Signpost: A Moveable Feast
Travel East
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(All prices in approximate U.S. dollars.)
Vitals Owl’s Head: 120 skiable acres; 1,772 vertical feet; summit elevation 2,480 feet; 177 annual inches; 8 lifts.
Tickets: adults $30.
Mont Orford: 170 skiable acres; 1,772 vertical feet; summit elevation 2,789 feet; 177 annual inches; 6 lifts. Tickets: adults $36. Mont Sutton: 174 skiable acres; 1,500 vertical feet; summit elevation 3,175 feet; 195 annual inches; 9 lifts.
Tickets: adults $38.
Lodging North Hatley, a Victorian-era resort town 15 minutes from Mont Orford, is home to two of the area’s most luxurious inns: Auberge Hatley (aubergehatley.com) and Manoir Hovey (manoirhovey.com ). Both offer haute cuisine, massive wine cellars, and beautiful lake views. Rooms run about $150 per person per night, including breakfast and dinner.
A less expensive option: One of the area’s excellent B&B’s, such as Auberge La Raveaudiere (laraveau-diere.com), about $100 per night, with breakfast. Sutton, a cosmopolitan ski village, has a main street lined with galleries, bookstores, cafes and restaurants. It’s tough to beat the prices, hospitality or dining at Auberge Le St.-Amour (auberge-st-amour.com), where rooms start at $80 per night, with breakfast.
Dining Café Massawippi, in North Hatley, is a must (819-842-4528); Auberge Le St.-Amour in Sutton serves excellent dinners, prepared by two chef-owners who used to cook for French diplomats in Rome. Café Mocador specializes in creative bistro cuisine. Sample Quebec cheeses and other locally made culinary treats at La Rumeur Affamée. Boulangerie Owl’s Bread, in Mansonville, bakes the best croissants this side of the Atlantic. Or walk into one of the charming options found on nearly every street corner in the Eastern Townships. Chances are you’ll be thrilled.
Après-Ski In North Hatley, have a drink at Manoir Hovey’s Tap Room (decorated to look like a vintage ski bar). In Sutton, pull up at seat in the Mocador.
Getting There Route 91 through Vermont is the most direct drive from New England. Distance: about 300 miles from Boston, 400 from New York City. Montreal and its airports are about 90 miles west of the Townships.
Information Tourisme Cantons-de-l’Est: 800-355-5755, easterntownships.org. Owl’s Head: owlshead.com; Mont Orford: orford.com. Mont Sutton: montsutton.com.