boostertwo
October 20th, 2006, 04:19 AM
When I lived in New England we would sometimes head to Gaspe instead of the Presidentials in NH or Baxter State Park in Maine for backcountry adventures. Because it's a maritime environment, the Chic Chocs get pounded with snow despite their relatively low elevation. During the Pleistocene, the area was scoured by glaciers and like Mts. Washington and Katahdin, offers very steep glacially carved cirques for riding, ice climbing, and backcountry adventuring. The terrain is expansive, steep, and holds good snow well into the spring. Best time to hit it is in March/April, though you could likely get some outstanding powder earlier in the season. Because it's steep and snowy, avy gear is recommended.
We used to snowshoe into the Serpentine and winter camp near Mt Albert. There were also some very nice mountain cabins at the trailhead for Mt. Albert (equipped with power, and HOT water) that you could also rent for an economical price.
<img src="http://i11.tinypic.com/30ncjna.jpg" border="0" alt="">
links to info and maps (http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=backcountry+skiing+the+chic+chocs+parc+gaspesie+ maps&btnG=Search).
Of all the backcountry I've done back east, Gaspesie stands out, rivalling some of the better known backcountry areas in New England--without the crowds.