Quebec Winter Carnival - photos

photos of the Quebec Winter Carnival 2004

Families find lots of activities at Place Desjardins, the main venue for the Quebec Winter Carnival, on the Plains of Abraham.

The Ice Castle, below -- not to be confused with the Ice Palace-- is popular with kids because of a slide that whooshes from the first floor to the ground.

Other fun activities:

• rafting on snow: hop into an inflatable river raft and zoom downhill (for a modest charge)
• ride tubes down a smaller hill (picture below): free, and fun even for teens and grownups
• dog-sledding: $10 per person buys a sample side from a company that offers longer excursions in the countryside
• ice-fishing: little kids have fun catching a trout; costs a couple of bucks
• music and entertainment on several stages on weekends
• storytelling, noodle house (below) and other fun-- 300 activities in all

Above: climb onto your inner tube, and take a free ride downhill.

Every year has something fun for little kids. Below: a Noodle House.

Siberian Husky puppies were crowd-pleasers, too, but don't be tempted to take one home: they crave exercise, want to live in packs, and prefer to sleep outside in freezing temperatures.

As for food on-site: the offerings in a central tent were limited. Better to treat yourself to a Queue de Castor: a Beaver-tail. Line-ups for this local favorite can be 45-minutes-long on the weekends!

So what are Beaver-Tails? A delicious variation on the popular theme of fried dough and sugar, shaped like, of course, a beaver's tail. You can also find them, minus the slow-flakes, at the Canada Pavilion at Epcot, at Walt Disney World.

Next pictures of Quebec Carnival - kiddie transport, skating with Bonhomme