My first time riding a quad! Wow!

Not long ago! This is the answer I like to give as often as possible to the following question: When was the last time you did something for the first time? Then I went for a quad ride.

Pretty much all the time, gets you out of your comfort zone and keeps you young. So when I was offered the opportunity to go on a group winter quad outing, I said yes without hesitation. That’s how I ended up at La cache à Maxime in Scott for a short stay with a view to a quad getaway.

Day 1 (Scott <--> Saint-Sylvestre, approx. 95 km)

Today’s objective is to do a round trip between La cache à Maxime in Scott and Mont Radar in Saint-Sylvestre. At the start, we’ll take trail 60 to the intersection with trail 429, which we’ll take in the direction of St-Marie-de-Beauce. This trail takes us through the town and past the Domaine Taschereau – Parc nature, the most flooded ecological park in Quebec! Immediately afterwards, the 678-foot-long multifunctional footbridge in Sainte-Marie allows us to cross the Chaudière River in complete safety.

Trail 429 | Fields, valleys, mountains and maple groves!

Trail 429 to Saint-Sylvestre is quite varied, offering us vast fields as far as the eye can see, valleys and mountain scenery, even crossing maple groves… It’s just a shame that the weather was relatively mild, the clouds low and the snow falling. This meant that, although the day offered us a superb trail, conditions were not optimal for quad riding or for enjoying the magnificent scenery that this route usually offers.

On trail 429, heading towards Saint-Sylvestre, a magnificent log cabin, the Club des Montagnards (link in french), is the perfect place to take a break and enjoy a meal along the way. As the place is full today and time is short, we decide to continue on our way to Mont Radar. This is where we take a well-deserved break, and make our food stop at the Mont Radar restaurant. In winter, this place is best known for its Austrian sledging, with two 2.3 km runs, the family run and the Kamikaze for the more adventurous.

The return journey by the same route takes us back to the comfort of La cache à Maxime for the evening and overnight stay.

Day 2 (Scott -> Saint-Anselme -> Saint-Henri -> Scott, approx. 95 km)

Today, the sky is completely clear. Yippee! And it’s minus 24 degrees Celsius. Not too bad, as we’re dressed accordingly.

Trail #60 between Scott and St-Anselme took us through the countryside, with long straight stretches through magnificent fields that allowed us to see the white landscapes far away and also to test our skills and the machine. The trail was a bit snowy and the sensation of being able to follow in the footsteps of previous quad riders was incredible. Really cool!

Halfway along, we pass through a beautiful coniferous forest, with lots of curves in this section. It’s perfect because it makes you slow down and appreciate the beauty of all the snow-filled trees. Truly beautiful!

Our lunch break is at Normandin in Saint-Anselme. It’s easy to find, with signs pointing the way.

Back to our starting point

After warming up in the restaurant and regaining our strength with a good meal, we set off in the PM to conclude our 2-day escapade and return to La cache à Maxime.

Had we had more time, we would have continued on trail #60 to Saint-Henri to head for Saint-Lambert on trail #30 and then trail #358 (just before Highway 73). After St-Isidore, we would have taken trail 60 back to La cache à Maxime.

I know, I’ve only seen a tiny portion of the 2,300 kilometers that the Chaudière-Appalaches region has to offer for winter quad riding. I’m pretty sure it’ll take me less time to do my 2nd quad outing in the Chaudière-Appalaches. And get back to exploring and enjoying all that the region has to offer.

I’ll just need slightly warmer boots or a better choice of day. Then the heated grips, well it’s cool on a motorcycle, at the beginning of the summer season or later in the fall, but on a quad in winter, it’s a “must”. I would summarize my first quad outing as follows:

From the very first kilometers, I felt like I was 14 years old on my 49cc honda mini-trailer, even in the middle of winter at -24°Celsius. With a smile on my face, like that’s impossible!

Then, La cache à Maxime? Exemplary. Comfortable rooms with an urban decor and impeccable service from arrival to departure, right through to the on-site restaurant. An ideal base for a quad weekend in the Chaudière-Appalaches!

Photos : Stéphanie Allard