Races cancelled for this summer but i’ll be there this weekend. How is the swimming outside race weekend? Is the typical swimming buoys out there or just a smaller area available for swimming?
Any insight would be appreciated before i decide to throw my wetsuit in the car. Thanks!
The training course is still open - I did a swim there this morning and there were a few others in the water. It’s rained all this week so the water is colder than you’d expect for late June, but fine once you get going.
I’m not sure if this is new this year, but they moved the start of the course to the old IM swim exit (before they built the dock) - on a map it’s approproately called Parc Plage. There’s also an $8 fee where it used to be free if you were signed up for an Ironman or 70.3. Also, they wanted to make sure I had a bright coloured swim cap, I presume for visibility.
The actual course is the same - follow the shore between the buoys and the rich people’s cottages. Last buoy and back is IM distance.
Amazing, thanks so much.
I swam there 2 years ago - exactly as described.
The only thing I will say is that you have to have cash on hand - they do not accept debit or credit. Also bring a lock, and you can use the lockers and change room.
Also if you want to go up the street past the tennis courts on the run course there is public access that is literally 10 feet wide (for canoes, kayaks etc.). There is no parking there, it is just on the side of the road but you can enter the water from there and no one can stop you. I have often jogged over, left my running shoes at shore, swam and then came back grabbed shoes and jogged back.
At the end of the day waterways in Canada are owned by the people of Canada (I can pull up the appropriate websites for that). Access to water may be controlled, but once you get access you can go swim.
Bottom line there is a tiny spit of public acccess where you do not pay.
Swimming at Lac Mercier is also free if you don’t hang out on the beach.
Also at Lac Ouimet and from what I recall no motorized boats.
Also at Lac Ouimet and from what I recall no motorized boats.
There’s no official public access to Lac Ouimet. There’s a small patch of grass to the right of the Grand Lodge Resort beach that can be used for entry…park on the street just across. The old Grey Rocks property could be used I suppose but it’s technically trespassing.
Lac Mercier has public access via the city dock which has steps. The Porte Rouge hotel was purchased by the city and has been demolished and the plan is for a larger beach area. The beach is technically pay per use but the dock is not. Very limited boat traffic compared to Lac Tremblant and less chop when it gets windy.
I’d go where it’s closer to your accommodations, for convenience.
That being said, I’ve swam at Lac Mercier several times this week during my stay and it was great, and free as others noted.
Every time I went I’ve seen other swimmers either leaving or coming back too.
Please note, Tremblant received flash flood last night (check local news) and the area is a bit of a mess… while most of it will surely be cleared by the time you come, seems like Duplessis rd (back end of the bike course, the hilly part) has suffered major damage and is currently closed to traffic… if the picture I’ve seen is legit, this may take a while… so you may have to alter your bike routes!
Hope you have better weather than us, raining buckets most of last weekend and some rain falls every day of my stay, got caught a few times in sudden rain only for the sun to pop back up as I pulled to the condo haha!
Thanks, I arrived today. Lots of flood damage. Bottom portion of the village is a mud pit with some parts of the road washed away. Also half of the resort is closed saying they have no electricity. Duplessis is still closed. I ran some of the course today and many side roads appear heavily damaged with lots of caution tape blocking off some sections of the paved trails.