A LUSKVILLE FALL
Katharine Fletcher recommends savouring the glory of autumn colours in Gatineau Park with a visit to Luskville Falls and the second-annual Pontiac Country Fair.
Gatineau Park attracts thousands of visitors during Fall Rhapsody, the National Capital Commission’s annual celebration of autumn colours. This Thanksgiving weekend, I suggest you visit Luskville Falls, west of Gatineau’s Aylmer sector, for the secondannual Pontiac Country Fair. What’s special? No entry fee, a heart-healthy hike and many fun happenings such as face painting for kids through to equestrian activities. So come out to the Pontiac and celebrate Gatineau Park’s true nature.
SETTING THE SCENE
This spectacular waterfall tumbles down the nearly 300-metrehigh Eardley Escarpment, a ridge of Canadian Shield rock once taller than the Rocky Mountains. More than 10,000 years ago, the Laurentide Ice Sheet covered most of North America. Its grinding action eroded these mountains to the rounded “stumps” we now enjoy climbing.
As we ascend the trail alongside Luskville Falls, pause, catch your breath, and appreciate the flat Ottawa River Valley floor extending to the southern horizon. It’s no coincidence that farm fields extend below the ridge, for soils here are fertile for market gardens, crops and for supporting such artisanal agri-food industries such as honey production. And this weekend we’re in luck: Several Pontiac agricultural producers and artisans are waiting to meet you at the falls’ picnic grounds during the Municipality of Pontiac’s second-annual Pontiac Country Fair.
FAIR PARTICIPANTS
The picnic grounds are sprouting tents. Find many agricultural producers here such as Sempels Honey. Chat with this couple about bees and pollination issues, then consider purchasing their tasty honey and beeswax candles. Also, meet growers from Ferme Pays Vert, and Claude Boileau, a garlic grower.
And there will be artists to meet. Cheryl Dolan, Susan Chartrand, Pierre Sigouin and others will be showing their works. Nancy Maxsom, who operates the Pontiac Country Store, will be showcasing works of art and selling homemade goodies.
Gatineau Park naturalists will explain the nature of the park. They’ll particularly concentrate on some of the endangered fauna and flora of the Eardley Escarpment. There’s a very rare red cedar tree here (actually, it’s a juniper). It’s particularly important to conserve this plant because it is the food source for the juniper hairstreak butterfly, which, just like the monarch, depends on a single plant for its survival.
In addition, peregrine falcons nest on the cliffs. “It’s really important that park users understand how sensitive these birds are,” says Louis-René Sénéchal, senior co-ordinator of programming at Gatineau Park. “The cliffs here are critical habitat for these birds because they nest on solid rock. So if hikers, climbers and other visitors get too close to the nest, for instance, they will desert the area and their young can perish.”
Indeed, park naturalists will encourage us all to remain on the official trails of Gatineau Park. Says Sénéchal: “Animals need uninterrupted habitat that is not fragmented. Put yourself in the hoofs and paws of park denizens: Many, like the peregrine, require vast and uninterrupted habitat.”
EQUESTRIAN COMPETITIONS
Sheila McCrindle and Linda Leblanc are members of the Pontiac Equestrian Association and they’re planning a weekend of horsey activities along with Venturing Hills Farm.
On Saturday, watch a Trail Skills Fun Day. “The riders will put their horses through a series of obstacles and skill tests on Saturday, starting at 10 a.m. until about 4 p.m.,” Leblanc says. “There is a teeter-totter for the horse to negotiate, a noodle monster to pass through, something to drag and various other obstacles, too. On Sunday at noon and at 2 p.m. there will be a Parelli demonstration given by Jeanette Schevers (think “the horse whisperer”) and she will offer pony rides, too. On Monday from 10 to 2 the ponies of Venturing Hills Farm will demonstrate the English disciplines of dressage and jumping.”
Pontiac horseman Michel Allan will offer carriage rides with a team of Canadian horses, an increasingly rare breed.
TEA AND PIE
Visit the Municipality of Pontiac’s Community Centre (Highway 148 and rue Hôtel de ville) to find a warm welcome and light refreshments such as tea and pie before your return home.
LOADS MORE TO DO IN GATINEAU PARK
There are many other activities throughout Gatineau Park this weekend. For instance, take a gondola ride at Camp Fortune. From there (from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and departing every 10 minutes) hop on the new shuttle bus to Champlain Lookout. Want to explore other destinations and trails in the park? Check out the brand-new Renaud Shelter in the Lac Philippe sector of the park. More ideas? Browse the NCC website: ncc-ccn.gc.ca
OTHER USEFUL WEBSITES
Outaouais Tourism: tourismeoutaouais.com/en-ca
Municipality of Pontiac: municipalitepontiac.com/en/calendar/pontiac-country-fair/