2017 was the 375th anniversary of the city of Montreal. They had lots of events and activities planned so we decided to head out on a road trip. First stop was to visit a friend of mine who I only knew through Facebook. Diane’s pug had passed on and she contacted me about adopting another pug. However she fell in love with Jack and Cathy, 2 dogs up for adoption that needed to stay together. Diane lived north of Montreal in the town of Rosemère. She had lots of treats, hugs and kind words for Raisin and Dublin. We had taken the Oka ferry. Hadn’t expected to but the GPS led us to it. The ferry avoided going the Montreal route. I had planned on camping at Oka National Park which is why I went the Oka route.
We had a secluded, shady spot for a campsite. Quebec puts the “dogs allowed” campground further away from the general populace – which is fine by me. We are not allowed on the beach so really no sense being near there. However there was a trail that we could walk that led us up a mountain. Decided to go for the walk before setting up camp. I did setup the blanket so they could have a little rest and get use to the campsite.
The red trail did not allow dogs. We followed the green trail. All rules were obeyed. It turned out to be a pleasant walk, although, going up hill, we took a few rest stops.
The trail was outside the campground so I took the car and drove to the parking area. There was no one else in the lot. We didn’t see anyone when we were on the trail.
We reached the top but there wasn’t a lookout point. The forest was all around us and didn’t want to stray from the trail. The pugs were tired so they called an Uber to take them back. The Uber driver was very friendly.
Because I had the car and it was still early, I decided to explore the Oka area – starting with the famous Oka cheese. The cheese was created by a Trappist monk in 1893. The following year it won best new product at Montreal’s Salon Agri culturel. We needed to work up an appetite so we explored the Abby grounds first.
There was a little shady bench by the cheese outlet. The recipe was sold in 1981 by Les Pères Trappistes to the Agropur cooperative. The same, 125 year old recipe, is still used. Raisin and Dublin did the taste test and agreed Oka is an established Canadian cheese.
Of course, what is cheese without wine? We headed over to a family winery Vignoble et Microbrasserie Les Vents d’Ange
We headed back to setup the tent, get a fire going, then enjoy our wine and cheese (well, the pugs enjoyed some cheese). We had had a long, stimulating day. Now it was time to sleep peacefully under the stars.
