Charlevoix

Around four hundred and fifty million years ago a meteorite about two kilometres across struck here, leaving a crater roughly fifty-four kilometres in diameter; the flat farmland of the region sits inside it and the hills around Baie-Saint-Paul are the eroded rim, which is visible from the air and on any relief map. The impact fractured the rock and produced the soil that supports the farms. Charlevoix has drawn painters since the nineteenth century and Baie-Saint-Paul is full of galleries. The region became a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1988, and its farm-to-table food route is among the strongest in Quebec.

History

The region takes its name from Pierre François-Xavier de Charlevoix, a French Jesuit explorer and historian who travelled through it in the 18th century. La Malbaie is known as the first resort area in Canada: as early as 1760 the Scottish noblemen Malcolm Fraser and John Nairne were hosting visitors at their manors there, and for much of its history Charlevoix had a thriving summer colony of wealthy Americans, among them President William Howard Taft (Wikipedia, Charlevoix).

What's there

• The crater rim - hills encircling the farmland, visible as landscape.
• The gallery villages - Baie-Saint-Paul and its long painting tradition.
• The farm route - cheesemakers, cider and producers on a signed circuit.
• The St. Lawrence shore - whales offshore and cliffs along Route 362.

When to go

June to October, with autumn colour in late September and early October the peak season; whales are in the estuary from summer into autumn. Winter brings skiing at Le Massif.

Good to know

The crater is a landform, not a visible bowl from the ground, and needs a map to appreciate. Autumn weekends bring heavy traffic. Accommodation is expensive in season.

Nearby

Hautes-Gorges lies north; Quebec City is southwest.

Key facts