Gatineau Park

Gatineau Park is a park in western Quebec near the city of Gatineau, Quebec. The park forms a 363 km² triangle with the Ottawa and Gatineau Rivers running parallel to two sides of the park.

The park includes a number of campgrounds and picnic areas. There are 165 km of hiking trails and 90 km of trails for mountain bikes and the Trans Canada Trail passes through the park. The park is also popular with cyclists; note that most routes are quite steep and very demanding on legs, heart and lungs! There are beaches at Meech Lake, Lac Philippe and La Pêche Lake. These lakes also offer canoeing; boats with gas motors are not allowed on most lakes in the park. Although the practise is not permitted in the park, some of the more secluded corners are popular with nudists.

There is a tea room at Moorside, the former summer home of William Lyon Mackenzie King, the tenth Prime Minister of Canada, at Kingsmere. The estate also features gardens and the "ruins" collected by King in a woodland setting. A small waterfall runs down the escarpment near Moorside.

The Champlain lookout provides a spectacular view of the Ottawa Valley from high atop the Eardley Escarpment. When the leaves change colour in fall, tourists and locals are drawn to the park's lookouts, roads and pathways to enjoy the autumn scenery.

The park's location in the Gatineau Hills makes it a popular destination for cross-country skiing. There are almost 200 km of cross-country trails and the park plays host to the annual Keskinada Loppet competition. There is also a downhill skiing and snowboarding area at Camp Fortune.

Gatineau Park provides habitat for birds such as the Pileated Woodpecker and Common Loon . Turkey Vultures and migrating hawks take advantage of the thermals at the Eardley Escarpment. There are many beavers and white-tailed deer in the park, as well as some black bears and a few wolves in more remote sections.

Pink Lake is a meromictic lake found in the park. Tiny algae within the lake gives it a bright green colour. The lake's name comes from the Pink family who originally owned property in this area.

The park area was originally settled by early immigrants to the area, who were soon discouraged by its thin soils. The federal government began acquiring land in the area for a park in the 1930s. Mackenzie King donated his property at Kingsmere to the people of Canada at his death in 1950. There are still a small number of private dwellings located within the park's borders. The park is operated by the National Capital Commission.

Harrington Lake, where the country retreat of the Prime Minister of Canada is located, and The Farm, the official residence of the Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons, are located within the park.

External links

• Official web site