Scenic Views · Camping & Hiking · Fishing · Quebec
A Sépaq national park north of Saguenay with high-country trails, summit lookouts, lakes for paddling and trout fishing, and rental cabins. Well run and quiet, but the access road is rough and there's an entry fee.
Parc national des Monts-Valin covers a high plateau of summits, lakes and rivers about 40 minutes north of Saguenay. Hikers describe well-marked trails with a string of lookouts, and one pair had the Pic-de-la-Tête-de-Chien trail entirely to themselves apart from a moose. At this altitude snow can arrive early; an October visitor found snow and fog on the summit trail.
Staff get warm praise for being patient and helpful. On the water, visitors paddled canoes and kayaks on the lake, with paddleboarding open to ages 12 and up. The park's cabins also earn good reviews: one guest described a fully equipped two-bedroom cabin by a lake with free canoes and kayaks, and another enjoyed the quiet, though cell signal only reached the entrance.
There's plenty to fill several days. The park has about 25 km of summer hiking trails, two of them open to dogs, plus canoeing on the Valin River and several lakes. Sépaq offers day fishing and fishing packages for brook trout in the Lac Martin-Valin sector. In winter the park is known for deep snow, with guided snowmobile shuttles to the summits for snowshoeing, and shuttles to the Vallée des Fantômes that book up weeks ahead on weekends.
The main complaint is the road. One visitor found it rough and unpaved and advised a suitable vehicle, and felt the scenery didn't match other parks. Expect entry fees, book shuttles and cabins early, and pack layers, since conditions change quickly up high.
Summarised from visitor reviews on Google Maps. Based on 727 Google reviews. Conditions and rules change — check current park, access and fishing regulations before you go.
