Escarpment and Cimes Trails (Mégantic National Park)

The Mont Mégantic National Park is well-known for its winter wonderland landscapes. Located in the Franceville sector, these two trails are among the park’s most popular trails and some of the more family-friendly ones, as they are less challenging and steep than those found in the Observatory sector, such as the Mont Saint-Joseph trail and the Mont Mégantic trail. Below we present our Winter Hiking Guide for both The Escarpment Trail and the Cimes Trail (also known as the Trail of the Peaks), which we hope will help you get the most out of your hiking adventure in the area. We are presenting them together because both have overlapping trail sections including the same trailhead.

Table of Contents — Escarpment and Cimes Trails – A Winter Hiking Guide

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About the Escarpment and Cimes Trails

The Escarpment and Cimes Trails are both part of the northwestern section of the Mont Mégantic National Park, known as the Franceville Sector (the southeastern section is known as the Observatory Sector).

The Cimes Trail (Trail of the Peaks) is a loop trail that slowly ascends the park’s northern mountain range and follows a ridgeline leading to the sector’s highest peak (Mont Franceville). There are several beautiful viewpoints along the trail, some looking north beyond the park, and some looking south towards the park’s southern mountains, such as Mont Mégantic and Mont Saint Joseph. In particular, you’ll have great views of Mont Mégantic and its Observatory, from a distance.

view from Cimes trail in parc national du mont megantic

The Escarpment trail follows a gentle climb for the first part of the trail until the climb intensifies as you make your way around and then over the smallest of the massif mountains, Sugarloaf Mountain (Montagne Pain de Sucre). There are a few viewpoints around the summit including one offering panoramic views of the Mont Mégantic to the east and the Mont Franceville to the north.

viewpoint on escarpement trail mont megantic national park

The hiking trails in this sector are generally considered to be easier than those of the Observatory Sector, such as the Mont Mégantic and the Mont Saint-Joseph trails. That being said, they are still fairly challenging as the Cime Trail is over 12 km long with nearly 400 m of elevation gain, and the Escarpment Trail, while neither as long nor as steep, has some tricky rocky sections to overcome.

Location of the Cimes and Escarpment Trails and Map

Both trails are located in the Franceville Sector of the Mont-Mégantic National Park which itself is in the eastern townships of Québec, close to the New Hampshire and Maine state borders (link to Google Maps).

How to Get to the Mont Mégantic National Park (Franceville Sector)

Given the remoteness of the national park, the easiest way to reach the Franceville Sector is by car.

From Montreal: about a 2h30 drive (230 km)

From Sherbrooke: about a 1h drive (70 km)

From Québec City: about a 2h30 drive (200 km)

From Burlington (Vermont): about a 3h15 drive (170 miles)

From Augusta (Maine): about a 3h drive (135 miles)

If you need to book a rental vehicle for your hiking excursion, we highly recommend using Discover Cars to get the best rates on your rental in Montreal.

We also highly recommend Airalo (eSIM card) for your connectivity needs when travelling abroad. Airalo is the world’s first and largest eSIM store with eSIM plans for 200+ countries and regions worldwide.

Alternatively, you can also reach the park from Montreal by organized transfer via the Navette Nature service, which offers bus trips on various weekend dates. The service rotates between parks, so there might be only one or two trips per park per season.

Cimes and Escarpment Trail Access, Fees, and Parking

Trailheads & car park location: Both are found here.

Trail access & parking fees: Québec National Park fees apply for day visits to the park. There are no additional fees for parking.

Daily access fees and Annual passes
Quebec National Parks are managed by the SÉPAQ, a government agency that manages all provincial parks and wildlife preserves in Québec.
There is a limit to the number of visitors that can enter any Québec SÉPAQ National Park on any given day. It is therefore strongly recommended that you purchase your daily right of access online before a visit or that you acquire an annual pass.
The daily pass ($9.85 (2024)) can be purchased here up to 30 days before a visit.
The annual pass can be purchased here either for unlimited access to a single national park ($49.25 (2024)) or for unlimited access to all SÉPAQ national parks ($88.50 (2024)). Even if you have an annual pass, we still recommend arriving early in the morning or mid-to-late afternoon to avoid showing up to a filled parking lot.

Trail opening hours: Although the trail is technically open at all times, the visitor center is typically only open from 10am – 4pm. For up-to-date visitor center schedules, we recommend checking the park’s schedule website page before visiting.

Parking lot: The car park is quite large, and there are rarely issues with finding parking.

Facilities: Toilets are available in the visitor center by the car park.

Best Time to Hike The Trails

To experience a proper winter hike and beautiful white landscapes, it’s best to plan your visit between mid-December and mid-March. That being said, there are year-to-year differences regarding the early and late winter snow conditions. If you would like to visit early or late in the winter season, it’s best to check the park conditions first. You can generally find them listed at the top of the national park page. The trail may close during the spring season snow-melt period (dates vary from year to year).

Why Hike in Winter?
– There are generally fewer people on the hiking trails, allowing for a more peaceful and enjoyable experience.
– Compacted snow generally makes the trail easier to walk on and removes the difficulties associated with walking over rocks, boulders and tree roots.
– The scenery is very different than in any other season but is no less beautiful.

Winter Hiking and Trail Safety Tips

In the absence of any significant recent snowfall, it is highly recommended to wear crampons/traction cleats under your shoes or boots when hiking most trails in this park, particularly any trail that has significant elevation gain. You can rent traction crampons/ice cleats to attach to your boots for 8$ (2024) at the visitor center (located between the car park and the trailhead). If you plan on needing cleats for more than 2 days, you’re probably better off buying your own.

Winter Hiking Packing List
Crampons / Ice Cleats – These are a must-have to help you with those steep ascents/descents or navigate icy trail conditions.
External Battery – Cold weather significantly affects cell phone battery drainage. Best to be prepared with an external power source to recharge your phone if needed.
Hiking poles – These can be particularly useful in winter, especially when not wearing any crampons or ice cleats.
Hand warmers – if you are like us and often remove your gloves to take pictures, having little hotties around care be hand life savers in freezing weather.
All Trails subscription – comes in really handy for areas with little or no cell reception, as the annual subscription allows you to download trail maps for offline use.

If there was a lot of recent snowfall, you might want to hike with snowshoes instead of ice cleats to help navigate the soft snow. To help you decide what footwear to bring, the national park details the recent snowfall and trail conditions via the “information of the day” button at the top of the page ( e.g. typically either densely packed snow or fresh powdered snow). The visitor center also rents out snowshoes if need be.

Also, always bear in mind that no matter how cold it is at the base of the mountain, it’s going to be even colder at the summit (and windier), so remember to dress appropriately. It’s generally recommended to wear fewer layers to start since you will warm up after a few minutes of hiking. But it’s a great idea to pack some extra warm gear for when you take a break or reach the summit.

The Cime Trail (Trail of the Peaks)

Cimes Trail Details and Map

Distance: 12.4 km
Route Type: Loop
Elevation gain: 370 m (cumulative elevation gain: 390 m)
Trailhead: Right behind the visitor center
AllTrails rating: (4.7, 1164 ratings (2024))
Average Duration: Most people complete the trail in about 3h15-3h45

Not an AllTrails member yet? We highly recommend signing up for either their free or paid membership plans. The free plan allows you to find new trails and plan routes but it can only be used while hiking if you have access to mobile data. The paid membership plan (AllTrails+) allows you to download trail maps for offline use and provides live progress updates and off-route notifications.
If you are still uncertain – you should know that the All Trails mobile application was voted the 2023 iPhone App of the Year by Apple.

Other Cimes Trail Details

– Canine companions: Dogs are not allowed on this trail.

– Summit: Pic de l’Aurore summit is located at an altitude of 840 m.

– Number of viewpoints: According to the National Park, the trail has 4 official viewpoints along the ridgeline. The trail also boasts several lower elevation viewpoints with partially obstructed views.

– Trail environment: Mostly forested, with a few open ridgeline areas.

– Trail Surface / Technical Trail: The fun thing about winter hiking is that technical trail surfaces (rocks, boulders and tree branches) get buried under the snow. The main challenges that remain are the steep sections that often require ice cleats or crampons.

– Average trail slope grade: 7%

– Trail difficulty level assessment: Moderate
(based on our personal assessment, taking into account the trail length, slope grade and trail surface – 5-point difficulty scale: Very easy, Easy, Moderate, Moderately Challenging, Challenging)

Cimes Trail (Trail of the Peaks) – Trail Description

First section: The Ruisseau Trail segment

From the trailhead to the first trail intersection (1.3 km later), you’ll follow the Ruisseau Trail, a trail segment that is shared by both the Cimes and Escarpment Trails. You’ll not only begin each trail with this segment, but you will also end both trails with it as well.

It’s a flat and easy section that follows a scenic and peaceful river for the entirety of this trail section. Once you have reached the intersection, you have two options. Go right to continue towards the Escarpment and the Talweg trails, or go left to continue along the Cimes trail.

Second section: The ascent, the ridgeline, and the Pic de l’Aurore summit

From the intersection, the trail will start to ascend pretty steadily but without ever getting too steep as you navigate through a more open portion of the forest.

After about a kilometer, you will reach the first of four elevated viewpoints, which coincides with the start of the ridgeline that you will be walking along for roughly the next three kilometers.

The first two viewpoints (Repos du Dragon; Gardien des Méandres) face north, looking at the flat terrain beyond the national park.

As you continue beyond the second viewpoint, the trail continues to ascend at a not-too-steep but constant pace. As you gain altitude, you’ll notice the surrounding trees are increasingly becoming covered in snow.

The final two viewpoints (Porte du Ciel; Pic de l’Aurore) along the ridgeline are definitely those that offer the most impressive views of the surrounding scenery.

With a good lens, you can get decent close-ups of the Observatory.

Third section: The descent and the Talweg Trail segment

Once you’ve savoured the views from the Pic de l’Aurore, the trail will quickly start to descend and you will through a series of several switchbacks. After about 1.5 kilometers, you will come across a rock face covered in ice. It wasn’t as spectacular as we anticipated, but perhaps it’s more impressive at other times of the year after some snowmelt.

Continuing onward you will navigate several other switchbacks for another two kilometres, until you reach the beginning of the Talweg trail section. From here you’ll follow the river along the valley floor for the next 3 kilometers or so. Although there are a few viewpoints, they aren’t as impressive as those from along the ridgeline. The best one is once you reach the metal bridge near the first intersection you crossed.

From here, simply retrace your steps along the Ruisseau trail.

The Escarpment Trail (to Sugarloaf Mountain)

Escarpment Trail Details and Map

Distance: 7.1 km
Route Type: Mostly out & back, partial loop near the middle
Elevation gain: 190 m (cumulative elevation gain: 234 m)
Trailhead: Right behind the visitor center
AllTrails rating: (4.7, 606 ratings (2024))
Duration: Most people complete the trail in about 1h45-2h15

Other Escarpment Trail Details

– Canine companions: Dogs are not allowed on this trail.

– Summit: Sugarloaf summit is located at an altitude of 665 m.

– Number of viewpoints: According to the National Park, the trail has 3 official viewpoints.

– Trail environment: Mostly forested

– Average trail slope grade: 7%

Escarpment Trail Description and Summary

Due to the shared trail segments with the Cimes trail, we’ll start here with where both paths diverge, at the trail intersection. Here you will have to right and cross the long metal bridge. If the sky is clear, you should get great views of the observatory atop the Mont Mégantic from the bridge.

After crossing the bridge, you will have to keep straight after crossing a trail intersection (going left takes you along the Talweg trail). From this point onward the trail starts to gain some elevation at a slow but steady pace until you reach the base of Sugarloaf Mountain.

From this point, you alternate between short switchbacks and walking along rocky edges as you make your way up and around the summit. Nothing is particularly difficult or dangerous, but some caution should be taken in some sections as the trail can become icy.

As you make your way around the mountain summit, you will come across three viewpoints (all three are located within a one-kilometre section of the trail). The first viewpoint (L’abri du Rocher) looks west, to the landscape outside of the park.

The next two viewpoints face east, towards the center of the park, revealing the imposing Mont Mégantic to the east and the Mont Franceville to the north. On a clear day can make out the Mont Mégantic Observatory.

After you leave the third viewpoint, you’ll start turning across the mountain summit and navigating a few switchbacks down the other side to complete the loop portion of the trail. Once you’ve completed the loop, you will have about 2.5 km left to do on the out-and-back portion of the trail before making it back to the trailhead.

Fanceville Sector Trail Alternatives

If you would prefer some trails without too many vertical challenges, there are two options in this sector of the park. There’s the Ruisseau Trail, which is the common first and last segment to both the Escarpment and Cimes Trails and runs 1.3 km in length (one-way). It’s relatively flat along a well-walked path, making a it good option for those with reduced mobility or with young children.

Ruisseau Trail

There’s also the Talweg Trail, which is the final and mostly flat portion of the Cimes trail described above, and runs 4.2 km in length (one-way) and includes the Ruisseau Trail as both Ruisseau and Talweg partially overlap and follow the same river along the sector’s valley floor. It’s a great option if you are looking for some distance without significant elevation gain.

To take the Talweg Trail, take the left turn after crossing the long metal bridge (going straight leads up to the Escarpment trail and Sugarloaf Mountain).

Talweg Trail

Photography Gear

If you like our photography, you might be interested in some of the gear we use to shoot our travel and hiking destinations.

Camera Body – Nikon Z 6ii Fx-series Mirrorless Body
Main Lens – NIKON 24-120mm F/4G ED VR AF-S
Zoom Lens – Sigma 745-306 150-600mm f/5-6.3
Polarizing filters – Urth Circular Polarizing (CPL)
Camera Tripod – K&F Concept 64-inch Camera Tripod
Mini-tripod – Lammcou Flexible Camera Tripod
Camera/hiking backpack – Vanguard Alta Rise 48 Backpack
Universal Travel Adapter – VYLEE Universal International Power Travel Plug

Other Travel Essentials

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Car Rentals
Discover Cars is our go-to website for car rentals. We almost always find our preferred rate there.

Transfer from Airport
Welcome Pickups is our favourite private transfer service, which you can pre-book at a fixed price. Currently available in 220 cities all over the world (mostly in Europe, but with several major cities in Asia, the Middle East and the US).

Kiwitaxi is another private transfer service – we haven’t tried it yet, but it’s currently available in a few more countries (102 as of 2024).

Hotels and Accommodations (coming soon)

Photography Prints

If you found this blog useful, you can help support our blog by purchasing low-cost digital prints. Printed physical prints are also available for purchase.

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Well, that wraps it up! We hope you enjoyed our Cimes and Escarpment Trails Winter Hiking Guide and that it will prove useful for planning your hiking adventures.

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