Barbegazi winter festival kicks off year of celebrations for Montreal’s 375th anniversary

When it comes to having fun, it takes more than a deep freeze to ward off a bunch of hardy Montrealers.

Thousands showed up Saturday and Sunday to take part in the Barbegazi festival at the Ilot Clark for the first of two fun-filled weekends.

Barbegazi, which means frozen beard– from the French barbe glacée– is an outdoor festival focused on winter sports and activities–some more well-known than others.

Get daily National news

Get daily Canada news delivered to your inbox so you'll never miss the day's top stories.

Sign up for daily National newsletter Get Started

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Participants can learn how to snowskate — which is akin to skateboarding but without the wheels — or test their speed and agility on a frozen obstacle course.

Other challenges include the Christmas tree toss, woodcutting and arm wrestling.

The festival, kicked off what will be a year of celebrations to mark Montreal’s 375th anniversary.

If you missed it this weekend you can still get in on the fun Jan. 13 to Jan. 15.