The camping resort offers canvas-and-wood Trappeur tents, which sleep up to five and are equipped with a woodstove, full bathroom and kitchenette with a sink.Pierre Renucci/Supplied
The moment the canoe flipped, I wondered if the whole camping trip had been a mistake.
Our family had been enjoying an an idyllic moment on Trout Lake in the Laurentian Mountains in Quebec. We had the entire lake to ourselves, with nothing but gentle, lapping waves and sky-high trees around us. Our two kids, Sam, 9, and Oliver, 12, played on their own paddleboards nearby while my husband, Wil, and I paddled a canoe. Suddenly, I noticed we were headed straight for Sam’s board. I paddled furiously to turn the canoe away. But I also leaned too far into the turn – and we plunged into the water.
Just as suddenly, I was reminded why I never liked camping. I didn’t grow up in an outdoorsy family, and while I enjoy easy excursions into nature, I’d rather to retreat to my bed, my shower and my Netflix at the end of the day.
My kids, though, had been begging to try it for a few years.
What convinced me to give it a go was learning about Huttopia Les Deux Lacs Laurentides in Mont Blanc, Que. The camping resort opened last summer and is about a six-hour drive from where we live in Toronto (or 90 minutes northwest of Montreal), nestled in the Laurentian Mountains and straddled by two lakes.
But we would not be roughing it in any ordinary tent here. Instead, we’d stay in a “Trappeur” – a 425-square-foot canvas-and-wood tent equipped with two “bedrooms” (more like alcoves), a woodstove, full bathroom, kitchenette with a sink and, on the deck, a barbecue. Each tent also has a private fire pit steps from the lake.
The resort opened last summer and is nestled in the Laurentian Mountains.Pierre Renucci/Supplied
We’d also have access to kayak, paddleboard and canoe rentals and a café churning out wood-oven pizzas, crepes, smoothies and lattes. Plus, Huttopia offers organized activities such as seminars on forest plant and animal life, arts and crafts for kids, and yoga sessions. (Some activities are only in French, but there was hardly a shortage of things to do for anglophones like us.)
This, I thought, was my kind of camping. And up until that moment when I dunked the canoe, we’d all been having a great time.
On our first morning, I’d woken before anyone else and snuck out to the main lodge. After grabbing a latte, I took a seat in an Adirondack chair near the lake. Soon my family of slowpokes showed up and after a spirited game of ping-pong nearby, my husband and Oliver headed to Mont Tremblant, a 30-minute drive, for live bait for fishing, while Sam and I stayed behind for swimming and kayaking.
Renting a kayak for an hour was as easy as checking in with staff at the lodge to grab paddles and life jackets and choosing our boat from the ones available on the beach. Once we were out on the water, we stopped paddling for a moment, noticing the stillness of the lake and surrounding forest. “It’s beautiful here,” Sam said thoughtfully. An insightful observation for my rambunctious boy, I noted.
Visitors can enjoy resting in Adirondack chairs or playing spirited games of ping-pong.Rasha Mourtada/The Globe and Mail
Back on shore, we went for a swim but the natural shoreline means you’ll want to wear water shoes, and the abundance of weeds and rocks kept our dip short. When Wil and Oliver returned, we enjoyed a lunch of crepes at the lodge before giving fishing a try off the dock. About half an hour in, Oliver felt a tug – and reeled in a wee smallmouth bass. We all cheered and he quickly released it back into the water.
“Camping is so fun,” declared my fisherman. I couldn’t help but agree. Maybe this glamping thing wasn’t so bad after all.
That’s when we decided to hit the water again and half an hour later, I was questioning all my choices.
We tried to swim our capsized canoe the couple hundred feet back to the dock, but with the current working against us, we went nowhere quickly. Instead, we pushed it to the closest shore of big, jagged rocks. In the meantime, Sam went back for help. Soon, we spotted general manager Andrea Rech on his way over in a kayak.
Oliver, left, and Sam at Lake Bonnet.Rasha Mourtada/The Globe and Mail
After assuring us with a smile that “this isn’t the first time this has happened,” Rech climbed onto the rocks and managed to lift the canoe and dump out all the water. Then, he switched vessels with us. A few minutes later, we were back on land in the main lodge. I explained to Rech I’d never really enjoyed camping in the past, but Huttopia’s amenities, including, apparently, water rescue, had convinced me to give it a try. “That’s exactly what we are!” he said. “A place where you can come and just try.”
After a rainy morning the next day, we headed to Sentier de cimes Laurentides, about a 30-minute drive from Huttopia. The main attraction here is a boardwalk winding through the treetops about seven metres off the ground. Visitors can stroll the 1.5-kilometre path, which leads you to a 40-metre-tall tower. The boardwalk then winds its way around the tower to the very top, where visitors can jump on a suspended net and, of course, take in the gorgeous views.
The walk through the treetops at Sentier des cimes Laurentides offers stunning views and culminates at the top of a 40-metre tower.Supplied
The walk through the trees was impressive enough. But we’d also come to watch Là-Haut, a circus show performed on a lower net in the centre of the tower. Four artists, including an aerial silk artist and slackliner, swooped and swooshed through the air to the crowd’s oohs and aahs. At the end, we all ascended to the top of the tower to watch the spectacular sunset.
The next morning, it was time to head home. Sam stopped at the the ping-pong table one last time, where he was joined by a family with two little girls. They clumsily tried to hit the ball toward him until their dad, Simon Yuan, took over and played a game with him.
Yuan and his wife, Fannie Barrette, are camping pros, having roughed it with their two daughters, 3 and 5, on past trips, with no access to water or electricity. This was their first time at Huttopia, where they were won over by the “mix of hotel and wilderness,” said Yuan.
When I asked if the Montrealers would go back to regular camping after this, Yuan said yes, but Barrette jokingly shook her head behind him.
After a few nights enjoying the Laurentian outdoors in relative comfort, I can confidently say she’s onto something.
Two lakes straddle the Huttopia Laurentides location.Pierre Renucci/Supplied
If you go
Huttopia has locations in Quebec (the Laurentians and Sutton), France, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, Netherlands and the U.S. and offers tents both with or without electricity and bathrooms, as well as fully equipped chalets, which sleep up to six. Some locations are available to book through the winter. Trappeur tents at Huttopia Les Deux Lacs Laurentides sleep up to five and start at $173 a night. They are available to book from mid-May to mid-October (with a two-night minimum booking during the summer); chalets are available through the winter. Canoe, kayak and paddleboards are available to rent for $20 an hour. canada-usa.huttopia.com
Stop in for the stunning treetop views at the nearby Sentier des cimes Laurentides. Be sure to try the 60-metre corkscrew slide. Entry to the boardwalk and the Là-Haut circus show is $20.90 for kids 6 to 17 and $33.90 for adults. 737 Rue de la Pisciculture, Mont-Blanc treetop-walks.com/laurentides/en-ca/
The writer was a guest of Huttopia and Tourisme Laurentides, which did not review or approve this article. Stories are based on merit; The Globe does not guarantee coverage.
