In our last video, Sam and I spent two days enjoying some outdoor adventures in Quebec’s
Eastern Townships, and this video is a continuation of that road trip.
After two days in Sutton, we drove to Mont-Mégantic National Park, which was 2 hours away, though
in reality it took us longer because we couldn’t resist stopping for some poutine along the
way.
This trip was all about enjoying nature and the outdoors, and we once again teamed up
with Tourisme Quebec and Merrell Canada.
We stayed in a futuristic cabin in the woods, tackled a few hikes, learned about the universe
at AstroLab, and stopped at more than one road side attraction along the way.
Now here’s a recap of that trip!
Well good morning and welcome to part 2 of our adventure through the Eastern Townships
(cantons de l'est).
Last night we spent the night at Parc national du Mont-Megantic where they have chalets yeah
in the forest and these aren't your average chalets.
They are kind of spacey and futuristic.
And each one of them is named after a planet in our solar system.
We ended up in Mercury (Mercure).
So we wanted to give you a tour because this is super cool, super unusual.
It is a one of a kind accommodation and I loved it so let's head inside.
Come on.
So first thing is first.
We have so many windows and so much natural light in here.
It is beautiful because you just look outside look at that guys and you see the trees and
it is so green this time of year.
Yep.
So yeah we are like in our own little bubble in nature.
And we had a nice little fireplace, we had some sofas.
We had a beautiful kitchen.
Mmmhmm.
This is the kind of place where you want to come you know stocked up with all of your
food.
All of your meals and you can spend the weekend here cooking.
Yep.
We didn't really do that but that is an option.
Like they even have a coffee maker.
Um and then I want to show you our bedroom.
This is where we slept last night.
So yeah it was just two single beds and when you check in they give you a little kit where
you have your bedding, you have your towels.
Um there is also heat inside the cabin so honestly we didn't need like a heavy duvet
or anything like that.
So yeah it was super cozy.
I slept really well.
We slept nine hours.
Yes we did.
After yesterdays adventure.
And there is a second bedroom in this chalet.
So if you come this way there is like a metallic dividing curtain.
And it is basically the same.
Yep just two single beds.
And then we had a nice little bathroom.
Walk-in shower in here.
Little toilet there.
And then the sink was out here on the other side.
And also outside we had a fire-pit, a picnic table, some chairs to sit on.
Unfortunately it is raining at the moment but if you had better weather you could totally
hang out outside.
Alright, so we are hitting the trails here in Mont Megantic bright and early.
Bright and early.
It is like an early morning hike.
Yeah.
It is beautiful.
There is nobody here.
Just the sounds of nature and we are walking right along a creek at the moment.
I know.
It is so peaceful.
It is very peaceful.
And we are seeing more autumn colours.
Yeah.
Like we've been chasing these colours and finally we are starting to see more oranges
and reds and yellows.
It is amazing what a few days will do and we've also headed a bit further north too.
That makes a difference.
One thing to keep in mind when it comes to hiking in this park, is that it’s divided
into two sectors: the Franceville Sector and the Observatoire Sector.
The Franceville sector is located in the northwest end of the park, which is where our cabins
were so this is where we went hiking.
So it is super wet and humid and moist in this forest.
We can see lots of firns and mushrooms growing.
And you can breath in that fresh air.
How fresh is it?
It is wonderful.
How fresh?
It is wonderful.
During our stay in Mont-Mégantic National Park, we also visited the ASTROLab, which
is an astronomy research centre focused on making science accessible to the public.
You see, our main reason for coming all the way out here was to do some stargazing!
Mont-Mégantic is located in the heart of the first International Dark Sky Reserve and
that means it’s an astronomy lover’s paradise.
Because there’s hardly any light pollution in the area, it’s the perfect place to see
and study the stars, however, fog and rain did put a bit of a damper on our plans.
We did drive up to Mont Mégantic to see the observatory and Mont Saint-Joseph to see the
chapel, but there weren’t too many views to be had on that day.
Because star-gazing wasn’t possible that night, we went out for a nice leisurely dinner
at Aux Toits Rouges.
This is a country lodge with its own in-house restaurant and we got a little adventurous
with our dishes.
Well it is dinner time here and today we are eating at this cozy little restaurant and
they serve a lot of traditional dishes so we have ordered up duck from lac brom yep
which is nearby.
And they also have pheasant.
What did I order?
It wasn't pheasant.
It was quail.
Quail.
Sorry.
I ordered quail royale.
So this isn't something Id' be able to have anywhere else so we figured why not.
When in the Eastern Townships (cantons de l'est) so that is dinner.
We've also got some red house wine so cheers to that.
It is going to be a lovely dinner.
Salut.
So the main dishes have arrived.
Like I mentioned earlier I went for the quail.
Which is something that I don't eat very often.
To be honest I cannot remember the last time I had quail.
But here we have it wrapped in bacon.
Yes.
My goodness.
I can smell that bacon.
Let's see how that turned out.
I can smell that bacon.
Hahaha.
Mmmm.
Oh wow.
Good?
Super tender.
Oh my gosh.
I forgot it is stuffed with veal.
Oh.
The owner had mentioned that earlier.
Mmmhmm.
And I just got really excited about trying something new.
I totally forgot.
That is really good.
Yeah?
Mmmhmm.
How about the sauce?
Nice flavours.
We've got some maple of course.
Uh.
So the sauce is really nice and sweet.
Maple for the win here in Quebec.
We've been eating so many things with maple.
Yeah.
It is very good.
And I'm not getting sick of it.
Let me tell you.
And this just comes with some white rice.
We have some little steamed vegetables on the side.
Really good.
Very tasty.
Very happy.
I'm really excited for this.
I've been wanting to try duck here in Quebec for a while.
Yeah.
This is my chance to do it.
Um check out this.
I think I have a sauce that is very similar to yours.
It looks like maple.
I hope it is.
I've got rice and steamed vegetables.
Oh la lah.
So let's just get right into that duck.
How is it?
Oh that is a really nice gravy.
In terms of its flavour and richness it is just delicious.
Guys there are deer sleeping on our front lawn.
Go really slow.
Deer on our front lawn.
Oh my gosh.
It is out of focus.
One is standing, two are sleeping.
So slow.
Two are sleeping.
Or are those rocks?
Are those rocks?
Or are they sleeping deer?
There is definitely one.
Those two are rocks but we do have a deer.
Oh look.
Oh wow.
Look at that.
It is running.
Bye deer.
Okay so we were driving on our way to Mont Ham but then we noticed a sign for a covered
bridge.
So we've just pulled over to see what this is all about.
I don't think I've ever seen a covered bridge in my life so I'm quite curious.
So it looks like this bridge is called Pont McVetty-McKenzie and it dates back from 1893.
Walking down a covered bridge have you ever been in one of these before?
I have in New Brunswick.
Oh!
Yeah.
It reminds me of something I got to do when I was a kid to be honest.
Yeah.
So you know I always pictured covered bridges as kissing bridges because in the movies they
always show like the couples go for a little wagon ride and they go through the wooden
bridge and like sneak a little peck.
So that is what I think of.
Haha.
So we've now walked out of the bridge and there is this beautiful lawn with picnic benches.
Look at that like right on the river's edge.
This is such a beautiful spot.
I wish we'd brought our lunch today because this would have been lovely.
Alright guys so a bit of construction along the way but we have arrived at Mont Ham.
We got our little tickets to hike the trail.
Yep.
And we've also got this massive map here.
Which basically shows you what we're going to get up to.
Yeah.
So we are starting down here and there are several trails that will get you up to the
summit which is where we want to go for the views.
Yep.
They've told us this red one is the shortest but the steepest and most challenging.
Yeah.
There is basically there is 3 levels.
Yeah.
There is beginner, intermediate and advanced.
This would be the hardest.
So they asked us have you ever done this before.
Like this particular walk and since we said no they've recommended either green or blue.
Yep.
So I think that is what we're going to do on the way up.
And we've also got a little map so we don't get disoriented.
Um so that is the plan.
Yeah, I'm looking forward to actually reaching the summit, seeing some colours.
Apparently once you get to the top there are no trees.
It is just a rock.
The sun is starting to peak out too.
Finally because it was raining this morning.
Yeah it was.
This is great.
We're on our way.
So one cool thing I've noticed along this trail is that they use tree trunks a lot of
different ways.
Like we have them as bridges, as stepping stones and now we've got some steps here.
A bit of a staircase in nature.
The summit of Mont Ham sits at 713 metres above sea level, but it only has a prominence
of 358 metres, so it’s a fairly light hike.
Well we made it to the top.
What did you think?
Summited.
Amazing views.
Yeah.
Quite the workout.
It was a real workout.
My oh my.
The hike got more challenging as we got further up the mountain.
Yeah.
And what was fascinating is when first arrived up here it is just unbelievable how it is
all forest and just a few pockets of human activity.
Yes.
A few farms, a few random buildings but mostly just forest.
It is quite the view from up here.
So we're taking a break on the way down.
Uh!
How are those new boots handling this hike?
You know they are feeling good.
So these are Merrell's Sugarbush.
I have to say I feel pretty fashionable on a mountain.
Haha.
Um they are leather and actually these are meant to be winter boots because they are
salt resistant.
Yep.
But yeah we thought let's take them for a hike and they have faired pretty well.
I'm feeling good in these.
Feeling comfy.
Yeah, the thing I've noticed is they have really nice ankle support yes and again they
also feel so comfortable to wear.
On our road trip through the Eastern Townships (cantons de l'est), we also took two little
detours.
The first was to visit Abbaye St-Benoit-du-Lac), which is an abbey known for its multicoloured
bricks and tiled floors.
The second was to the Marais de la Rivière aux Cerises, which is an area with boardwalks
and walking trails through marshland.
Hi.
(Squirrel sounds)
And that pretty much brings us to the end of our whirlwind trip through Quebec’s Eastern
Townships!
We hope you guys enjoyed following along and we’ll see you in the next video.