Buy or rent Québec: Lac Long Rock Climbing Guidebook.
Benoit Drouin on Libido, 5.12. photo : Patrick Cadieux
Among our hidden jewels in Quebec province is the cliff at Lac Long. This area is located in Portneuf county, midway between Quebec City and Trois-Rivières, and is known locally for its steep, well-protected lines on excellent rock. Some have said, “Where else in the Northeast can you find this many stellar trad routes side by side?” If you round off your visit with a good river swim and some sweet camping, you have the makings of a great weekend.
Fred Desgranges is happy to have overcome the start to Le Monstre du Loch Long photo : Arian Manchego
We began developing lines here in 2001 and the potential for a top notch crag slowly became apparent. One big problem was that the cliff was entirely situated on private land! So we got to know the owners and over time were able to convince them of the value of selling it as one parcel. In 2008, with the help of the outdoor industry and a ton of small contributions from individual climbers, we raised the asking price, bought the land and donated it to the local municipality. Since then, the cliff has become part of the Regional Park that was created to protect the ecological heritage of the Lac Long-Montabaun lakes area. So now we climb on land that is conserved for posterity!
Louis-Pierre Tessier getting ready to bolt Les Millionaires photo : Arian Manchego
The cliff faces west and gets sun at around midday. It’s great in the spring and the fall, but sometimes too hot in the middle of summer. Blackflies are a problem in mid-June. Of the hundred-or-so climbing routes, about a quarter are sport, enough for several visits of “just sport climbing”. The site does attract many aficionados of “adventure onsight trad”, so the route descriptions in the guidebook are summary – just enough info to get you off the ground safely, but not more, with the goal of promoting discovery and adventure. There’s also no stars attributed to the routes (yeah we’re going against the current here) as we encourage climbers to explore and choose routes based on how good they look. The chances are very high that you’ll climb something stellar! You may not do many routes in one day but each one will be memorable!
D’zao Plamondon sits on the slain beast (loose block) photo : Arian Manchego
So welcome to our climbing area at Lac Long. We have a long history of volunteer involvement and hard work. Please contribute by having a clean and safe visit. And most of all… have FUN!
See you out climbing,
Arian Manchego
The happy faces of hard work photo : Arian Manchego
Sunset view of the Lac Long cliff photo : Olivier Dumas
