Some people are convinced that in order to get away from it all and take full advantage of Mother Nature, they have to go to the Vauvert Devil.
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In Saint-Alexis-des-Monts, less than 140 km from Montreal, we discover a huge area specially designed to make customers feel out of place and play outside.
By the time he was in his twenties, Gaston Pellerin was a lumberjack and his business was booming. In the early 1990s, his family acquired a vast 6,800 hectare estate bordering the Lanaudière and Mauricie regions. At the time, Gaston had a completely insane dream to leave his company and start a new full-time adventure: clearing forests, constructing roads and buildings to start his own outfitter that would be different from what was already on the market . In 1995 the Lac Blanc outfitter was founded and welcomed its first customers.
infrastructure
Gaston is now 66 years old and still has a head full of projects. Fortunately, he can count on the help of his sons Georges and Charles, who have supported him for almost a quarter of a century. The latter gradually take over the management of the company in order to ensure its future viability. “Of course, none of this would be possible without the support and commitment of our experienced team of 60 employees,” emphasizes Gaston.
In the last 15 years I have visited this place 4 times. Given the various achievements, it would be far too complicated and tedious to list them in chronological order. For example, the Pellerins had the 3.5 km long forest roads paved so that they are easily passable to facilitate access to the site.
As far as accommodation goes, there are now 12 fully serviced five-star chalets that can sleep more than 10 guests, plus three others that are a little more rustic. More than 40 people can comfortably stay in the main building at Lac Blanc.
Crowning it all is undoubtedly the five-tree dining room, which seats 140 gourmets and is considered one of the best restaurants in the area.
activities
There is also a 12.2 meter heated indoor pool, spa and sauna. It is also possible to go on seaplane or helicopter flights, shoot clay pigeons, ride on a pontoon, canoe, kayak, pedal boat, rabaska, paddle board, ride side by side on guided hikes and much more. Guests can also play volleyball or iron, swim at the beach, enjoy a beach lunch, discover the world of trapping, the habitat of beavers, bears, raccoons and other mammals, life around the bog and mushroom picking. In winter, the site turns into a giant snowmobile squadron. Guests can enjoy ice fishing, snowshoeing, dog sledding and more. There is even an ice rink.
Let’s talk about fish
The most abundant species is the sea trout and when we say “abundant”, imagine that the Lac Blanc team enriches its 10 lakes by stocking more than 100,000 sea trout every year. These 25 to 35 cm (10 to 14 in) long arctic char are found in lakes the size of a football pitch or two, with the largest, the Vacances, covering an area of about eight football pitches. “With a somewhat quirky slogan like ours, which dictates that the Lac Blanc outfitter is constantly biting, we have no choice but to fill our waters massively enough to keep visitors happy,” supports Georges Pellerin.
The various popular spooning techniques like Lake Clear Wabbler, Williams Wabler or W55 Lite version, Flasher, Toronto Wobbler and others with leader and worm usually pay off as expected. With small rubber lures mounted on an ultra-light jig head, such as the Micro Nymph, the Mister Twister Micro Craw, the Atomic Teaser or the Micro Tube Tri-Color, you can also fool the specimens you are aiming for. “Whether we fish for a day or stay, more than 95% of our customers leave with their quota of 10 trout,” assure the owners.
pallets
If you want to go head-to-head with beautiful large speckles ranging in weight from 900g to 2.25kg (2 to 5lb), you can reserve a four-hour block at Lake Théo for an additional fee. Each license holder can catch two big fish from it.
The baits mentioned in the previous paragraph, as well as the softbaits mounted on lightweight jigheads such as the Sassy Stingum, the Bobby Garland Baby Shad, the Vie Shad, the Meeny and many others are ideal for achieving your goals.
beautiful trophies
Roche Lake may be tiny, but it holds big surprises for those who swim with lures, spinners and flies. To the delight of guests, who pay an additional fee, the managers introduce 3,500 rainbow trout annually, ranging in weight from 1.35 to 4.5 kg (3 to 10 lb).
During our stay in the first week of May, despite rainy conditions and a cold front, it only took a few minutes to hit our limit of two beautiful Big Battlers per guide. These monsters performed breathtaking acrobatic leaps.
Getting started
Newcomers or those who don’t have equipment can rent it on site.
They also have the opportunity to enlist the services of a guide who will support them and teach them all the basics of collecting.
To find out more about this outfitter, located 90 minutes from Montreal, call 819 265-4242 or visit their website pourvoirielacblanc.com.
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