Here is a gateway to true wilderness, set in lovely rolling countryside an easy morning’s drive from Montreal. Seldom crowded despite its proximity to the bustling city, Quebec’s largest provincial park affords nature lovers a quiet and tranquil experience. Within the park’s borders lie some 400 lakes, six rivers, and the endless roll of the Laurentides Mountains, most of them covered in a hardwood forest of maple and yellow birch.

The Laurentian Mountains still harbour a reservoir of wild creatures, including black bears, foxes, and moose, as well as wolverines and fishers.

Most people come here for the remote tranquility of the deep woods; for that kind of experience, there is nothing quiet like backcountry canoeing.