Both C and I were gifted with a can of maple syrup from her friend. To tell you the truth, I still haven't opened that syrup yet, but I will soon because there is a pie recipe I want to test out...
Our next destination was here...
The Parc des Chutes-de-las-Chaudieres is a nature haven at the heart of Levis. The 35 meter high falls are the main attraction here and there are many spots to view the falls.
The park also has picnic areas, a footbridge suspended over the Chaudiere River, 4.5 km of hiking trails and 1.5 km of biking trails and a playground.
The site was used in the early 20th century for its hydroelectric potential. The current dam was rebuilt over the old facility in 1999. The dam also supplies a small power station that can generate up to 24,000 KW and supply power to 5,000 families.
This is the view to the left of the dam...
Then, you pan your eyes to the right and you can see and feel the strength of the falls.
A placard (in French) explaining the hydroelectric uses of the dam...
Here is another view of the top of the falls. NM would take us on a short hike to see the falls from a different angle.
This involved walking through a trail in the forest...
We liked seeing the different types of maple leaves.
These steps led down to the footbridge...
About to cross the bridge...
which had a bit of a sway!
View to the left (north) of the bridge:
View of the falls from the bridge. You can see a hiking trail below.
From the suspension bridge, you could also see the old Quebec Bridge (Pont de Quebec), a mix of old and new.
It was at least 10-15 degrees cooler walking through the forest. Even though the sun wasn't out in full force just yet (it was nearly noon), it was feeling like it was going to be a super hot day (high 90's).
The kids enjoyed walking all over the roots of this tree...
Another view of the falls as we rounded a bend...
The path led us to the river bed. You can see the suspension bridge in the distance.
The name "Chaudiere" (boiler) comes from the spray at the foot of the falls that looks like steam coming out of a boiler. In th 17th century, explorer maps mentioned the falls by the name of "Sault de la Chaudiere" (The Boiler's Falls).
It was spectacular seeing the falls at river level. This part of the falls is the last big push of the Chaudiere River, which flows all the way to the St. Lawrence River.
Our kids (mine, C and NM's) had fun skipping rocks in the water. We could have gone closer but I was content to watch the falls from our vantage point.
The river bed had these razor sharp rock layers:
In the distance, you can see the steps from which we came. That's TC and Bert near some rocks.
We were starting to feel "baked" from the heat...
One last look...
It was a nice little break in our vacation to see a bit of the beauty and nature of Levis.
Parc des Chutes-de-la-Chaudieres
autoroute 73, sortie 130
Levis
Quebec City, Canada
www.chaudiereappalaches.com
Tourism info for the city of Levis:
www.tourismelevis.com
We were all getting hungry so off we went to another local mainstay. We would get some snacks before hitting the road again. Our next planned stop would be Montreal!
4 comments:
Hey CC - Actually, that's first class maple syrup. My good friend, who is Filipino, but married a Canadian, and lives in Hawaii (go figure), gave me some years back. It's really good! I actually used some in a brine with beer which was really good!
The pics of the falls/water looks amazing. It looked like a very beautiful and peaceful day for you all. Do you speak French?
hi kirk - my friend told me that this was good maple syrup. it's definitely not Log Cabin (although I do like Log Cabin!)!
i mostly liked the colors and graphics on the can against the blue rails of NM's house.
can't wait to use this. NM actually suggested to put some of the maple syrup in SPAGHETTI.
Yes, just like in ELF!!!
hi faye - sorry this reply is nearly a year late. i didn't realize your comment went to spam, so i "undid" it and now it's here. the park was quite pretty but man, it was hot and humid that afternoon!
i took french in 9th and 10th grade. a very useless language for me in terms of actually using it (i don't). it's useful in figuring out things on a french menu.
spanish was so much easier.
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