Owning and operating a ski area is not for the faint of heart. Take Mont Adstock. After surviving World War 2 and the longest, bloodiest strike in Québec history, it watched its community’s economic engine and raison d’être disappear. Almost overnight. Yet rather than fold, Adstock dug deeper, aimed higher and thrived. Which is only fitting, given the southeastern Québec region’s deep roots in farming and mining.
Mont Adstock
Aim Higher, Dig Deeper and Thrive
Ski Hill:
Ski Mont Adstock
Map:
Location
Vertical:
335 m (1099 ft)
Snowfall:
2.3 m (90 in)
If our children are the lifeblood of skiing, then community ski areas are its heart and soul. Community Ski Areas: Stories from the Heartland of Canadian Skiing is an ongoing series that examines the past, present and future of these often small and remote ski areas where most of us learned to ski and are now sharing our love of this lifelong winter sport with our children and grandchildren. || Creative Director: Gordie Bowles. Writer: Dave Fonda
What’s Green and Invaluable One Minute, And a Total Liability the Next?
The land in Chaudière-Appalache is perfect for growing moss, trees and rocks. If you work the soil hard and long enough, it might sustain hemp, flax or grain. In 1876, a local farmer named Joseph Fecteau discovered a very different green crop in his fields: asbestos. Valued for its strength, durability and resistance to fire, mold and rot, the fibrous mineral was nicknamed ‘white gold’ and became the insulating material of choice for over a century. Initially, mining companies descended on the area like ravenous wolves. Miners and their families soon followed. Money flowed. And in 1938, Henri Campeau opened a ski hill on nearby Mont Granit with a rope tow, some trails and a 40-metre ski jump. Then, on September 1, 1939, World War 2 was officially declared in Europe. Nine days later, Canada joined in the effort. Skiing was just about the last thing on anyone’s mind.
Mont Granit. Photo courtesy of Mont Adstock.
The team bus in the early 1960s. On snowy weekends, Lionel Dugit enlisted the children in his ski school to pack the slopes on skis.
How Québec’s Longest & Bloodiest Strike Ended In A Rebirth and the Quiet Revolution
Somehow, skiing survived the war years here. In 1949, disaster struck the area again when mine workers (supported by the Church) and management (backed by the Duplessis government) staged a violent, five-month-long strike. Then two things happened: the seeds of Québec’s Quiet Revolution began to take root and a very smart and tireless man named Lionel ‘Tom’ Bourgault became the ski hill’s club president. A true visionary, Bourgault opened the area’s first ski school in 1950, and immediately began recruiting instructors from France. The first was ski school director, Louis Dugit. Equally skilled in skiing and snowshoeing, Dugit hired and trained local farmers to groom (i.e. pack) the ski trails on their snowshoes during the week.
Ski Racing Takes Mont Adstock by Storm
In 1952, Bourgault purchased an additional 400 acres of land, renamed the ski area Mont Adstock, added a ski lift and cleared a slalom trail for the first of Louis Dugit’s beloved races. A succession of French ski school directors soon followed: Michel Coppo later achieved international acclaim for rescuing stranded skiers from Chamonix’s notorious Aguille du Midi tramway. French national ski team member Roger Machet, returned to his native Val d’Isère and became its mayor and a celebrated restaurateur and hotel keeper. Later, Gérard Cercuel hosted the entire Canadian ski team, including Currie Chapman, Peter Duncan, Scott Henderson and Nancy Greene all competed here during the 1964-65 Can-Am championships. Local ski racers included Renaud Argouin and André Pomerleau. The latter swept all three disciplines at the Canadian Junior Championships in Banff.
Peter Duncan competing in the 1960s. CSHFM Archives.
Lionel Bourgault and family in the 1950s. Photo courtesy of Mont Adstock.
As One Industry Wanes and Dies, Another Rises and Shines
By the 1970s, mounting health concerns about asbestos use foretold the imminent end of a once booming industry. As Thetford Mines began bracing for the worst, Lionel Bourgault chose to focus on the best that the area had to offer. In addition to skiing, Bourgault envisaged swimmers, boaters, cottagers and fishers enjoying the six nearby lakes. He imagined a golf course, camp grounds and a new national park that would welcome visitors to its vast network of walking, hiking and snowmobiling trails. In 1972, Lionel ‘Tom’ Bourgault was named Member of The Order of Canada for his unflagging efforts to develop outdoor recreational activities in Thetford Mines. But rather than rest on his laurels, Bourgault continued pursuing his dream. All systems go!
“We belong to the community and therefore people take ownership of their mountain and a strong sense of belonging is being developed.”
— Mathieu Desmarais, General Manager, Mont Adstock
Andre Pomerleau competes at the National Championships in Banff, Alberta in 1963. Photo courtesy of Mont Adstock.
Ski Competitions Return to Mont Adstock
Following a brief and much-lamented hiatus, ski racing returned to Mont Adstock in 1974. That year, Lionel Bourgault welcomed Canada’s best and brightest ski racers. Their ranks included none other than future Canadian National Ski team member Jungle Jim Hunter as well as three of the original Crazy Canucks: Dave Irwin, Dave Murray and Ken Read. A decade later, the ski area once again hosted the Canadian Youth Championships. More recently, Adstock has earned a coveted stop on today’s fast bourgeoning Eastern freeride circuit.
A Changing of the Guard
In 1975, Bourgault saw the first nine-holes of his dream golf course open to the public. Five years later he would pass the torch he’d held so high for thirty years to Frédéric Gagnon. By then, teams of dedicated volunteers were always on hand, working to ensure that everything was running smoothly, so that Mont Adstock would continue to grow. That same year, another nine holes were added to the golf course. In short succession, Frontenac National Park was opened and the first of several Canadian Junior Ski Racing Championships returned to Mont Adstock. Meanwhile, in 1985, the federal government banned the use of asbestos fibre in most applications in Canada. (The last operating mine in Thetford Mine officially closed in 2012.)
Minister Masse and MP Roger Lefebvre visit the ski hill during the inauguration of the quad chair in 1986. Photo courtesy of Mont Adstock.
Mont Adstock Chalet, 2023.
Entire Community Steps In
As Mont Adstock continued to modernize itself and grow, it became apparent that its ownership model would have to change. In 1998, the Coopérative de Solidarité was formed to take over Mont Adstock and the golf course. Fuelled by passion and largely driven by volunteers, the co-op was determined to provide services and facilities that would keep young people in the area and promote their physical development and well-being. In 2001, in recognition of the ski area’s pre-eminent role in serving, improving and advancing the area, the Municipality of Adstock was created. Once a year, it hosts a ski day at Mont Adstock where lift tickets are free to anyone and everyone that attends. As for the new co-operative business model, since 2017, Mont Adstock has raised and invested over $16 million in snowmaking and grooming equipment, a new base chalet, a summit refuge, opening up backcountry terrain and more. Two years ago, it also bought the entire golf course.
“We are developing great partnerships with local businesses. Due to the transparency and respect that guides us, the mountain is viewed positively by the community.”
— Mathieu Desmarais
Mont Adstock – Over the Years
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If you have any photos, videos or anectdotes that you’d like us to add to this story or if you have a story about any other ski area is your province or territory that you’d like us to add to this collection, please contact: [email protected]