Boat launches and marinas in La Petite-Nation, ramp by ramp

Backing a trailer down a ramp you've never seen, on a Saturday morning, with three pickups idling behind you, is a sport of its own. The least you can do is know where the ramp is, whether it costs anything, and if you need to wash the boat first. Here's the rundown, body of water by body of water.

A heads-up: some of the launches below come from the regional launch map and haven't been confirmed by a second source. We flag those. For them, a quick call to the town office before you leave is never wasted.

Lac Simon

The region's big lake has three ways in, and one rule nobody argues with: boat washing is mandatory before every launch.

The Lac-Simon public ramp, 850, chemin du Tour-du-Lac. In 2026 it's $10 a launch, or a $25 annual sticker for residents. The season runs May 8 to October 12, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and until 9 p.m. from June 13 to August 7. The wash station is at 105, chemin du Parc. Info: 819 428-1345.

Location Sport Duhamel, 800, chemin du Tour-du-Lac in Duhamel, next to the Centre touristique beach. This is the visitor access on the Duhamel side. They also rent pontoons, boats, personal watercraft, canoes and kayaks. Phone 819 428-9203, cell 819 743-3062.

Centre nautique Lac Simon, 111, rue Principale in Chénéville, at the south end of the lake. Docking, gas and rentals: fishing boats, motor boats, pontoons, kayaks, pedal boats. This is where you fill up without pulling the boat.

On the Duhamel side the rules are spelled out: motorboats must use a public or commercial ramp, washing is mandatory, and boats over 30 feet are banned on Lac Simon. There's also a municipal launch on chemin de la Grande-Baie, to the north, shown on the regional map. Check the sticker and access rules with the town office, 819 428-7100, ext. 1601.

For service and winter storage, Services Récréatifs St-Onge in Lac-Simon sells and services boats, pontoons and motors, and does storage. In Duhamel, C.L. Outaouais sells parts, accessories and docks, and stores boats too. No boat but itching for a Sea-Doo? Biffrentals Aventure rents them on Lac Simon from mid-June to September.

Val-des-Bois: the Lièvre and two lakes

Val-des-Bois might be the best-equipped village for boaters, and it thought about washing.

• Lièvre River launch, on Route 307. From here you can run between the Rapides-des-Cèdres dam and the High Falls dam.
• Free wash station, on chemin Legris, a stone's throw away. Free. No excuses.
• Lac de l'Argile launch, chemin de la Montagne. For lake trout, bass and pike.
• Lac Vert launch, chemin O.-Prévost. A small ramp for canoes, kayaks and pedal boats. No gas motors on this lake.

Bowman and Notre-Dame-de-la-Salette

Up and down the Lièvre, a few more launches appear on the regional map without a second source:

• The Notre-Dame-de-la-Salette launch along the 309. The town itself mentions a municipal park and boat launch on the Lièvre.
• The Route 307 dock and launch, Bowman side.
• The Bowman public launch, chemin du Poisson-Blanc. According to the town, there's a ramp and dock for residents on Lac du Poisson Blanc.

Pourvoirie de la Lièvre on the 307 has its own ramp for guests and rents canoes, kayaks and motor boats in summer.

Boileau

The Lac au Loup ramp on chemin du Lac-au-Loup is municipal. Ask the Boileau town office about access: 819 687-3436.

The Ottawa River

Down at the bottom of the MRC, the Ottawa is wide and the facilities match.

• Papineauville: the public dock on rue Henri-Bourassa, on Baie de la Pentecôte, is free. Easiest place to drop a tinner in at this end of the MRC. The municipal marina is right there too; for slips and rates, call the town at 819 427-5511.
• Montebello: the municipal marina and campground at 101, rue Laurier has 58 boat slips and 30 campsites, with 30-amp power and water at the docks. Phone 819 921-6225. Down rue Notre-Dame, the Château Montebello marina rents kayaks, canoes and paddleboards.
• Fassett: Fassett Marine at 106, rue Principale does marina, rentals, sales, parts and winterizing. Open Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The town also mentions a free municipal dock; the regional map shows a launch at the end of rue Millette.
• Thurso: no ramp in our data, but a fishing pier built just for casting a line, May to October.

Where your boat stays home

• On Lac de la Ferme in Duhamel, motorboats aren't allowed.
• At Kenauk Nature, no personal boats at all.
• On Lac Preston in the wildlife reserve, 9.9 hp max.

Why all the washing

Wash the boat and trailer even if you're coming from a lake ten minutes away. That's how a clean lake stays clean.

Eurasian watermilfoil, an invasive plant, hitches rides from lake to lake on hulls and trailers. Several lake associations here spend their summers watching for it and fighting it. We wrote about them in our lake associations piece. Two minutes at the wash station is the least we owe them.

Once you're on the water, our lake-by-lake fishing guide takes it from there.

Lac-SimonDuhamelChénévilleVal-des-BoisNotre-Dame-de-la-SaletteBowmanBoileauPapineauvilleMontebelloFassettThurso

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