Things to do in La Mauricie National Park in every season

Quebec’s La Mauricie National Park, spanning 536 square kilometres in the gently rolling Laurentian Mountains, is a natural gem. Its creation in 1970 brought decades of logging, hunting, and invasive species introduction to an end. The landscapes have since been healing in this unique place where Eastern and boreal forests meet. Today, visitors can enjoy many invigorating things to do in La Mauricie National Park.

Framed by the Saint-Maurice and Matawin rivers in Quebec’s Mauricie region, La Mauricie National Park is known for its excellent hiking and paddling opportunities. These include an extensive network of paddle-in backcountry campsites for overnight canoe and kayak excursions. Several of the park’s hiking trails are ranked among the most beautiful in the province.

We’ve gathered information across multiple visits in the summer and fall to compile this guide to La Mauricie National Park. Have questions about planning your own visit to La Mauricie National Park? Join our Road Trips in Canada Facebook community!

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Things to do in La Mauricie National Park in the summer and autumn

At La Mauricie National Park, different sections of the park are open depending on the season. The entire park is open from mid-May until mid-October. Here’s a look at the activities you can enjoy during the late spring, summer, and early autumn.

Try the park’s signature excursion to Waber Falls

La Mauricie National Park is a paradise for hikers and paddlers. One of the park’s top experiences is a day trip to Waber Falls. Start at the Wapizagonke zone, where you can rent a canoe or kayak or put your own into the water. From there, you’ll paddle for 4.6 kilometres and hike another 3 kilometres to reach Waber Falls.

The paddling portion is fairly easy as the lake is mostly sheltered by the surrounding hills. However, there is a narrow channel that connects two basins where you’ll need to portage around some beaver dams. Most canoeists wear water shoes and just lift directly over them. With a kayak, we had to go around on some muddy side paths, which are short but can be pretty gnarly depending on recent weather. (We were very glad we chose a tandem kayak instead of two singles as it made this much easier!)

From the landing beach, it’s a 6-kilometre round trip hike to get to the falls and back. The trail has some exposed rocks and roots, staircases, and steep sections. Generally, it’s gently sloping and very pleasant.

The excursion to Waber Falls takes between six and eight hours. We’re moderately experienced, and it took us seven hours to complete the round trip. Be sure to pack plenty of water as well as a lunch and snacks, dry shoes and socks for hiking, sunscreen and a hat, bug spray in the spring and summer, and all the necessary PPE for the water if you’re arriving with your own boat. (If you’re renting, your safety equipment will be provided for you.)

The trip to Waber Falls is available from roughly Victoria Day weekend until Thanksgiving weekend. We think autumn is the ideal time to go. There are cooler temperatures and far fewer bugs, and the changing leaves are absolutely stunning. Boat rentals are open in the fall between 9:30 AM and 4:30 PM, which is precisely the amount of time you’ll need. Be sure to arrive early so you can enjoy a relaxed pace.

Drive the spectacular parkway

Many people visit La Mauricie National Park just to drive its spectacular parkway. It’s 64 kilometres long and takes just over an hour to travel from one end to the other. This is an especially beautiful drive during the autumn as the park’s mixed forests put on a dazzling display of colour!

The parkway is smooth as glass and offers many gentle curves, making it suitable for vehicles of all kinds. Please note, though, that the speed limit within the park is 50 kilometres per hour. It’s important to respect this as the parkway is a popular route for cyclists, and it’s also possible to encounter wildlife.

Check out the views from the lookouts

Along the parkway, you’ll find many lookouts providing scenic views of the landmarks at La Mauricie National Park. Some are directly adjected to the road, while others require a short hike. Le Passage is the most popular: from its elevated spot above the parkway, it gives a panoramic view of Lake Wapizagonke and the surrounding mountains. (Note this lookout was closed for the 2025 season, and it’s not clear whether that will be extended as of this writing.)

Other lookouts not to miss include Saint-Maurice, which gives a view of the region’s most important river; Vide-Bouteille, with its views of the cliffs on Lake Wapizagonke (and you’ll also find a giant Parks Canada red chair here, which is fun); and Île-aux-Pins, which gives another view of a small island in Lake Wapizagonke a short hike from the road.

Rent a canoe or a kayak and go for a paddle

The excursion to Waber Falls is the most famous in La Mauricie National Park, but you don’t need to commit a full day to getting out on the water. Hourly canoe and kayak rentals are available at the Wapizagonke, Shawenegan, and Lac-Edouard zones. Each one offers a unique paddling experiences that can be enjoyed at your own pace.

With numerous lakeside backcountry campsites, La Mauricie National Park is a wonderful place to try an overnight canoe or kayak excursion. Routes are available for all skill levels, from easy direct paddles to very remote site requiring multiple portages to access. Note that some of the park’s paddle-in campsites have fire pits while open fires are not permitted at others, so be sure to plan appropriately. Check in with park staff to buy backcountry camping permits and verify that you’re adequately prepared before setting out.

Explore hiking in La Mauricie National Park

La Mauricie National Park offers hiking for all skill levels. There are several easy trails that are suitable for families with young kids, including the Familiale, Lac-Étienne, and La Cache trails, as well as several of the connectors between Rivière-à-la-Pêche and the Wabenaki-Andrew zone. (Lac-Étienne and La Cache are also suitable for jogging strollers.)

At the park’s west end, Les Cascades is another easy trail with a smooth paved surface. The 2.4-kilometre loop leads to a lovely series of small waterfalls with shallow pools that are popular for wading.

On the more challenging side, the Deux-Criques trail is one of the top 10 most beautiful hiking trails in Quebec according to La Presse. This challenging full-day hike leads to seven separate scenic lookouts and a waterfall. The mountainous Lac-du-Pimbina Trail with its six lookouts is another challenging hike within the park.

Hit the gravel bike trails

La Mauricie National Park is a beloved destination for cyclists. On top of the 64-kilometre parkway that’s very popular with road cyclists, there are five easy trails, four moderate trails, and two difficult trails within the park where gravel bikes are permitted. This means you can tailor your ride to the experience level of your group and hone your skills on a variety of terrains.

See the park from the air

Technically this experience is not within or managed by La Mauricie National Park. However, the park is its central attraction, so it’s definitely worth suggesting here.

Hydravion Aventure, a seaplane operator in Saint-Étienne-des-Grès just outside Shawinigan, offers aerial tours over La Mauricie National Park. Tours are available from May to October, and the Park Tour include a flyover of the park as well as Shawinigan and its two generating stations. We tried this in early October and highly recommend autumn as the changing leaves make the views truly spectacular!

Things to do in La Mauricie National Park in winter

Beginning in mid-October, La Mauricie National Park begins staged partial closures. Most of the parkway shuts down after Thanksgiving weekend, including the Wapizagonke and Mistagance zones and campgrounds. By the end of October, only the section between the Saint-Jean-des-Piles entrance and the Rivière-à-la-Pêche campground remains open, and most park services are shut down.

During the winter months, the Rivière-à-la-Pêche service centre is open from December to March. From here, visitors can enjoy more than 50 kilometres of hiking trails and more than 70 kilometres of cross-country skiing trails, including equipment rentals and access to shelters along the routes with wood-burning fireplaces. Winter camping is also available, from backcountry tent sites to vanlife parking and oTENTik semi-permanent camping structures.

We can’t wait to have a chance to visit the park during the winter. Once we do, we’ll update this section with additional information.

Camping in La Mauricie National Park

La Mauricie National Park has extensive camping options. There are 440 unserviced campsites (including 29 walk-in sites), 134 electrical campsites, 25 oTENTik semi-permanent camping structures, two reservable cabins, and one group campsite.

La Mauricie National Park has three main campgrounds: Rivière-à-la-Pêche, Wapizagonke, and Mistagance. Rivière-à-la-Pêche is the largest and is close to the park’s eastern entrance at Saint-Jean-des-Piles, while Mistagance is smaller and is close to the western Saint-Mathieu entrance. Both these campgrounds have unserviced and electrical sites as well as oTENTiks. The Wapizagonke campground is deeper within the park and offers unserviced sites only, including one loop of walk-in campsites.

Curious about car camping? Here’s how to camp comfortably in your SUV >

At Saint-Mathieu, the La Clairière group campsite can be reserved for between 15 and 70 people.

The park also has 40 paddle-in backcountry campsites accessible by canoe or kayak during the summer months. Some sites have fire pits, and some are large enough to accommodate families. All sites require a permit, which can be purchased from park staff before you set out. Some of these sites are also accessible from the park’s hiking and cross-country skiing trails, including during the winter months.

Two reservable cabins are available at the park’s Saint-Jean-des-Piles entrance. These cabins are offered for winter camping along with oTENTiks and walk-in sites in the C loop at Rivière-à-la-Pêche campground. Winter vanlife camping is also available in the parking lot at the Rivière-à-la-Pêche service centre.

Hotels near La Mauricie National Park

If you love enjoying nature during the day and relaxing in comfort during the evenings, consider a stay at Le 2800 du Parc. This beautiful accommodation is located less than a kilometre from the Saint-Jean-des-Piles entrance to La Mauricie National Park. It offers eight tiny cabins for two people, four larger cabins that sleep six, three hotel-style rooms, and a 10-room chalet that can accommodate up to 16 guests.

Le 2800 du Parc also has an excellent on-site bar and restaurant. While thoroughly enjoying our stay in one of the larger cabins, we ate two great meals at the restaurant. The nachos come slathered in cheese and are delicious! If you’d prefer to prepare your own meals, each accommodation comes with a kitchen or kitchenette with cookware and flatware, a fridge, a microwave, and a stove or hot plate.

The park has one more unique accommodation offering. Domaine Wabenaki-Andrew, operated by Aventure eco-parc Mauricie, includes two historic buildings from the Laurentian Club, one of the park’s former hunting and fishing clubs. Before the park was created, this club attracted wealthy visitors from across North America, including the Kennedy family. Today, the buildings have been restored and offer a rustic and isolated experience.

Domaine Wabenaki-Andrew is not accessible by road. Visitors need to hike, bike or paddle from across the park or via the Saint-Gérard entrance, which is not connected to the main parkway. A shuttle or baggage delivery service is offered year-round for a fee.  

We haven’t yet had a chance to stay at Domaine Wabenaki-Andrew, but we’ll add more information to this article once we do.

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