Distance: 5 1/4 miles.
Terrain: Track for the first 2 1/2 miles then rocky trail and boardwalks/stairs.
Refreshments: Visitors centre at the start of the trail has coffee and limited snacks.
During our trip to Canada we were staying at Baie-Saint-Paul in Quebec and looking to do some walking, inland from the town is the Parc national des Grands-Jardins which contains a number of walking trails, of which the Mont du Lac-des-Cygnes Trail was recommended as having good views.
At the trail head is a visitors centre that contains a small information desk, a small shop and some picnic tables. Walking out to the trail there is a meter to purchase hiking tickets for the day (CAD $8.75/adult).
The trail consists of a well maintained gravel path for the majority of the path as it winds steeply up the mountain until it reaches a lake and then changes to a dirt track that has some boardwalk and steps, but also contains some rocks to step over and some large rocks to walk over, most of the final climb to the summit being up wooden steps.
There are a number of information boards along the pat that detail the glacial formation of the valleys these are often located at good viewpoints over the valley.
Once at the summit there is a stunning view out towards the St Lawrence River the ancient meteorite crater that contains Baie-Saint-Paul from a wooden lookout stage.
Again around the summit are a number of information boards, including a board identifying landmarks in the view.
Immediately below the summit is the lake (in the shape of a swan) that give the mountain its name.
For those not wanting to go over the rougher trail at the top of the climb, the walk up to the lake covers most of the distance and is a good walk in itself.
We liked this walk, although the entry fee for the trail caused us some confusion and the trail was reasonably busy, this was a good walk along a lovely trail which gave us good exercise for the day and some good views, additionally some of the trees had started changing colour for the autumn which allowed us a view of what they may look like in a few weeks.
Before our stay in the areas we had difficulty finding information about the trails and walking in the area as there were no guide books, the local tourist board produce a guide which can be picked up in Baie-Saint-Paul information office.
During our trip to Canada we were staying at Baie-Saint-Paul in Quebec and looking to do some walking, inland from the town is the Parc national des Grands-Jardins which contains a number of walking trails, of which the Mont du Lac-des-Cygnes Trail was recommended as having good views.
At the trail head is a visitors centre that contains a small information desk, a small shop and some picnic tables. Walking out to the trail there is a meter to purchase hiking tickets for the day (CAD $8.75/adult).
The trail consists of a well maintained gravel path for the majority of the path as it winds steeply up the mountain until it reaches a lake and then changes to a dirt track that has some boardwalk and steps, but also contains some rocks to step over and some large rocks to walk over, most of the final climb to the summit being up wooden steps.
There are a number of information boards along the pat that detail the glacial formation of the valleys these are often located at good viewpoints over the valley.
Again around the summit are a number of information boards, including a board identifying landmarks in the view.
Immediately below the summit is the lake (in the shape of a swan) that give the mountain its name.For those not wanting to go over the rougher trail at the top of the climb, the walk up to the lake covers most of the distance and is a good walk in itself.
Before our stay in the areas we had difficulty finding information about the trails and walking in the area as there were no guide books, the local tourist board produce a guide which can be picked up in Baie-Saint-Paul information office.
