A day in La Petite-Nation from Mont-Tremblant

If you're in Tremblant, you see the mountain every day. What you don't see is Tremblant from a distance. On a clear day, from the top of the tower in the Montagnes Noires in Ripon, it's sitting there on the horizon. That's our main pitch for heading south on Route 323.

The other pitch: an hour's drive and you're somewhere you can park wherever you like, the coffee comes from a little village spot, and your picnic comes from a bakery and a butcher we know by name.

The day is a loop: south on Route 323, west on the 315, a swing past Lac Simon, and back north the way you came. Short hops between stops, one real hike in the middle, and a lunch you carry up the mountain yourself.

Drive times are calculated, then rounded. They're approximate.

8:30 a.m. · Leave Mont-Tremblant village

Drive: ~1 hr (about 55 km), montée Ryan, a short stretch of Route 117, then about forty kilometres south on Route 323 to Namur.

9:30 a.m. · Coffee in Namur

Time here: 30 min

Kokocafé on Route 315 is a small takeout spot with organic fair-trade coffee, sandwiches and ready meals, open every day. With kids in the car, the Jardin de la relève in the village park has cabin sculptures made by artists in 2013. Ten minutes there and everyone's awake.

Drive: ~15 min (12 km), west on Route 315.

10:15 a.m. · Chénéville, for the picnic basket

Time here: 20 min

Two stops on rue Principale in Chénéville. Boulangerie Nouvelle-France, in the grey wooden house with the porch, reopened in April 2026 under new owners: croissants, chocolatines, fougasse and bread. Then Boucherie Les Produits David for pâtés, tourtières and the makings of a serious sandwich. We're regulars at both, for the record.

Drive: ~25 min (18 km), on Route 315 to chemin de la Montagne-Noire.

11 a.m. · The Montagnes Noires and lunch

Time here: 2 hrs 30 min

Parc des Montagnes Noires covers 800 acres of hills above Ripon. You hike up Mont Grand-Pic, 426 metres. Allow about two hours return with stops.

At the lookout there's a covered shelter with picnic tables. That's where you eat. Save the 12-metre observation tower for dessert: the view goes all the way around, and that's where you look for Tremblant.

Parking is paid, dogs are allowed, and the park is open every day.

Drive: ~10 min (7 km), on Route 315.

1:40 p.m. · Montpellier, at Faubert's

Time here: 30 min

Marché Faubert on rue Principale in Montpellier is the village grocery with a butcher counter, prepared food, a bakery and an SAQ outlet under one roof. In the reviews, it's the homemade pies people keep mentioning. We shop there, so we're not neutral, but take one back to Tremblant.

Drive: ~45 min to 1 hr, via Route 315 and chemin du Tour-du-Lac.

3:15 p.m. · Belvédère Denis-Papin

Time here: 30 min

The Belvédère Denis-Papin, near 2000 chemin du Tour-du-Lac in Lac-Simon, looks out over all of Lac Simon from above Baie Creuse. Free. Late-afternoon sun does the rest.

Drive: ~1 hr 30 min (about 80 km), via Tour-du-Lac, Route 315 and Route 323 north.

5:15 p.m. · Back in Tremblant

Just in time to heat up the tourtière.

Eat at the lookout, climb the tower after. The wind on a 12-metre tower has its own ideas about what makes a comfortable lunch.

What to know

• Distance: about 190 km for the full loop. A little over 4 hours of driving, counting generously for chemin du Tour-du-Lac.
• Times are approximate: lake roads are slower than your phone thinks.
• Hunting season: in October and November, check which trails are open before you go. Some trails in the region close in part.
• Shop hours: check before you leave, especially for the café and bakery on weekends.
• Picnic: there are tables in the shelter at the lookout. Bring water and pack your garbage back down.
• Gas: the Ultramar in Chénéville is right on your way in.
• For fall colours: our guide to where to see fall colours has more lookouts and drives.

NamurChénévilleRiponMontpellierLac-Simon

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