A Weekend in Mauricie

Photo: Michel Julien (Hôtel Sacacomie spa)

We may pretend otherwise, but the changing colours and dropping temperatures are surefire signs that winter’s frosty tendrils are creeping back into Canadian soil. The best possible reaction is denial, obviously, but we decided to be brave instead and head to Quebec’s Mauricie region, two short hours from Montreal, where the indulgent comforts of a few luxury lodges make hibernation fun. The drive to the area’s multicoloured mountains and gushing rapids, through farmland peppered with towns peppered with roadside French fry shops, was a great start to a shamelessly gluttonous couple of days. 

Hôtel Sacacomie, Saint-Alexis-des-Monts 

Joyce Plante and her late husband, Yvon, built one of the country’s biggest log houses when they founded Hôtel Sacacomie 13 years ago in Saint-Alexis-des-Monts. Perched atop the shores of the lake it’s named after, and boasting a brand new spa, the resort makes up for its rustic rooms (we suggest you splurge on the Presidential Suite) with incredible views and its lip-smacking ways with meat. We used the homemade gnocchi to sop up every last drop of the sauce du trappeur slathered over the deer cutlets.  

Bear Watching 

The Bear and Beaver Observation Tour outing is only one of a dozen excursions that have made Hôtel Sacacomie famous with international tourists as a purveyor of “genuine Canadian experiences.” Let’s just say that it was the first time we two Canadians found ourselves mere metres away from a male black bear. We were awestruck by the only creature in sight with an appetite bigger than ours.  

Photos: Gregory Pynn (La Patate du Centre-Ville); Michel Julien (bear)

Casse-Croûte 

Catch a movie at Cinéma Pixel in Louiseville, one of the province’s few remaining small-town cinemas. Louiseville as a whole smells alternately of Pogos and fresh-cut wood, thanks, in part, to La Patate du Centre-Ville, otherwise known as steamie paradise. Take your delights to go, and eat them on the bench in the nearby park, looking onto a large mural of key moments in the town’s history, painted by three local kids.

Sunday Brunch at Auberge Le Baluchon 

With a church at its centre, Saint-Paulin is a small town whose defining feature is a nature lover’s resort called Auberge Le Baluchon. We were drawn to its famous Sunday brunch like bees – or bears – to honey and filled up on months’ worth of bacon in a single sitting. Others flock to Le Baluchon’s 26-square-kilometre site for its archery, its equestrian trails and its boardwalks woven around the rapids of Rivière du Loup. We waved to those people from the dining room window. 

Photos: Gregory Pynn (Gîte du Carrefour); Auberge Le Baluchon (Auberge Le Baluchon)

Antiquing 

On our drive back, the Gîte du Carrefour in Louiseville stopped us in our tracks. The 1898 house is the municipality’s only protected building, and, lo and behold, it doubles as the best garage sale ever. The B&B – itself for sale – is a treasure trove of wingback chairs, crystal chandeliers and knick-knacks collected by owner Réal-Maurice Beauregard.