Bienvenue dans les Cantons-de-l’Est (Welcome to the Eastern Townships)

Like most Americans, I don’t really know a foreign language. Beyond simple ideas like “hello,” “please” and “thank you,” I don’t speak any language other than English. I can’t really read another language or understand when it’s spoken to me. But I absolutely love to explore in Quebec, especially foliage season in the Eastern Townships. Fortunately, you don’t need to know any French to have a simply wonderful time.

I do know, however, that the French language makes a really big deal about differentiating between masculine and feminine. Maybe that’s why my sweetheart Marilyn and I see our Quebec adventures so differently. We both enjoy the entire experience, we just focus on slightly different things. (You can see a perfect example of this in her story versus mine about pedaling the Véloroute des Bleuets in the Saguenay, Lac-Saint-Jean Region north of Quebec City in September, 2010.)

Quebec is a different world in foliage season, just as beautiful as any place in New England. Unlike New England, however, the foliage starts a bit earlier, and you don’t need to make reservations months in advance. You just decide to go, pack your bike, hiking shoes, passport and your sense of adventure, and you go. As soon as you cross the border, the world changes and everything gets more fun. We’ve just returned from our third biking trip to Quebec in foliage season, this time visiting the Eastern Townships. This is getting to be a very nice habit indeed.

We’ve both discovered that we love the endorphin high you get from biking up here, and the adrenaline rush of skiing and treetop adventures. And, of course, all the other fun stuff that happens when you just relax and enjoy visiting a foreign country so close to home.

Foliage Season In The Eastern Townships: Getting High In The Trees

Exhilarated. Slightly sore all over. And smiling . . .  Most definitely smiling.

That’s probably the way our primordial ancestors felt when they first climbed down from the trees after traipsing across branches and swinging from vines. And it’s certainly the way my sweetheart Marilyn and I felt when we climbed down from the trees at Haut Bois Normand, a magnificent aerial adventure course less than an hour from the Vermont.

It’s the way you should feel when you’ve tackled something difficult, put some of your muscles to work the way they were designed to be used, felt the adrenaline rush of momentary terror, sucked in oxygen to help calm your beating heart, and went all out for something challenging enough that you weren’t sure you could do it.

The beauty of an aerial adventure course like this is simple: it FEELS like you are in extreme peril, but you aren’t. Every moment your feet are off the ground you are clipped into safety lines strong enough to lift an elephant. You’re probably safer here than you are crossing a busy city street. So you get much of the thrill of a risk sport without any of the danger. I love it.

One big difference between the big aerial adventure courses in Quebec  (we’ve done three now with more to try) and similar outfits in the US is that, in Quebec, they teach you what you need to know, then send you off to do the adventure on your own. No one holds your hand. They assume you are smart enough to take care of yourself. As far as I’m concerned, making you take responsibility for yourself is actually safer and more fun, since you are forced to focus more on what you are doing and double check everything yourself.

Like many of the big courses in Canada, Haut Bois Normand has several levels of challenge, so you can do as much or as little as your heart desires (or as your heart can take!). For families with young children, there’s a “Tiny Tarzan” course, built close to the ground and on a kid-friendly scale, and a mini Tarzan that stays safely on the ground. Judging from the smiles and shrieks, nobody in the Tiny Tarzan course was unhappy that they weren’t on the “big” courses.

For bigger kids (of all ages) Arbre Sutton has four levels of challenge, green, blue, red and black. Each level gets progressively higher, longer, and more difficult. There are tightropes to walk, various swings and suspension bridges, ladders up, ladders down, cargo nets and, of course, ziplines. Lots of ziplines.

I particularly love the challenge of the swinging bridges—logs, planks, or stirrups suspended from ropes of cables with each piece moving independently of the others. You have to simultaneously stabilize yourself on the piece you are on, and somehow get your feet and then your body onto the next step, all with anywhere from 10 to 50 feet of empty air below you. Again, you are in a safety harness double-clipped into a cable that could lift a whale, so you really can’t fall. Your rational brain knows that, but don’t try to tell it to the part of your brain that swung through the trees with your ancestors . . .

The one “feature” everyone who did the whole course was talking about was the “Tarzan” swing on the Black course. Standing 40 feet up on the end of what looks suspiciously like a diving board you grab hold of a hawser-thick rope (don’t worry, you are also double-safety-clipped to it), and step off. Because of the angles involved, it feels like you drop 15 feet before you swing up and into a waiting vertical cargo net (about 30 feet off the ground.) Pure adrenaline rush!!!! They have a bailout option (a cable bridge) so you can still complete the course if you aren’t in touch with your inner Tarzan, but I didn’t see anyone opt for it . . .

Don’t worry though, if you quit after the green course and never get anywhere near the Tarzan swing; you still feel like a you’ve taken a walk on the wild side, challenged yourself in ways you didn’t think you could, and came away smiling . . .

When I was going through the entire course on a warm autumn Saturday, it appeared that men slightly outnumbered women (but the women shrieked louder and laughed more). Remember that “masculine/feminine” thing? Here’s Marilyn’s take on the whole treetop adventure:

Even for cautious me, the highlight of our first day in Quebec was the adventure course and zip line. In Canada, where they encourage autonomy, a treetop adventure is bound to be one of the most challenging, exhilarating, thrilling and adrenaline-producing experiences of your life. It is completely safe–just keep reminding yourself of that as you do it.

I did the easiest adult course, which was plenty long and high enough for me. Although I was terrified before I started, it gave me a HUGE sense of accomplishment and left me shaking from the adrenaline. It was even better than skiing down a black diamond trail. I was really proud of myself for overcoming my fear and doing as much as I did.

With my feet firmly back on solid ground (and my legs still shaking), I went off to take photos of the kids on the “Little Adventurer” course. Tim did all four courses and his comment was, “If it wasn’t so late in the day, I’d do the Black Course again!” Need I say that adrenaline is Tim’s drug of choice?! I like it, too, but in smaller doses. If you’ve never done an aerial adventure course, you owe it to yourself to accept the challenge and try it. You don’t have to do it all and love every minute of it, but not trying at all would be sad.

Foliage Season In The Eastern Townships: Exploring Sutton

The town of Sutton in Quebec is one of our favorite spots in all of La Belle Province. I’ll let Marilyn tell you about our day there (I was wishing I could do the Arbre Sutton course again . . .)

Our home for the first two nights was Gîte Vert le Mont Bed & Breakfast. If you like beautiful Victorians, you will love it here. This B&B has five guest rooms, all with wi-fi access. Our room was a lovely sage green with white accents. The common areas are comfortable and encourage relaxing, especially the stunning wrap-around porch. While one half of the porch is used for reading, relaxing, enjoying an evening glass of wine, and watching people go by on the sidewalk, the hidden half is set up with three tables for an intimate breakfast overlooking a garden with the most amazing and unforgettable “Janus” sculpture of white marble set improbably but perfectly in massive old cast-iron radiators. Words and photos cannot possibly do this sculpture justice. You need to go there and see them for yourself. This is just one of many sculpture pieces placed about the garden. Exploring here is a delight.

Imagine our surprise when Lynda Graham, our innkeeper, greeted us in a charming British accent! Americans in Quebec, rarely if ever, need to feel concerned about not speaking French. Most everyone here can move seamlessly from French to English without batting an eyelash. Lynda is one of those people born to be an innkeeper: she has an engaging personality, infectious enthusiasm, vast knowledge about the area . . . She and her partner Jay are warm and welcoming, catering to your every need and serving a wonderful made to order breakfast.

Part of the reason we found this B&B so special is its location in the absolutely charming village of Sutton. You can park your car and forget about driving. Numerous restaurants, entertainment, activities and shops are all within easy strolling distance. It’s so much fun to browse in little gourmet shops and grocery stores in Quebec. You can find such enticing new food options.

While you are in Sutton, be sure to eat lunch in the Cafetier, one of the establishments that participates in the Cafés de Village network in the Eastern Townships. This concept was developed in France (“Cafés de pays”) and has translated beautifully across the Atlantic.. The Cafés in the Eastern Townships are small establishments that serve a healthy menu of local and seasonal products. The atmosphere is casual, friendly and our lunch was so fresh and delicious!

Our evening dinner was just a stroll away from the B&B at the L’International which we chose at random. I had a delicately-prepared sole while Tim had Osso Bucco. After dinner we wandered into a show being presented by the annual jazz festival to enjoy the music in a trendy little club with living-room-comfy chairs and a full bar. All this, just a 2-minute walk from our B&B.

The village of Sutton is a joy! It’s also only a couple of miles from one of my favorite ski resorts. If you’ve ever skied at Mont Sutton, you know that it’s a gem. Sutton offers wonderful views, great snow and  “skiing in the trees for all levels of ability.” In fact, it’s the first area where I ever felt comfortable skiing in the trees.

Alas, there’s no white stuff on the ground in late September. Sigh… Instead, they were having a “Fall Festival” at the mountain. They have music, food and ski sales at the base of the mountain. You can take the chair lift up to the summit and walk or ride down. We chose to walk and enjoy the gorgeous foliage, which was not yet at its peak but still spectacular.

Foliage Season In The Eastern Townships: A Perfect Autumn Day

Getting back to the masculine side, Here’s my take on a perfect “endorphin high” day in the Eastern Townships.

Marilyn and I woke up this morning in a comfortable bed in Vert Le Mont B&B in Sutton, Quebec. Take note: they have special packages for hiking, biking, skiing, and aerial adventures . . .

They are also part of the “Bienvenue Cyclistes” program for lodgings and campgrounds in Quebec. As a lodging, they offer secure, dry storage for your bike, a tire pump and some basic tools for repair and loads of information on bike routes and bike shops in the local area. By the way, the campgrounds which participate in the Bienvenue Cyclistes program offer guaranteed campsites to anyone traveling exclusively by bike, whether or not they have a reservation. Great program–I’d love to see something similar developed in the States!

The really nice innkeepers, Lynda and Jay, (she’s from England, he’s from Pennsylvania) served us a delicious (huge!) breakfast made to order and sent us on our way with a smile. There wasn’t a cloud in the blue, blue sky and temperatures were ideal for biking.

A half-hour later, we were at the “Information Touristique” in Bromont, cycling map in hand and ready to ride on a 56-kilometer circuit, all part of the 4,000-kilometer La Route Verte network of bike trails and marked bike routes that makes it easy to see much of Quebec by bike. From Bromont. we rode into Granby, from there to Parc Yamaska (where we had a picnic lunch), then on to Waterloo, where we got our second wind, and back to Bromont. Even with a couple of detours off the basic route, the whole journey took exactly three hours with stops, almost all of it on flat, well-marked beautifully maintained bike trails, some paved, some gravel. We only had to do a little road riding in Waterloo. most of our ride was through quiet woodlands, some  along lovely lakeshores. With our detours we rode about 65 kilometers (40 miles), a perfect ride.

Back in the car, we drove six minutes (we timed it) to Chateau Bromont where we checked into a spectacular room with a view of Ski Bromont, which, by the way has an incredible snowmaking system and night skiing and an equally incredible network of mountain biking trails (next time!).  While I saw the ski hill, Marilyn actually saw the room we were staying in: Our suite was decorated in rust and beiges, with a large bedroom, huge bathroom and comfortable living room with a gas fireplace and mini-bar. What more could you want? Is living here an alternative?

Our package included full access to the sauna, steamroom, and myriad outdoor hot tubs at Spa Bromont plus a one-hour “treatment.” I went for the “vigorous” sports massage. (Thanks Michel, it was wonderful!) while Marilyn had an exfoliating massage: My spa treatment was a total body massage and exfoliation with sugar and apple. Never had an exfoliating massage? You owe it to yourself! I came out with the smoothest skin imaginable! My masseuse, Mariette also did an outstanding job of working all the muscles that still felt that 40 miles on the bike. And the hot roiling bath and lavender body milk after the treatment was the perfect ending.

The day ended with a glass of wine in our room, then a four-course table d’hote dinner in Les Quatre Canards, the main hotel restaurant (I don’t know why but the food is simply better in Quebec). Perfectly prepared and presented jumbo shrimp, and local cheeses for appetizers, mushroom soup, beef tenderloin with peppers, huge fresh scallops . . . It was, as they say, the perfect end to a perfect day whether you are looking at it from the masculine or feminine perspective. Just what you’d expect in the Eastern Townships.