Gatineau Park
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If you haven’t already heard the news, let me break it to you: Fred, Quebec’s designated groundhog, saw his shadow. There’s no doubt, we’re in for another six weeks of winter, outside or in, happy or not. And since I’m all about happiness, I’d like to suggest an outing for you to get your gourmet on, in the Outaouais region.
Strap on your snowshoes and grab a fork, we’re going to survive winter… somewhere in the expanses of Gatineau Park, with delicious dining at Wakefield Inn.
Exquisite Exercise
Gatineau Park; it’s big, it’s beautiful, it smells good. I headed to the Visitor’s Centre, and looked at the map; I scratched my head and found a guide to explain said map.
I learned that three new intermediate trails wind through the southern part of the park, practically in the city. King Mountain indeed offers a spectacular view of the Eardley Escarpment, a dividing line between the Canadian Shield and the St. Lawrence lowlands. And the trail hugging Philippe Lake is a little treasure to discover for a day.
And since time was moving faster than me, I hit the trails near the Visitor’s Centre, with rented snowshoes underfoot. The going was relatively easy, but it got me warmed up! Great breaths of air, beams through branches, virgin snow: the real deal. I even sent myself flying into the décor with a tumble I tried to pull off as elegant. Such are my occupational hazards!
Exquisite Eats
Gatineau Park
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Everyone knows that exercise works up an appetite. So we put away our snowshoes and readied our forks for Wakefield Inn’s restaurant, some 20 minutes’ drive from the Visitor’s Centre. The relaxed atmosphere at the Heron Room Restaurant will fit perfectly with your “I just got done exercising” look, not to mention that the view of Maclaren Falls is worth checking out.
Modern, the tapas prepared by Chef Romain Riva compete with the charm of this frankly well-preserved historic site, both cosy and elegant. I opted for the menu including a choice of five tapas, but it was only so I could give you better advice… tips of the hat to the beef tartar served with beer jelly and crostini, and the tomato tart with a sunny-side up quail egg. Yum!
After this little getaway, you’ll have taken the bite out of winter, groundhog or no.
A big thanks to Anne Chardon at Outaouais Tourism for this getaway, to the team at Gatineau Park for knowing how to read maps and to the team at Wakefield Inn for a hearty welcome.
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