Mont Habitant

Mont Habitant is without question the work of Mickey and Joan Stein.

Back in 1957, Mickey Stein was staying in the Pagé family's old farmhouse not far from Saint-Sauveur. He looked at the mountain across the way and realized it had the potential to be a skiers' paradise.

With associates Stephen and Stanley Vineberg, Mickey Stein explored the mountain to get an idea of what could be done. They entrusted Sel Hannah, the well known ski centre designer, with the task of laying out and preparing the runs and terrain.

Mont Habitant officially opened for the winter of 1958-59. I am proud to say I was one of the first to ski down its slopes.

Thanks to Mickey's friendliness and hard work, Mont Habitant soon became a popular place where families and friends gathered. But Joan also played a major role and was instrumental in the getting the ski school up and running. Under her guidance the school became known for quality of teaching and personalized service and over the years gave lessons to more than 300,000 skiers.

Mont Habitant enjoyed another "first" when in 1964 it was the first centre in North America to light up the night so people could ski after dark. Night skiing was born, with many other areas soon to follow Mont Habitant's example.

Today Dean Booth runs Mont Habitant and, following in his predecessors' footsteps, still puts the focus on maintaining its reputation as a friendly, fun, family centre.