So I did manage to get up and ride for a day, had a great time although I was sore for about a week afterwards. Too much beer and poutine and not enough training. But anyway I thought I should share the story and info in case anyone else wants to do this.
First, the most simple way to get from Quebec to Mont Sainte Anne is to drive so score a lift or hire a car if you can, its a pretty simple drive and quite scenic.
Otherwise there is no direct bus from Quebec to Mont Sainte Anne. A company called Intercar run buses that kind of go past it. Intercar; 1-888-861-4592 website
www.intercar.ca
If you go up to the main train/bus station in Quebec and go to the ticket counter (which is run by another bus company called Orleans Express) you can pre purchase your tickets or just get them on the day. My return ticket cost $16 Canadian which is pretty good. Buses leave from bay 6 at the station and I went for the one that left at 9:45 in the morning. There is a much earlier one but the resort doesn't open till 10 (I think) so I didn't bother going early. Another thing to watch is that they put the people going furthest on the bus first and then the next furthest etc etc. Given that I got off at the first spot I only just squeezed on. Dunno what would have happened if the bus was full, glad I didn't have to find out.
The Intercar bus then drops you outside the front of a small museum in a town called Sainte-Anne-De-Beaupre. From there its a $20 cab fare to the resort (tip included) which is near the town of Beaupre-its confusing. The people there don't speak a lot of english so perhaps make sure you write down where you want to go or print a map or something. Local Cab company is Taxi Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre 418-827-5521.
Once I got to the resort it was all good. The local staff speak english and are super helpful. I got lucky and scored the last DH rental bike although it was a small frame so my big tip of the day is to call ahead next time and book a bike. I'm so glad that after making a fair bit of effort to get there I got the last DH bike.
You can also rent helmets gear etc and they have a cool system of a barcode on the front of the rental bike so you pay for your lift pass at the same time and the lifties just scan the bike from then on. I think bike, ticket and gear rental was about $180- I just chucked it on a credit card but I think it was about that.
After getting sorted I headed up the gondola and did a green run which was pretty much just bombing down a ski run. After that I tried a few of the other runs and discoverd that one called La Vietnam was pretty much my favourite being a machine made one kind of like crank it up in Whistler although with not as many jumps.
After lunch I rode the world cup course (very slowly) and then a couple more exploring runs. Trails are for the most part steep and technical with lots of rocks and roots although I should say that they also have a heap of XC and all mountain trails and is it possible to get down the mountain on some easier trails so don't be too put off if you havent done a lot of DH or resort riding, there is something for everyone. I would advise keeping a trail map on you though and a bit of a sense of direction, the trails are a bit of a maze towards the bottom of the hill in a couple of spots-or perhaps its just me.
Anyway after a few afternoon runs I was pretty wrecked having not done this kind of riding for a few years so I handed the gear back, called the cab company an spent another $20 getting back to Sainte Anne De Beaupre and got the evening bus back to Quebec.
All in all I had a great time, no lift lines to speak of, pump track and other facilities for families etc down the bottom and fun trails. Glad I went to the effort.
Couple of pics
View on the way there
Bottom of the hill
Rental fleet are Scotts, not bad. Most trails start from the one spot except for the world cup track and a couple of other double black diamonds that start from the other side of the gondola station
World cup track from the gondola
I did take some gopro footage but was trying out a chest mount for the first time and had the camera angled down a bit too much so I won't bother posting that. Lots of top tube, probably not helped by me being over 6 feet and riding a small bike.
All in all a top day. Thanks to Mail Man and dolphinman for the suggestions too, hopefully someone else finds this info useful.
Crofty