La Mauricie National Park – Hiking on the beautiful Ruisseau-Bouchard Trail

I recently visited La Mauricie National Park for the very first time. Since I only spent one day there, I knew I wouldn’t have time to hike all the trails in this vast park, but I definitely wanted to do some hiking there. I finally opted to hike Ruisseau-Bouchard Trail, accessible via Saint-Jean-des-Piles Entrance.

In fact, my initial plan was to hike Mékinac Trail which runs along the Saint-Maurice River, the one that gives its name to the national park and the entire region. Unfortunately, a portion of Mékinac Trail was closed during my visit, forcing me to change my plans. So I turned to Ruisseau-Bouchard Trail, a 9-kilometre trail, classified as intermediate, and which, in addition, is part of the 75S Challenge, which I am currently undertaking.

There is always something magical about entering a national park for the very first time. I arrived there early on a weekday, and the main park road was completely empty. I went to Rivière-à-la-Pêche Service Lodge, the starting point for several trails, and after consulting the map of the surrounding area, I headed towards Ruisseau-Bouchard Trail, identified by the number 14 and the colour orange.

La Mauricie National Park protects an area of ​​more than 500 square kilometres in the Laurentian mountains, part of the southern Canadian Shield region, north of Shawinigan. There are more than 150 lakes there and Ruisseau-Bouchard Trail is showcasing some of them, in addition to giving a good overview of the flora, fauna and landscape of the national park.

For its first kilometres, the Ruisseau-Bouchard trail follows the same route as two other trails: Lac-Solitaire Trail and Lac-du-Pembina Trail. And from the start, the trail started to climb quite quickly. This surprised me and was a good reminder that I was in a mountainous region.

After this first good climb, the trail offered me a first lookout, with a view of the Saint-Maurice River in the distance. Then the climb continued for a few more metres, until I arrived at another lookout, this time overlooking Lac Solitaire. It was truly beautiful!

This portion is particularly interesting because a burning operation took place in 2018 in this area to help the white pine forest near Lac Solitaire regenerate. The prescribed fire made it possible to eliminate competing species of pines, while helping the germination and growth of seeds. Some interpretive signs explain this method of ecological restoration.

I really liked the contrast between the burned trees, the young green shoots and the deep blue of the lake. I also really liked the many rocky ridges around the lake!

The trail then goes back down towards the forest, while continuing to follow the shore of Lac Solitaire. It was near this place that I crossed the intersection with Lac-du-Pembina Trail (a longer and more challenging trail), which continues its route towards other lakes in the park. I continued following Ruisseau-Bouchard Trail.

The trail passes near a cute shelter on the edge of the lake, before starting to gain elevation again. I once again found myself hiking on rocky ridges for my greatest pleasure. In fact, the further I progressed on this trail, the more enchanted I became. All the elements came together to make it a memorable hike, and I couldn’t stop being amazed by the beauty of the landscapes and how well laid out the trail was.

And my excitation reached its peak when I arrived at the top of another rocky ridge on which there were the famous red chairs, the official emblem of Parks Canada! This place offers a superb view of Lac aux Chevaux. I was completely alone there, hearing only the croaking of frogs and the singing of birds. Perfect moment.

The trail continues to follow Lac aux Chevaux for a few metres, offering numerous views of it, each as spectacular as the last. The trail continued to be rocky, with several ups and downs. My legs were starting to get a little tired, but at the same time, I was really enjoying following a trail offering a good physical challenge of this kind.

After Lac aux Chevaux, the trail goes back down into the forest and crosses the main park road. On the other side of the road, I arrived at the Bouchard Creek, the one that gives its name to the trail. The trail runs along it for almost a kilometre, and although the creek is not very wide, there are some small waterfalls in certain places. Not as impressive as the Swaggin and Bouleau Falls I had seen the day before, but it was still very charming.

After a final good climb, the trail remains flat and easy to follow in its last few metres. I came across a porcupine there, but no other hikers (in fact, I didn’t meet one single hiker on the entire trail). I finally returned to Rivière-à-la-Pêche Service Lodge, a little less than 3 hours after starting my hike.

In total, I hike 9 kilometres, with an elevation gain of 452 metres. And I really fell in love with this trail. A physical hike in a pretty forest, with many viewpoints over a magnificent landscape, cute waterfalls and even a porcupine. It’s hard to beat that! And it makes me want to come back and explore La Mauricie National Park even more one day!

***Ruisseau-Bouchard Loop is part of the 75S Challenge, a hiking challenge managed by Rando Québec. To learn more about the challenge or to follow my progress, visit this page.***