Riviere-du-Loup

According to local legend, Riviere-du-Loup owes its name to the sea lions, or loupe marine, that once frequented the mouth of the river. Other tales suggest that it was named after the French ship Le Loup, which was stranded at the mouth of the river around 1660. 

The area is noted for its eight beautiful waterfalls (yeah! waterfalls!); the largest, and most picturesque, is located right in the center of town.

At 100 feet, this is a noisy and most impressive falls in a beautiful location. The town has harnessed the falls so you can see the dam at the top of the falls that generates hydro.

Downstream from the falls. The colorful trees would show up better if the sun was shining.

There is a huge park across from the falls that has been developed into a series of trails. We started out on the red trail, #1, which makes a big circle. When we got to the top, we then took the blue trail back to the parking lot.

At the beginning of the trails was this sculpture garden. Sculptor Robert Roussil was born in Montreal in 1925 and died in Tourrettes-sur-Loup, France, in 2013. According to the sign, "The monumental sculptures for which he is best known celebrate the regeneration of life.... Their elementary shapes give them a timeless character in the surrounding nature. Enigmatic, like mythical beings they impose their evocative presence and constitute an area open to all interpretations."

This tree was adjacent to the river and has been subject to some pretty severe erosion. Maybe you can  tell from the picture that you can see right through the root system.

Across the river were these beautiful trees. Again, sunshine would have helped.

An open part on the trail and a luminous tree.

These leaves were spectacular; green on the inside and red around the edges.

Another two falls (look carefully to see the one on the right behind the yellow tree). There was an information sign that said the the river has a long history of being harnessed for power. It said the the mill that the seigneur built was powered by a dam on the river.

Another Robert Roussil sculpture by the parking lot. The park and hiking trails are beyond.

These hydrangeas are in the campground. I've been meaning to take a picture of hydrangea bushes for the past couple of weeks. Here in Canada, they tend to the pink; I'm used to seeing the blue in Rhode Island. These are particularly pink. Often they are white with just tinges of pink.

The is the attraction that is directly across from the RV park and our curbside bedroom window has this view. Called Noel au Chateau, it was inspired by the Cinderella Castle at Disney's Magic Kingdom Park in Florida. It apparently is quite nice and houses a variety of Christmas decorations. Highlights include a collection of miniature lighted houses, figurines depicting international holiday traditions, an assortment of decorated Christmas trees, and ornate Nativity sets from around the world. However, we just couldn't bring ourselves to visit. Maybe in two months?