Montreal: Parc du Mont-Real

Montreal from Parc Mont-Royal

For today’s walk we headed north from our hotel to climb Mont Real and explore the large park which now occupies it. We walked up Peel (having acquired the North American habit of dropping the Street, Avenue, Boulevard or whatever off road names) for a couple of blocks and entered the park. It was raining quite heavily and we decided to take the direct route up to the belvedere: there is a choice between the wide path which makes the climb by means of a gentle switchback and a series of staircases.

The first couple of staircases were fairly short and gentle, but then we came to the big one. We counted 250 steps.



We struggled up, but were impressed by the number of people who seemed to glide or even run up it. When we came back down later in the day it became clear that a significant number of people were using it as a training resource and were going up and down repeatedly. We saw stop watches, heart monitors and intermittent leg stretches.

A further sloping path brought us to the belvedere - not the highest point on Mont Real, but the one offering the best views. I am not sure however that the Montreal skyline is especially interesting (see the photo at the head of this post).

We now struck out along Chemin Olmsted, named for the designer of the Park. He also designed Central Park in New York and some others in north America. Apparently not all of his vision for Mont-Real was realised.

After a short while we passed Maison Smith (a stone 19th century building which is now a cafe) and left it via a field of stone sculptures.



Further along the path came to Lac de Castors (Beavers). We had a fantasy of having a nice lunch at the Pavilion restaurant, but it was closed. The cafe, which was open, was not sufficiently inspiring.



On the slope opposite a youngish man was using a metal detector with great care and attention, moving slowly upwards with frequent investigative stops. We did not hear any cries of Eureka.

We retraced our steps to the belvedere and took a loop behind it in search of La Croix. This felt more like walking along a country lane. After climbing for some time, we came on what seemed to be the highest point, a modern cross to the god of telecommunications. All roads led down from here, so we retraced our steps - the real cross was evidently a bit further on.



It seemed that autumn was coming early to one of the maple trees here.



We now followed the multiple staircases back down and exited the park to pound the streets in search of a bakery for some bread for a picnic dinner.

Conditions: fresh and wet at first, becoming hot and humid.

Distance: 5 miles.

Rating: three stars.


Sightings

I saw but couldn’t photograph a beautiful Black Swallowtail (papilio polyxenes) and finally identified the large orange butterfly which I have seen intermittently as a Monarch. Obvious, really. There was also a Red Admiral, which seemed identical to the ones we see at home.

I am not quite sure what this is, but I admired its shape.

 

Montreal: Vieux Montreal

Notre Dame

After two days' outings to the Laurentians, we have dumped the hire car and are now going to explore the city, starting with Vieux Montreal, the 18th and 19th century origins of the city. The walk starts in Place des Armes with the Banque de Montreal, a Palladian structure, on one side and the Basilica of Notre Dame opposite. Notre Dame was designed in 1824 and has a most extraordinarily colourful interior. Every surface is decorated, but the effect is somehow more harmonious and tasteful than in many baroque churches. The interesting-sounding seminary next door was unfortunately closed for restoration.

The third side of the square has two fantastic buildings. The red brick Edifice New York life was Montreal's first sky scraper in 1888. The Edifice Aldred dates from 1931 and resembles the Empire State Building, completed in the same year. We sneaked in and were thrilled by the pristine Art Deco interior. (The fourth side of the square is occupied by a large, discordant modern block.)


The square itself, which is also being restored, was the site of hand to hand fighting between French settlers and Iroquois warriors. The French were led by Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, the founder of the city, and these events are commemorated by a statue and inscriptions. It does seem to represent a very traditional view of history, with savages being defeated by heroic Europeans. It was after all Iroquois territory.

From here we walked a mile or so east along rue de Notre Dame. The most interesting sight was the statue of Lord Nelson on a column, facing one of his French counterpart, Jean Vauquelin, the commander of the French fleet in New France. The droll thing is that the statue of Nelson dates from 1809 - the more famous one in London, on its much higher column, was constructed in 1840-43.



Other things of note along here are the old Palais de Justice, City Hall and Chateau Ramezay.

We turned right into rue Bonsecours and enjoyed a refreshing break in the courtyard of Pierre de Calvet's house (an 18th century house, now a hotel). At the end of the short street is the chapel of Notre-Dame-de-bon-secours.



This church was founded in 1675 by Margaret Bourgeoys, a French nun who was canonised in 1982. The present building dates from the late 18th century. There is some nice stained glass and the surrounds of the windows are decorated with beautiful tiled patterns. The church also houses a museum to its founder.

The real value of visiting the church however is that you can climb the tower (accessed via the museum, so you have to pay). So we climbed the church tower and enjoyed the excellent views over the old port and the St Laurence river beyond. We especially loved the twin statues of angels, one on each side.



We now walked along rue St Paul, the main street of the old town and passed the huge Marche Bon Secours with its grand dome. Further along, the Place Jacques-Cartier is a touristy, but still very appealing square and we enjoyed surprisingly good fish lunch at one of the restaurants, La Maree.

The street gets busier from here and is full of restaurants and little boutiques. Further on you come to the handsome former Customs House (1836-8).



You now turn towards the port on rue St-Francois-Xavier and right into Place d'Youville where you pass the so-called Ecuries (stables) d'Youville. These pleasant stone buildings seem in fact to have been store rooms rather than stables, and belonged to the Gray Nuns, whose convent was nearby.

To my eyes, the wonderful red brick former Fire Station, just further along the square, was much more striking. It is now a museum.

The end of the walk is the Hospital of the Gray Nuns, with the (to be honest, not very interesting) ruins of its chapel. This order, known formally as the Sisters of Charity of Montreal, was founded by Margaret d'Youville, hence the name of the nearby square.

It was raining by now and we decided to call it a day and head for one of the few wine shops we had spotted to stock up for the day’s aperitif.

Conditions: gray, mild, ultimately rainy.

Distance: about 2.5 miles.

Rating: three and half stars.

Mont Tremblant

Mont Tremblant from the Edge Peak

Our efforts to find a walk in the Laurentians produced the discovery that you could reach the top of Mont Tremblant, Eastern Canada's highest peak (875m), by cable car and then walk along various trails. We were a little off-put however by the description in our guide book of the Mont Tremblant resort as being like a cross between Aspen and Disneyland.

We found our way to the Mont Tremblant resort, after being given directions and a map by an exceptionally helpfully hotelier in the nearby Mont Tremblant village. After parking, you walk to a reception area where there is a free sort of ski lift which takes you on a shallow climb above hotels and swimming pools to the main resort plaza. Here you can enjoy sundry amusements and get the "gondola" to the top.

You can't see the top as yet, because it is a relatively shallow climb. The ride to the top is however quite serene. When you get there it is really not too bad - just one cafe, a couple of other cable cars and a radio mast. We followed the signs and the map we collected earlier for our chosen walk to the next peak to the west, the Edge Peak.

The views over the hills to the north were very pleasing.



And as we headed along the ridge, the view south over Lake Tremblant was even more impressive. It was startlingly long!


We walked along a track then through a forest and then back on the track to reach the Edge Peak. From here there was a good view back to Mont Tremblant and a nice view forward over the Laurentians.



We went onwards for a while through very pleasant, but quite arduous, woodland in the direction of the Johansen Peak, another 3 km along the way.



After a while however we had to turn round as the deadline for returning our hire car was fast approaching. Once we reached the Edge Peak, the return route was via a further stretch of hilly, rocky woodland.

Conditions: warm, hazy sunshine.

Distance: about 4 miles.

Rating: four stars.


Sightings

Along the open track and by a sheltered clump of flowers at the end we spotted some lovely butterflies. There were a couple more of the Pearl-bordered Fritillaries we saw at St-Adolphe-d’Howard yesterday and another similar, but smaller, fritillary with a solid dark marking along the hind edges of its wings.

However, the highlight was this Eastern Comma. It is similar to our familiar English one, but with much more strongly marked wing margins.

Saint-Adolphe-d'Howard

In Montreal now and we wanted to walk in the Laurentian Mountains, an hour or so to the north. Finding a place to walk was not so easy, since Canada lacks the network of public footpaths paths we are so used to at home. The concierge at our hotel came up with the Centre de Plein Air at Saint-Adolphe-d'Howard.

When we arrived we discovered an information point which turned out to be a campsite - which was the Centre. The girl behind the counter spoke almost no English, which staggered me, but I just about got by in French. There was a range of trails available - on payment of an entry fee. We have never had to pay to go walking before, but there is a first time for everything!

We chose a combination of trails to make a five mile walk and set off. Within few moments we had left the campsite area and were in deep pine woods. A short way along a sign pointed to a view point and after quite a steep climb we came to a viewing platform with a lovely view over the lake to the north. Perhaps this was going to be OK after all.



Further on, we headed off - erroneously as it turned out - along a trail to the left. The ground was marshy and soon we were walking a long a walkway made of tree trunks. We had a few jests about walking along trunk routes, ha ha. But soon it petered out and we had to retrace our steps.



We made another little detour across a quite pretty little lake ...


... and then settled down to complete the circuit, mainly through woodland but also with a swampy area for variety.

Conditions:sunny, hot.

Distance: about 5 miles.

Rating: three stars. An odd experience, as we were always conscious of being in a highly organised network of paths. But actually the walk itself was very pleasant and enjoyable, if a bit enclosed in the woods, and we scarcely saw anyone else. And as bonus, there were some nice butterflies ...


Butterflies of the day

I saw three orange butterflies of various sizes which I could neither photograph nor identify with any certainty. This however was definitely a Pearl-bordered Fritillary.



The other confirmed sighting was an (American) Western White Admiral (Limentis arthemis rubafasciata). Like a European one, but with rows of red and blue dashes on the upper wings, and pronounced red spots and blue dashes on the underwings. Fantastic.

Domaine Jolie de Lotbiniere

The house and garden

I stumbled on a reference to this garden as I was researching something else for our trip to Canada. A tour itinerary described it as the finest garden in North America. The house dates from 1851 and the garden has been open to the public only since 1997. We stopped off en route from Quebec to Montreal.

We walked up a long drive from the car park, passed the servants' quarters and entered the gardens at the side of the house - timber-framed with verandas all around on both storeys. We swung right to pass through the Allee Seigneuriale, with symmetrical plantings on either side.



This leads successively to areas of shady planting (mostly some of the 99 species of hosta), an area of lilacs and a small Mediterranean garden. Continuing in a clockwise direction we came to a path leading down to the ruined jetty. This was a bonus - we knew the house overlooked the St Laurence river, but we hadn't expected to be able to see it close up.

It turned out to be a very pleasant tree-lined path ....


... which soon led to a sort of beach on the bank of the incredibly wide river.



We walked along the bank for a while to explore the reed beds which lay in the other direction.



We saw one large ship go by, but the river seemed very quiet, even under-used, for such a massive waterway.

We now returned to main gardens and were delighted by four large beds arranged on either side of two crossing paths. Three had an array of flowers, while the fourth was the pottager. We were thrilled to spot some hummingbirds, but not quick enough to get a photo.



We concluded our visit with a picnic lunch on a shady bench with a view up to the main facade of the house.

Conditions: warm, sunny, but not humid.

Distance: just over two miles.

Rating: four stars. A beautiful, tranquil oasis.


Sightings

I snapped this little butterfly flitting around among the reeds. It seems to be a member of the Crescent genus, possibly a Vesta Crescent.

Quebec: Basse-Ville

Notre Dame des Victoires

Having yesterday walked around the Haute-Ville, today we naturally walked around the Basse-Ville. We started in the Place Royale opposite the pretty church of Notre Dame des Victoires. The church dates from 1688, but was restored in 1759. It celebrates two French naval victories over the British.

We turned right into rue sous le Fort and headed towards the funicular and the steps which provide alternative routes to the Upper Town.



On the corner, by climbing some way up the stairs, there is fine view along rue du Petit-Champlain, said to be north America's oldest street. It is pleasant enough, but full of tourist shops.



At the end we turned left and walked along past the river ferry terminal into rue Dalhousie parallel to the river bank. After a while this handsome building with its imposing campanile came into view - it turned out to be the fire station.



Further on we turned right towards the riverside promenade and past the imposing neo-classical Custom House (1830-39), with the Agora outdoor theatre in front.


We walked along beside the wide St Laurence river to the Pointe-a-Carcy where you are forced to turn towards the old port. Across the water is the truly massive Bunge of Canada grain elevator which stores Canadian wheat, barley and so on before they are shipped to Europe. One's first impression is that it is a tremendous eyesore, but each summer night it becomes a giant screen on which the Image Mill sound and light show is projected. We saw some of it the previous evening as we walked home from dinner and it really is remarkably clever. You can see some video clips on the website of its creator, Robert Lepage.



After wandering around the port area as far as the Marche du Vieux Port, we headed back along rue St Paul and rue du Saute-au-Matelot. As you approach the Place Royal there is a marvellous piece of trompe l 'oeuil painted on the end of a building.


Returning to Place Royale, it is extraordinary how European it looks. You could be in some small town in Burgundy or Alsace. It was the centre of the first permanent French colony, but by 1950 it had apparently become derelict and run down. Since then it has been restored to pristine condition.



Conditions: hot and sunny.

Distance: about two miles.

Rating: three and half stars. Much less striking than the Haute-Ville, but more charming.

Quebec: Haute-Ville

Hotel Frontenac

We have now arrived in Quebec on the next leg of our Canadian tour. The old town is divided into two parts: the Basse-Ville (the lower town, where we are staying) and the Haute-Ville (the upper town, today's walk). Quebec is famously the only walled city in North America and we wanted to do the tour of the walls so far as it can be done. You can reach the Haute-Ville by a funicular, but true to type we started the walk by walking up a couple of steep flights of stairs.

You emerge at the top in front of the Hotel Frontenac ("Le Chateau", as it is known locally) which dominates the Haute-Ville and Basse-Ville alike. It was built in 1892-3 and has an amazing 618 rooms. You can even take a guided tour.

We walked along the wide board-walk overlooking the St Laurence river and swung to the right to climb up a hill with fantastic views over the river and beyond.



Further along we saw a pair of charming late 19th century buildings ...



... and then followed the edge of La Citadelle to finally reach its main entrance. This star-shaped fortress was built to defend against American attacks after the end of the war of 1812. The fort has such a low profile that it is almost invisible from most angles. Sadly - or perhaps happily - it has never been called on to defend the city.



After walking around the perimeter we walked away from both fort and river along the line of the old city walls.



To the left as you walk along the walls there is the famous Plains of Abraham where bold Wolff (to quote the folk song) defeated the French general Montcalm in 1769. A bit further on we reached the Porte St Louis. The original gate was built in 1693, but what you see today is a reconstruction of 1878. It has a disturbingly Disneyland look about it.



Happily the ramparts continue onwards towards the Porte St Jean.



From here the route follows the line of the walls but now you are on top of walls which simply fall away below, without any clear battlements or sense of classic city walls. However, we did see this fine pair of (presumably) turn of the twentieth century houses. They would have looked well in Brussels or Vienna.



We followed the rue des Ramparts past the Catholic Seminary and the took a right to reach the Basilica-Cathedral of Notre Dame. It dates back to 1647, but most of what you see today is from the reconstruction of 1771.



Opposite is quite lively little square where a succession of acts entertained the public: we watched some acrobats and saw them give way to a musician.

From here we walked past the undistinguished Anglican Cathedral (1804), saw the oldest house in Quebec, Maison Jacquet of 1677 (now, almost inevitably, a restaurant), looked with interest in a shop selling Inuit sculpture and then returned to the square in front of the Frontenac hotel.

Conditions: cloudy but warm.

Distance: maybe three miles.

Rating: Four stars. Enjoyable, with some fine views and sights, but maybe more could be done to create a more continuous and coherent "tour of the city walls" on the model of say Chester.