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For more than a month Stéphane has been secretly preparing a big surprise for Cassandre: the arrival of her sister and brother-in-law. Tonight he told her he was working overtime. In fact, after work he picks up a car rented from a private owner and races to the airport, just in time to see Val and Nico appear. They've come prepared for the Canadian cold, in good coats; they climb into the car and we go over the plan. Stéphane will go in first, they'll wait two minutes, then knock on the door. Two loud knocks ring out on the wood. Cass gets up with a determined step, convinced it's the neighbour coming to complain about the music.
As Cassandre often uses Stéph's phone, newer than hers, he isn't entirely sure she hasn't stumbled on the surprise: a message from Val, a car booking in the app… But when she opens the door, her incredulous face gives him the answer. Bet won. Cass is so stunned she has to lean against the wall. She'll explain later that her brain took a while to accept that it really was her sister, who lives in Leuville-sur-Orge, knocking at her door in the Hochelaga neighbourhood of Montreal, Canada. The reunion is warm, and the four of us have a joyful dinner.
14 March
Since we have company and the car for the whole weekend, we set off to discover the area around the island of Montreal. A little over an hour's drive away, Yamaska National Park opens its paths to hikers and the curious. Created around the Choinière reservoir, an artificial lake made in 1977 to supply the town of Granby below, it is home to some three hundred species of fish, birds and mammals. On this March Saturday the trails are still snowy, and apart from a few squirrels nothing disturbs the peace. True to their reputation, the trails are very poorly marked: we end up lost in a thicket where the soft late-winter ice cracks under our feet. Wiser to turn back. Back on the main road we find the right route, nowhere near where the signs told us to turn. No matter: we have a great time enjoying the last of the snow.
Val and Nico are curious to see what a Quebec ski resort looks like. Bromont is only twenty kilometres away, so we pop over. The mountain isn't very high, but it's “properly steep”, as Val repeats a good dozen times, and the crowds are out. It's sunny this Saturday 14 March, not warm but mild enough to sit on a bench and watch the skiers race down the three runs facing us. A nice contrast with the day before, when pouring rain didn't stop until 2 pm, spoiling our guests' first day.
To make up for it, we stop at Mount Royal on the way back so they can enjoy the view over Montreal under a perfectly clear sky. The park is packed, already a striking contrast with the images reaching us from France, where Covid-19 has started to disrupt real life. Here the threat is still distant and vague, but we can feel it getting closer day by day.
From the Kondiaronk lookout the view is completely clear, and once again we admire this long city with its clean lines.
15 March
The threat is getting closer and takes away our wish to stray too far from the city. Luckily there's still plenty to see nearby, starting with Mont Saint-Hilaire. We spent our very first night in Quebec there before heading north, without taking the time to explore the park that rings the little mountain.
At 11 am the car parks are overflowing: we're not the only ones with the idea. We park a little way from the start, no problem for inveterate walkers, and the first trail sets off with a good climb straight away. Run by McGill University, the park offers twenty-five kilometres of paths on seven trails; we link three of them, fourteen kilometres there and back. The first hauls us up Burned Hill, revealing the plain all around. From the Pain de Sucre it's obvious: this part of Quebec is extremely flat. Not a single relief to catch the eye, except, in the distance, the buildings that draw Montreal's skyline. We can even make out the Olympic Stadium and its leaning tower, reminding us where our home is. The Dieppe trail, steep too, opens the view to the north: we follow the St Lawrence with our eyes as it winds towards Quebec City, where Nico and Val are heading tomorrow.
After these hours of walking in the snow, a detour to a shopping centre brings the news: from tomorrow, all shops will have to close. It surprises us, because Covid-19 has barely reached the region, with a single recorded case, but the authorities prefer to get ahead of it. Here we are on the same footing as France. Back home, we help our guests plan their week-long road trip around Quebec.