Ange and the frozen fairy tale at Parc des Chutes-de-la-Chaudière

One of the things that surprised me most when we moved to Lévis a few years ago was the number of large urban parks and green spaces throughout the city.

Whether it’s the Parc régional Pointe-De la Martinière, which has nothing to envy the Plains of Abraham with its rolling expanse stretching right down to the river and its splendid view of the Île d’Orléans, or the trails in Parc Valéro, accessible for hiking and mountain biking, a lung in the middle of the industrial sector.

And of course there’s the Parcours des Anses cycle path, and the kilometers of river banks that bring the water’s edge within our reach, with large stretches that don’t run alongside the road and are a unique beauty renewed every season.

Parc St-Laurent is a year-round delight for children, with water games in summer, a skating rink and slides in winter, and a breathtaking view to enjoy the sunset.

The Parc de la Rivière-Etchemin is also an ideal place for hiking, sliding and cross-country skiing in winter, where century-old fir trees stand alongside the surprising ruins of the former abbey of the Cistercian nuns.

In short, we were spoilt for choice in the area and opted to spend a chilly January afternoon at Parc des Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, which, while pleasant in any season, is at its most majestic in winter.

The waterfall, the park’s main attraction, undergoes a complete metamorphosis during the cold season, making the scenery totally magical, not to say disorienting!

The icy walls criss-crossed by rocky peaks give the impression of high mountains, and even the trees are covered in a white frost. A sugar loaf is formed at the foot of the waterfall by the frozen splashes, a reminder that the waterfall loses none of its power beneath its icy shell.