Cycling & running events in Quebec City, 2026

Quebec City Training Notes

Running: Locals keep running simple in Quebec City: base miles on the St. Charles River Paths, tempo work on the St. Lawrence River Path, and hillier laps through the Plains of Abraham. The Battlefields Park gives you historic routes along the Plains of Abraham, and Old Quebec keeps the legs honest around the Old City. Coureur Nordique gets runners out Tuesday nights on chemin Ste-Foy, and Café Faux Mouvement, Citrons pressés, Club de course Montcalm, Faux mouvement, and Club la Panthère keep the social miles moving. Défi Entreprises Québec, 10 km de l’Université Laval, Le Trail de Wendake, and Trail du Coureur des Bois give the calendar its anchor race feel.

Cycling: Locals ride the river first, because the Champlain cycling path follows the Saint Lawrence River for 25km and the Corridor du Littoral stretches the day to 50km. The Corridor de la Rivière-Saint-Charles gives you a 9km loop, and the Corridor des Cheminots crosses northern suburbs for 22km. Faux mouvement and Café Faux Mouvement give the scene a steady meet-up point. Gran Fondo Québec brings the 122km gran fondo energy. The climbs sit on Cap-Diamant, the promontory of Quebec, the Laurentian Mountains foothills, Mont-Sainte-Anne, and Mont Belair. Empire 47 keeps advanced riders sharp on singletrack, and even green trails here can have gnar.

Season: May to November gives cyclists the easy season, because àVélo runs then and the river paths stay useful for Z2, intervals, and commuter miles. Summer brings the sunniest stretch, average highs of 22°C, lows of 13°C, and enough humidity to make a short run feel harder than it looks. Locals still ride long hours in the saddle, and runners still work the Plains of Abraham, Parc Victoria, Parc Maizerets, and Promenade Samuel-De Champlain. Winter changes the whole rhythm, because average highs drop to -5°C, lows sit near -14°C, and snow generally stays from the end of November till mid-April.