Chemin de l’Anse, the most scenic regional route category

Those living in the region may have driven the short stretch of road that was voted as the most scenic in Les 7 Merveilles de Vaudreuil-Soulanges contest dozens of times without really looking around to see what all the fuss is about.

Indeed, when driving along chemin de l'Anse in Vaudreuil-Dorion, one must keep their eyes on the road since the narrow paved street with one driving lane in either direction is bordered by houses on one side and a steep, guardrail-free drop to the Lake of Two Mountains, on the other.

But if you do take your eyes off the road, the view is spectacular and there is usually plenty to see and do.

Chemin de l'Anse curves inward toward the land, creating a hollow as it hugs the bay of the Lake of Two Mountains where it meets the Ottawa River.

Chemin de l'Anse is a short stretch of road that relinquishes its name to Main Road at the Hudson border.

The portion of road that is chemin de l'Anse, however, does offer plenty.

Twice a week an area boating club stages sailing races during the summer which spectators can stop and see, while fishermen, windsurfers, kayakers and sports enthusiasts take to the water for dozens of other nautical endeavours during moderate weather.

In the winter, the frozen waters bordering chemin de l'Anse are transformed into a shanty town for countless ice-fishermen who set up hundreds of huts across the frozen expanse.

The town on the ice almost seems to defy logic as it snubs its nose at global warming rumours.

Also in winter, equally brave drivers bring their cars onto the ice, as does an entire snack-bar trailer operation.

In the meantime paraskiing enthusiasts strap on skies and parachutes and glide wherever the wind will take them.

With so much to see, a drive along the road in summer or winter is usually quite entertaining.

The land side of chemin de l'Anse is equally alluring. Honey producer Claude Vinet runs his farm and honey business from a farm situated along the street where visitors can stop for fresh honey products.

Meanwhile, 186, chemin de l’Anse is the former home of renowned Quebec chansonnier Félix Leclerc.

Leclerc, who died in 1988, began his career at the small farmhouse, composing many of his songs and poems there.

Leclerc lived in the home for more than a decade in the 1960s before leaving for France where he achieved international fame.

Recently, the Societé de sauvegarde de la mémoire de Félix Leclerc, which purchased the home in 2006, revealed a three-phase plan to restore the farmhouse into a living museum and art centre that would celebrate and preserve Leclerc’s home.

The effort has met opposition however, as some chemin de l’Anse neighbours say the small area cannot accommodate groups of visitors.

Whatever the draw, the scenic stretch of Vaudreuil-Dorion road usually does not disappoint.