by Jennifer McRobert and Susan Decelles

I bought my cottage at lac Gauvreau in 2010 – one year after the sale of our family cottage at lac Tremblant. Since then, I have canoed around lac Gauvreau many, many times. As the seasons unfolded, and I paddled round and round the lake, I noticed that I was finding it hard to get a sense of place. The story that always came to mind was that lac Gauvreau had faced environmental challenges. My own experience of growing up at lac Tremblant was so rich and varied that I thought – there must be something more to lac Gauvreau?!

I decided to find out what that was...

Jennifer

Note: The stories retold below represent an “oral history”. As such, they derive from people’s memories. No attempt has been made to verify facts, check spelling, etc.!

Lac Gauvreau is located in the heart of the Outaouais region, in the La Peche municipality and 37 Km north of Ottawa. Here are some of the lake's geographical and physical characteristics:

• Coordinates: 45;39;49N /by 076;12;13 /W
• Surface area: 0.83 Km2
• Drainage Basin: 48.4 Km2
• Max. depth: 23.4 m
• Major inflow: Parent Creek (12.6 km)
• Outflow is the La Peche river, which itself flows to the Gatineau River