Best Bike Trails in Montreal
Montreal hosted the Olympics in 1976, and based on the city’s latitude and proximity to the Laurentian Mountains where North America’s first ski lift opened in the 1930s, I assumed the city hosted the Winter Games that year. Apparently, I was wrong. So not only will you find excellent fat bike trails in Montreal, there are great summer riding choices as well!
Parc Du Domaine Vert
In yet another unexpected twist (for English speakers like me anyway), Parc Du Domaine Vert does NOT actually offer a lot of vertical climbing or descending–the park is in fact, mostly flat. The name is roughly translated “Park of the Green Domain” and features up to 18 miles of trails that are popular with weekday riders. Because the park is flat, the trails don’t tend to dry out until late in the spring or early summer, so make plans to visit accordingly.
For visitors who are a bit more mobile and have the time to travel outside the city, there are several great trail systems to explore within a two-hour drive.
Mont Bromont
If it’s downhill, lift-served mountain biking you desire, then head about an hour east of Montreal to Mont Bromont. Singletracks readers note the gravity trails are second-to-none in eastern Canada, and even the XC trails are worth a visit too.
Chantecler
The Chantecler trail system in Sainte Adele, QC is located about an hour’s drive northwest of Montreal and boasts about 15 miles of scenic cross-country mountain bike trails. Because the trail system sits on the site of a former ski area, riders can expect to find almost 1,000 vertical feet of climbing and descending throughout the network. Many of the trails are often in great shape for fat biking in winter as well.
Perry Hill
Getting to Perry Hill from Montreal might be a bit of a stretch–even without traffic, it’s a two-hour trip and involves crossing the US-Canada border–but for advanced riders, it’s worth a look. While the trail network is not as extensive or as well known as the Kingdom Trails to the east, riders will find the 1,600 vertical feet of elevation and technical features both challenging and rewarding. There’s even a bike park / jump line at the trailhead and decent fat bike riding in the winter.
We suspect there are more great trails near Montreal we haven’t heard about yet. If you know of trails we failed to include, please let us know here!
Next up: Baltimore.
