It took me too long to get out to Parc Poisson Blanc! I’ve wanted to go for years, but their campsites and microcabins book up super fast. And it’s JUST far enough away (two hours) that it doesn’t exactly feel like a day trip.
Recently though, I discovered that there are lots of places to stay right inside the park. It’s similar to Gatineau Park in that people live inside the park, have businesses there, etc. In my mind I was picturing something like our Provincial Parks, where it’s ONLY park accommodations available.
Anyways, we went, and it was wonderful. The terrain was some of the most challenging terrain I’ve seen within two hours of Ottawa, and it was a lovely challenge/surprise! We hiked the Merisiers, Trail, the Sentier du Sommet, and the Katimavik trails as they’re all connected. And I was TOAST the next day, so we spent the next morning paddling around the islands, which was also lovely (if a bit choppy).
The trails at Parc Regional du Poisson Blanc are challenging, but so worth it!
Quick Facts
Length: 7.8 km
Difficulty: Hard (On a scale of easy-moderate-hard)
Trailhead Coordinates: 46.138945, -75.685025.
Washroom at Trailhead: No (but there is one at the first lookout, and down by the beach!)
Dogs Allowed: Yes
Cell Reception: Spotty
Wheelchair Accessible: No
Parking: Free
Map courtesy of the Parc regional du Poisson Blanc.
Getting There
The Merisiers/Sommet/Katimavik Trails are on the Montagne du Fort in the Parc regional du Poisson Blanc. The trailhead is right on the Chemin Rapide-du-Fort. You can use these coordinates to get there: 46.138945, -75.685025.
There was a small parking lot at the side of the road, with space for about twenty cars. Parking was free. There were some signs posted indicating a permit was required, but after a while we sorted out that the permits were actually required in order to drive your ATV on the road. We had seen a lot of ATVs on the road on our way there, so it seemed like a popular activity.
Just a few steps further down the road, a giant map was posted. There was a picnic table and an overhang here as well, although lunch would be much better taken at one of the lookouts!
Signs at the trailhead (and every trail split).
The Trailhead
The Rapide-du-fort trail began right across from the parking lot on the opposite side of the road. But that trail would have added a minimum of 3 km to our round trip, so we decided to skip it and start right at the trailhead for Merisiers.
The trail signage was easy to spot right away. Big blue signs at the side of the road let us know exactly where we were going to begin our hike.
Starting out, we also began to notice small blue trail markers in the trees. These markers continued along the entire length of all three trails, and we found them to be reliably posted. At no time were we ever concerned we might lose the trail.
The Merisiers Trail was wide enough for two people to walk side by side at the beginning, and for much of it. The appearance of it lead us to believe that it was likely a newer trail. There was a lot of brush down, and you could still sort of see unnatural edges where the trail had been cut into the ground. All in all, the Merisiers Trail wasn’t a beautiful trail, but the terrain WAS easy to navigate. There weren’t a lot of rocks or roots, and this proved delightful on the way back when I felt tired and my feet were getting lazy.
These trail markers kept us on track.
Elevation Gain Begins… And Never Ends
Right away the trail began to climb up the mountain, so on the way up it felt a little less delightful. We crossed over a few little foot bridges, and found ourselves on a number of switchbacks, designed to make the trail slightly less steep. I’m not convinced it was working.
The Merisiers Trail to the first lookout was only a kilometre, and just before this we came to a trail split where the Rapide-du-Fort trail connected with the trail we were on. There was another set of blue signs posted here, indicating that the lookout was to our left. Another set of blue signs on the way to the lookout let us know that the Katimavik Trail was to our right and the lookout was to our left.
Heading out to the lookout, we stopped to use the outhouse that was there. Fortunately we had brought our own toilet paper, as there was none available.
Never not uphill.
The First Lookout
The lookout was gorgeous! The view was fantastic, as we could see a ton of little islands popping up out of the water. And the lookout was covered, with a picnic table. So just hiking the Merisiers Trail on it’s own and stopping for lunch at this lookout would make for a great hike.
Nonetheless, we carried on! We headed back to the blue signs and in the direction of the Katimavik Trail. This short section of trail looked more like a logging road, but that didn’t last long.
Views from the first lookout.
The Katimavik Trail
After a few hundred metres we came to another trail split with blue signs posted. At this spot there was also a map. We turned left to get onto the Katimavik Trail, which was immediately single file.
The terrain also began to get much more technical- there more rocks and roots we needed to pay attention to. And then, the ropes began! Sections of the trail were steep enough that they could be considered “scrambles,” where one might feel they are best served to also use their hands getting up certain features of the terrain. In these places, ropes were tied to the trees that we could hold onto and pull ourselves up with instead.
After 800 metres on the Katimavik Trail, we had a decision to make- include the longer Sommet Trail, or not?
Naturally, we did, and I’m so glad!
Again at the trail split were blue signs pointing us in the right direction. Here, there was a map posted and we noticed that the distances posted were roughly double what was written on the map we had brought with us. My best guess is that they were worried people reading the map might not also account for the distance they had to hike BACK, so this was their way of helping in hikers’ decision making.
The Summit Trail was definitely the toughest section!
The Sommet Trail
The Sommet Trail was basically right in front of us, and we headed in that direction. For what felt like the first time, we got a bit of a break. The trail was flat for a bit, then began to bring us steeply downhill. Soon though, we had to head back uphill. On this section of trail there were multiple ropes in place, to help with the steep, rocky, scrambly sections. In one section, we actually had to pull ourselves almost entirely using the rope, as we traversed a big boulder set into the earth.
About 500 metres in, we climbed up another tall set of boulders, spotting a sign that said the summit was only 100 metres away. Hooray!
Scrambling on the way to the summit!
Arriving at the summit, we knew we were there because another set of blue signs told us so. The view from the summit was just a few feet off the trail, and it was fantastic. There was a good chunk of open rock face at the summit where you could easily sit and relax, soaking in the views for a while.
It had taken us an hour and fifty minutes to reach the summit.
View from the summit.
The Final Lookout
Getting back on the trail, we turned to our left, destined for the third lookout along the Katimavik Trail. We headed back downhill, finding the terrain on this section of the Summit Trail much easier to traverse.
After hiking a total of 3.1 km, we arrived back at the Katimavik Trail. We turned to our right and hiked another 800 metres out to the third lookout. The terrain on the Katimavik Trail wasn’t exactly EASY, but it was much easier than the first part of the Summit Trail had been.
We spent a lot of our time heading downhill to get to the third lookout, which didn’t have us looking forward to the hike back (those are supposed to be easier!).
The view from this spot was nice, and there were some rocks to sit on and rest at. But, if you only had time to get to two of the lookouts, I would definitely choose the view at the Summit over this one. Not only was the Summit Trail more challenging technically, the view was a lot nicer- and closer to the trailhead!
Alright alright, the third lookout was pretty nice, I GUESS.
Trail Thoughts
After eating and hydrating, we headed back the way we had come. On our way back, we skipped the Summit Trail, opting to take the Katimavik trail all the way back. Not only was this option shorter by about 400 metres, but the terrain was also far less technical. And flatter in sections.
By the time we arrived back at the trailhead, we had hiked a total of 7.4 km. It took us FOREVER. And I’m only exaggerating a bit- it took us almost 5 hours. The terrain, combined with the elevation gain, made for a pretty tough hike!
Even feeling completely worn out, I was so happy we had made the trip for this trail. I hadn’t been on challenging terrain like that in quite some time, and it was an absolute joy to find it only two hours from Ottawa.
Originally, we had planned to hike the Desjardins Trail the next day, but it’s even longer and harder! So now we have an excuse to head back soon, and I can’t wait.
Honestly, what a great trail!
Map and Elevation Gain
Whenever I’m hiking somewhere new, I tend to wonder about who was on, and who took care of that land before me. I’ve enjoyed using this website as a place to start learning more about the Indigenous people whose land I’m on: Native-land.ca.
Map and Elevation gain taken from AllTrails. Please note this elevation chart is for completing the Sommet Trail on the way BACK- we completed it on the way out, and this is the route I would recommend, as it gets the hardest section of trail over earlier.
