Here are 5 cool new things to try at SÉPAQ parks this summer

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Discover what the glaciers left. Count the stars in a Dark Sky Reserve. Or take on your brothers in a ninja-style obstacle course.

Access to the escarpment at the end of the Pic-de-la-Tête-de-Chien trail in Parc national des Monts-Valin has recently been opened. For years people were prohibited from entering the area to avoid damaging its arctic alpine vegetation.
Access to the escarpment at the end of the Pic-de-la-Tête-de-Chien trail in Parc national des Monts-Valin has recently been opened. For years people were prohibited from entering the area to avoid damaging its arctic alpine vegetation. Courtesy of SEPAQ

Whether Quebec is your home or vacation destination, whether you’re looking for a day trip or a camping trip, the provincial park system, Société des établissements de plein air du Québec, is constantly evolving.

Here are some SÉPAQ highlights for summer 2022:

Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie

The glaciers were here. They passed rocky ridges and a temperamental river. what are you doing this unique site it is the sudden right-angled turn that the river takes, offering a rare view of the setting sun. The setting sun is hidden by ridges in most other parts of this valley in the Charlevoix region. It’s seven kilometers from the nearest visitor center, which means walking, biking, or kayaking. Accommodation and various guided tours are offered.

Pic-de-la-Tête-de-Chien

For the first time in several years, visitors can access the escarpment at the end of this trail in Monts-Valin Park. A new 350-meter walkway and observation deck protect arctic alpine vegetation and allow visitors to “fly over the fragile natural environment,” says SÉPAQ. “It is not necessary to trample the plants on the ground thanks to this installation, which allows reaching the rocky escarpment, with a peak of 575 meters, and as a bonus the impression of being suspended on its walls.” The five-mile round-trip hike in the Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region is listed as difficult, but there are plenty of other trails and activities for people of all ages and abilities.

Access to the escarpment at the end of the Pic-de-la-Tête-de-Chien trail in Parc national des Monts-Valin has recently been opened. For years people were prohibited from entering the area to avoid damaging its arctic alpine vegetation. Photo courtesy of SEPAQ
Access to the escarpment at the end of the Pic-de-la-Tête-de-Chien trail in Parc national des Monts-Valin has recently been opened. For years people were prohibited from entering the area to avoid damaging its arctic alpine vegetation. Photo courtesy of SEPAQ Courtesy of SEPAQ

Camp-de-Touage-Les-îles

Oh, a desert island? Yes please. Rustic campsites have been built on three small islands in Pointe Taillon Park in the Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region. The islands have their own beaches on Lac St-Jean, as well as fire pits, picnic tables, and pit toilets. The park offers guided transfers or zodiac tours to the “archipelago, its history and its impressive natural world”.

Motion Parc Evolutif

Yamaska ​​Park near Granby is trying something a little different with its outdoor “ninja warrior balance obstacle course” for kids ages 5 and up. The activity, which costs more, features challenges such as an incline wall and an inflatable bag to test stunts. The course can be played head-to-head between the most competitive visitors. Once it’s out of your system, the park has a beach at the Choinière Reservoir and plenty of trails.

Parc national de la Yamaska ​​has teamed up with a partner to add a paid activity called Motion Parc Évolutif, an outdoor facility that features a ninja warrior-style balancing obstacle course. Photo courtesy of SEPAQ
Parc national de la Yamaska ​​has teamed up with a partner to add a paid activity called Motion Parc Évolutif, an outdoor facility that features a ninja warrior-style balancing obstacle course. Photo courtesy of SEPAQ Courtesy of SEPAQ

the darkest skies

Mont Megantic Park it houses the first International Dark Sky Reserve. He has built eight Etoile ready-to-camp units, aptly named. Guests can meet at a base camp in the heart of the dark sky reserve to try to count the stars. Nearby is the observatory and Astrolab, which has launched the Webb Space Telescope adventure. SÉPAQ calls the ground-sky experience the only scientific attraction of its kind in Quebec.

If you’re in the mood to stop and smell the roses, Parks Canada has declared 2022 the year of the garden. There are garden festivals, events and activities, a map of the Garden Route across Canada, celebrations of local “heroes of gardening” and dozens of other ways to get involved. livethegardenlife.gardenscanada.ca.

TAKE A LOOK

There are 24 Quebec parks in the SÉPAQ network with more than 6,995 square kilometers of protected land. Park admission is $9.25 per day or $83.50 for an annual pass. Children are always free, including admission, accommodation and equipment loan. All funds go back into the park system to protect Quebec’s ecosystems. sepaq.com, 800-665-6527.

Download the iNaturalist app to geolocate images of plants, animals, and insects. Each entry goes into a database that helps document things like rare flowers at a particular time of year or the arrival of an invasive species. Hikers can share their finds with park rangers. A “bioblitz” is held in the Jacques-Cartier Park on August 13 to take an inventory of the environment. innaturalista.org.

There are more than 200 Parks Canada sites across the country. Fees vary, but are always waived for children, newcomers to Canada, and new Canadian citizens. The annual Discovery Pass costs $72.25 for adults, $61.75 for seniors and $145.25 for families. pc.gc.ca.

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