We left our campground in St Jean Baptiste with Barb’s sister J following behind in her SUV. Our first stop North Hatley, considered by the locals as one of the prettiest village in Quebec. While nice, we have driven through and stayed at multiple nice spots through-out this trip. North Hatley does have a great Saturday outdoor market which we visited and purchased some unique cucumbers, black radish and carrots. In to town we went walking along Lake Massawippi where lots of folks were fishing, kayaking and paddling. We visited some shops, including Hatley, and ate lunch at a newly renovated pub called Pilsen. The jerk chicken burger platter was delish!
Days later we ate the spiny cucumber and found it to be strong tasting and a little bitter. Best cut up small within a salad for extra flavour. The black radish is mild and delicious as a snack or in a salad.
From North Hatley we drove to Compton where we set up for 3 nights at Camping Compton, an incredibly picturesque park right in town where we could walk to the grocery store and restaurants. After settling in we once again jumped in J’s SUV and began touring.
Fromagerie La Station, just outside Compton, is a beautiful cheese farm and shop. We had a great tasting of 7 different cheeses and settled on aged Hatley, Alfred le Fermier and Chemin du Brûlé. We also bought some rabbit, duck and boar spreads along with honey which has cheese pairing recommendations. Very neat! We would highly recommend a visit to this cheese shop.
Off to Coaticook to a bee and honey farm called Miel pur Delice. Another excellent tasting of 5 honeys from different seasons; raspberry, milkweed, dandelion, clover and buckwheat. Our favs; clover and buckwheat so some more purchases.
Coaticook is known for its incredible ice cream which is also sold in grocery stores all over Quebec. We visited the dairy also known for its cheese and purchased several hard goat cheeses. Yum!
Coaticook is also known for its Gorge Park housing the longest suspension bridge in North America. In the evenings after dark they have an incredible light show called ‘Lumina Foresta’ as you walk the 2.6 km loop.
Several visits to great farm markets for more local produce; corn, more cheese, red squash (which neither of us have ever eaten), apple pie, and wine. A stop at a Maple farm for some creative poutine. We tired the ham as well as the bbq shredded pork which was the clear winner!
No tour is ever complete without a stop at the local covered bridge Drouin from 1886.
A full day of great sightseeing. We returned to our RV. J had to leave and we sat outside enjoying the beautiful rolling hills and countryside until it was time for dinner where we enjoyed some of our great local purchases; Mexican pie and spiny cucumber.
