Gault Nature Reserve

Just a short drive from Montreal in Mont Saint Hilaire, McGill’s Gault Nature Reserve protects 1000 hectares of beautiful primeval forest. Of all the Monteregian Hills that rise so prominently from the floor of the St. Lawrence River Valley, Mont St. Hilaire (414 m) is the least disturbed by human activity and the richest in terms of natural history and cultural interest.

The panoramic landscape is ideal for teaching, university research, or escaping from the city to stroll through nature. It inspired artists Ozias Leduc and Paul Émile Borduas (whose work you can see in the Musée d’art de Mont-Saint-Hilaire), and in 1978 it became the first Canadian site in the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve program.

The park’s 25 km of wooded trails (including views of the surrounding countryside and the 32-hectare Lac Hertel) are open to the public 365 days a year.

For more information visit the Gault Nature Reserve website.