Around 35km east of Montreal lies Mont Saint-Hilaire, a mountain which shares the same name as the surrounding township. With its multitude of hiking & skiing tracks and four summits ranging in height from 320m to 414m, it’s an accessible day trip for anyone in the Montreal region who fancies a moderately-graded trek or some cross country skiing during the snowy months.
I’ve spent much of my time in Montreal over the past year exploring Mont-Royal, the peak in the centre of the island which the city surrounds, but I’d recently been eyeing off some of the hills a little further afield. Mont Saint-Hilaire was one of those that caught my attention, so with a warm Sunday forecast of -4º (well maybe not warm in the strict sense of the word, but still 35 degrees warmer than the previous weekend) I set off on the #200 bus and completed my journey with a taxi to the park’s entrance, the Gault Nature Reserve.
Here are some photos from my delightful 5 hour wander around Mont Saint-Hilaire 🙂
The eerie, foggy forest on the way to the first peak, Burnt Hill
A curious & hungry squirrel at the Pain de Sucre summit:
The breathtaking panorama of Pain de Sucre:
From Dieppe Summit looking back towards Pain de Sucre:
The sun finally came out of hiding along the hike to the Rocky summit:
Lake Hertel in all its icy glory:
The highest peak as seen from the township:
