You’ve been to Old Montreal, you’ve walked St. Laurent to the Plateau, and enjoyed bagels at Fairmont. You’ve visited the lookout from Mount Royal and decided you want to consider day trips from Montreal. Should you go to the Eastern Townships to find antiques or maybe see the fall foliage in the Laurentians? For the same amount of time, you can spend the day in our nation’s capital – Ottawa. In the evening you can head to Laval for a spectacular illumi Laval a large light show. We only saw a snippet from the highway on the way home but it looked pretty interesting. So many choices, so little time.
We opted to rent a car for the day and head up Highway 15 and head to the Laurentians. Directly north of Montreal, you will pass Laval and head into ski country. Unfortunately, we were a few weeks past peak foliage season but the beautiful, sunny, unseasonally warm Saturday provided the perfect temperature for a walkabout in Mont Tremblant Village and other options for day trips from Montreal.
Not one to pass on public art, I found a brochure at the Laurentian’s Visitors Centre that outlined the outdoor murals in St. Adèle – Les Murales des Pays-d’en-Haut. On the way back to Montreal, we made a detour, parked at the tourism office and walked to most of the murals.
The Mural of Pays-d’en-Haut in Sainte-Adèle, Quebec
Murale de la Solidarite by Rock Therrien – 2008
You can begin your self-guided Balado-Discovery tour right here. Directly in front of the People’s Plaza/Tourist Information Centre, you will find Village D’Antan by Rock Therrien. Created in 2020, this mural illustrates how a community comes together during an unprecidented event – the pandemic caused by COVID-19. It illustrates eleven activities that the local residents participated in. It symbolised the solidarity strength, and unity of the St. Adele community!
Village d’antan by Gilles Bédard – 2008
Village d’antan by Gilles Bédard is one of my favourites of this walking tour of murals in St. Adele (another day trips from Montreal option). Born in Quebec City in 1954, Gilles Bédard now lives in Baie Saint-Paul on the North Shore of Quebec. His depiction of St. Adèle is the most traditional and what I remember the most from my youth living in La Belle Province.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the village divided into two sections: Sainte-Adèle-en-Bas and Sainte-Adèle-en-Haut. The dividing line between the village and the parish is still visible on Blondin and Ouimet Street.
Le Draveur by Jean-Louis Courteau – 2005
On the side of a house, Le Draveur is big, bold and a testament to one of the largest players in the economy in Quebec in the 20th Century – lumber. Depicting a log driver manoeuvering logs down the
Rivière du Nord and the Rivière aux Mulets. When jams formed above the Grande Chute, at the Chenal des Paresseux or near the Chemin du Loup-Garou, the bravest log drivers deftly planted a stick of dynamite in the jam to clear the way.
The most notorious local driver was Arcade Desjardins, who was an excellent jumper. Log driving came to an end in Sainte-Adèle around 1920.
Les Grands Bâtisseurs by Joane Michaud – 2004
This particular mural is on the side of a building and greats you as you enter the city. This work is a tribute to the men and women who contributed to the regional development of the Pays-d’en-Haut. Curé Labelle worked tirelessly to promote colonization in the Hautes-Laurentides and to develop the area. In 1892, with the Le P’tit train du Nord came an economic boom to the area. Furthermore, Stanislas Jean-Baptiste Rolland constructed the paper mill in 1902. As you will see, all of these people and their contributions are illustrated throughout these area murals.
Day trips from Montreal day trips from montreal day trips from montreal day trips from montreal day trips from Montreal
Cinéma by Stephen Lamb – 2007
We were surprised to see two cinema theatres close together in such a small town but the history behind them is charming. With multiple screens and Cinema Pine provides a full cinematic experience. With two locations, up to 8 films can be shown at a time.
Bulgarian artist Stephen Lamb represents the seventh art in a simple and humorous way. His twisted stretched and bowed figures evoke a particular charm resembling caricature.
Sur le lac Rond by Pauline T. Paquin – 2006
Comical and oh-so-familiar to many Canadian, skating on ponds and lakes is not uncommon. Pauline T Paquin depicts the joy that children have during winter months in Quebec. Lac Rond provided residents with drinking water and ice along with fish for food. In winter, many horse races were held on the lake. Early on, a public beach was opened. As of 1921, canoe and rowboat regattas were held on the lake. In 1943, the municipality marked the lake for skiers from Chantecler to ski and to park their cars.
Rue Saint-Jean by Étienne Martin – 2010
In the brochure, the image of this painting is so very vibrant but unfortunately, it has faded quite a bit. Rue Saint-Jean by Étienne Martin once again places the focus on the strong involvement of the church and the investment of the Rolland family in the community. Up until the late 1960s, you will see a strong connection between these industry leaders and the clergy. Although sometimes a detriment, often it produced beautiful churches that brought together the residents of each town and village.
Le Train des Neiges by Yvon Lemieux – 2005
I loved this mural. I was hidden away beside a parking lot and alley. Unfortunagely, garbage cans obstucted the view of the mural. Le Train des Neiges by Yvon Lemieux depicts the glory days of the train travel to ski country.
The first excursion trains started to run in 1927. It was a joyful and colourful period for the Laurentians. In 1927, as many as 170,000 skiers rode these trains to get up north. In 1938-39, 14 trains of 10 wagons with 84 seats each operated on the weekend, with eight running on Sunday. In 1950, a record of 11,000 skiers traveled during a single weekend. Station chiefs directed traffic and a train arrived every 20 minutes. The fare for a round trip from Montréal was $1.50 on the weekend instead of $2.10. During the Depression, young boys offered to tie skiers’ boots for a penny.
La Rolland by Robert Leclerc – 2008
La Rolland by Robert Leclerc once again goes back to what built Sainte-Adèle, the forestry industry. These are now heritage buildings but in the turn of the 20th century, they were key to the pulp and paper industry. In 1902, Stanislas Jean-Baptiste Rolland was awarded the Grand Prix de la production de papier at the World Fair in Paris and continued to develop the industry.
Côte Morin by Claude Langevin – 2006
My apologies for the bad picure but the angle and the sun were no help to my cause! Another wonderful snow covered illustration. The côte Morin was inaugurated by the Honorable Augustin-Norbert Morin. During the 1940s, between 5,000 and 7,000 people used that street as a ski hill. Sand was spread on only one side of the street. The slope at the top of the hill was reduced to help with the driving conditions.
Un homme et son péché by Reynald Connolly – 2007
A modern interpretation of a historic writer. In Un homme et son péché by Reynald Connolly he illustrates an unknown dimension of the talented writer Claude-Henri Grignon: the fisherman, the man who loved the landscapes, lakes, rivers, and mountains of his cherished Pays-d’en-Haut.
Claude-Henri Grignon was born at 176 Morin Street in Sainte-Adèle on July 8, 1894. First a young war reporter, then a literary critic and a pamphleteer, Claude-Henri Grignon lived the majority of his life in his childhood village. He wrote his master work, Un homme et son péché, in the house located at 195 Morin Street.
The novel’s great success has led to its many adaptations for radio (1939), film (1948, 1949, and 2002), theater, comics, and the Séraphin Village in Sainte-Adèle. The Quebecois language owes many of its expressions to this popular romantic universe. Sainte-Adèle is famous thanks to this historically relevant and iconic literary work.
Chapelle sur le lac by Pierrette Joly – 2009
On the opposite side is Chapelle sure le lac by Pierrette Joly . Born in Hawkesbury, Ontario in 1948, this mother and grandmother and resident of Sainte-Adèle resident has been tirelessly pursuing her art since the beginning of the 1980s in the picturesque setting of the Pays-d’en-Haut. Drawing her inspiration from nature, Pierrette Joly’s canvasses reflect the majestic beauty of the Pays-d’en-Haut and Charlevoix landscapes.
Visitors to Sainte-Adèle have a soft spot for this little church beside Lac Rond along the montée Chantecler. It was built in 1952 on land donated by Mr. A.B. Thompson, owner of the Chantecler, with the assistance of the United Churches of Canada.
La vie est belle à Sainte-Adèle by Rock Therrien – 2016
At the top of the hill in a small corner park, across from St. Adèle Beach, you will find La vie est belle à Sainte-Adèle by Rock Therrien. This is a cheerful, tongue-in-cheek depicting a couple competing in a fishing derby aptly stating illustrating that ‘life is go in St. Adèle’. We couldn’t agree more!
There were two murals that we did not see as we had to make our way back to Montreal. Le P’tit train du Nord (2017) and Rivière de la Doncaster (2017) both by caricaturist and comic book illustrator Cédric Loth. These were not in the core area but a short drive away.
Reading more about the origins or inspirations of these murals has given me an education on the region and the history of this area. There is no question that on a beautiful fall day, stopping by St. Adèle to see the street art of Les Murales des Pays-d’en-Haut. It gives you time to visit this small town and ski centre in Quebec’s Laurentian region. No question it is worth it is a great option for day trips from Montreal.
Day trips from Montreal day trips from montreal day trips from montreal day trips from montreal day trips from Montreal What do to outside of Montreal or What to do in Montreal
Margarita Ibbott is a travel and lifestyle blogger. She blogs about travel in Canada, the United States and Europe giving practical advice through restaurant, hotel and attraction reviews. She writes for DownshiftingPRO.com and other online media outlets.