent bikes as well as B&Bs, campsites, and hotels that are especially focused on serving bikers. Accredited accommodations display a BIENVENUE CYCLISTES! sticker and provide a covered and locked place for overnight bicycle storage, access to high-carb meals with lots of fruits and veggies, a bike pump and tools, and information about where to make repairs nearby. The guidebook Cycling in Québec: Official Guide to Bicycling on Québec's Route Verte is available from the site.

Also look for the free Official Tourist Guide to the Laurentians, published by the regional tourist office (www.laurentides.com); it always has a big section on biking. And if you decide to plan a big trip, keep in mind Transport du Parc Linéaire (tel. 888/686-1323 or 450/569-5596; www.transportduparclineaire.com), which provides baggage transport from inn to inn.