Ah, the river! In Montreal, it’s the touristy viewpoint where we once saw a whale, and the cause of the most icy wind, which means that here, the brushing is offered by the weather.
But the St. Lawrence River was originally a precious route for sailors, trade and travel. And when the weather gets really hot, we’ll be happy to stroll along the river, to the Old Port of Montreal or further upstream, on the wild riverbanks laid out (but not too wild) by the municipalities that have been established along the waterway for hundreds of years.
If you follow Autoroute 40 – the road that follows the river along its northern shore, from Montreal to Quebec City, with the best views in the region – for 2 hours, and take the exit for Route 138 (the tourist route “du Roy”), you’ll arrive at one of the oldest municipalities on the waterfront: Batiscan.
By the river…
Batiscan is by the river, and was established in 1760 -because the municipality lies between the St. Lawrence and the Batiscan River, now at the center of a nature park. It’s in the Mauricie region of Quebec.
If you’re only going to Batiscan for the day, you absolutely must visit its historic monuments (there are lots of them, so choose the ones that interest you most).
Mauricie heritage tours
We start with the Office des Signaux, which also serves as a tourist information office (killing two birds with one stone!) and, what’s more, as a store selling local crafts. It’s pretty much the place to be…
It’s the last signal office open to the public in Quebec, and a true vestige of maritime communication of yesteryear, with colorful little scarves waving to signal boats where to pass, and the eagle eyes of sailors looking to see enemy submarines slipping beneath the surface of the river – or to steer boats when the fog rolled in!
We’re also fans of history and nostalgia, and the small museum’s collection of photos is perfectly curated, and a portrait of riverside life in Quebec, which we don’t necessarily know if we spend all our time with the soles of sneakers melting on city pavement…
The museum is open from June 24 to early September, between 10am and 5pm. To book a visit or a place on their themed escape game , click here!
We continue with a visit to the Vieux Presbytère de Batiscan, an 1816 construction with the vibe of a country house from a Jane Austen book. This is the parish priest’s former home, and you can also see the remains of an old church… We love the fact that the guide is in period costume for special events, and we picnic in the park afterwards, in the sunshine.
The presbytery is open from May 25 to October 26 this year, daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.-and general admission is $7.50.
You can also visit the Église Saint-François-Xavier-de-Batiscan, also classified as a Québec heritage site.
Parc Naturel de la Rivière Batiscan
The park boasts 400 hectares of forest and river, with a beach, 17 waterfalls and a geocaching trail.You can even camp here – or, for anxious city dwellers, sleep in rustic cabins.
It’s open from mid-May, and general admission is $7.83 (free for under-18s).
For more info and to reserve your tickets, click here!
The best view around
Batiscan’s municipal wharf on Place Jacques-St-Cyr – at 1000, rue Principale – is the village’s worst-kept secret, because it’s impossible to ignore such a perfectspot from which to watch and photograph the river.
Quite simply, it’s where the Office des Signaux sits, so make a note to return in the late afternoon, or at sunset for the more romantic.
Where to eat?
Along the river, and easily accessible by road, there are several old-fashioned snack bars that make you want to dig out your photo albums to find vacation photos opposite the same kind of establishment.
For those who want to sit in a restaurant for a few hours and sample some local beers, we recommend Ferme du Tarieu, which seems to be the coolest microbrewery-restaurant in the region.
Enjoy your visit!