Canyon Sainte-Anne

The Sainte-Anne-du-Nord river drops seventy-four metres into a narrow gorge cut through Precambrian granite, and the site is arranged around getting close to it: three suspension bridges cross the canyon at different levels, the highest about sixty metres above the water, with staircases and platforms down the walls. The rock is around one and a quarter billion years old. Potholes ground into the granite by trapped stones are visible along the walls. A via ferrata and zipline operate for those wanting more. The falls are strongest in spring melt and after rain, and thin considerably by late summer.

History

Loggers used the Sainte-Anne-du-Nord river early in the 20th century, and in the summer of 1965 a former logger told Jean-Marie McNicoll how to reach its falls, which he found by making his way through the woods. Two years later he and his brother Laurent leased the riverbanks from Hydro-Québec and bought the wooded land between Route 138 and the river, cleared a road, and welcomed their first visitors on 14 July 1973 (Wikipedia, Canyon Sainte-Anne).

The landscape

• The seventy-four metre fall - the main drop into the granite gorge.
• The three bridges - suspension crossings at different heights over the canyon.
• The potholes - cylindrical hollows ground into the granite walls.
• The billion-year rock - Precambrian granite exposed through the gorge.

When to go

May to October; the site closes for winter. Spring melt in May gives the strongest flow and by August it can be much reduced. Autumn colour in the gorge is good.

Before you go

Closed roughly November to April. Flow drops noticeably in late summer. The route involves many stairs and the bridges move underfoot.

Nearby

Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré lies west; Mont-Sainte-Anne is close.

Key facts