November 04, 2009Mont-Megantic Review

Not too long ago, I went to Mont-Mégantic National Park for a weekend of camping with my girlfriend. I was really looking forward to it since it has anti-light pollution by-laws, in order to protect the ASTROLab observatory. This means crazy starry skies. Unless it rains.

Mont-Mégantic ASTROLab

It rained. It actually did not rain that much but it was overcast the entire time. So no stars for me. But when life hands me lemons, I make limoncello. Anyways, the Park is nice in itself. And the truth is that it’s quite nice walking through a humid forest, a make-believe rain-forest. It really brings out different hues in the foliage.

Mont-Mégantic also has a nice setup where not only are there tent sites but also public cabins. These are open to anyone during the day. Equipped with a stove and abundant wood, these are great places to warm up, cook and eat. During the day we used the stoves to boil our water and make grill cheese sandwiches. Otherwise, my beloved Dragonfly was up to the task, as usual.

The tent sites have a raised platform, which are great as you’re sure to have a level floor, not to mention the extra protection you get since it evacuates the rain. The sites are also equipped with a picnic table and a fire bowl. The cherry on that sundae is that there is a shed filled with chopped wood nearby.

Not exactly ultralight packing

This set-up certainly adds to the comfort and I did not find it took away from feeling of being in the great outdoors. Although make sure you choose your site carefully. Some were too close to open areas where people walk by for my taste.

As for the paths, they ranged from huge and easy to tiny and technical. And the scenes surrounding them were varied and quite beautiful. You really had that old-growth feeling in some places.

The bad news is that we did not make it to the top of the mountain or explore the entire park. The good news is that it’s a great reason to back! I’m certainly looking forward to it as what I saw was great and it was just a small part. You’ll find out all about it in part II, out next year!

Cet article est disponible en français ici