One-Tank Trip for
Dec. 3/16
(c) By Jim Fox
You can talk to the
animals, feed them and get up close like nowhere else at a drive-through safari
park a short distance from Ottawa.
Parc Omega, just 45
minutes east in Montebello, Que., isn’t a zoo but a “natural life museum,” says
Serge Lussier, zoologist and park ambassador.
“We’re here to
discover Canadian animals, history and heritage,” says Lussier who was
previously with the African Lion Safari in Cambridge.
Calling this
sprawling 890-hectare park a “Canadian hidden treasure,” it’s the only one of
its kind in Canada, he added.
 |
| Feeding time for this huge elk at Parc Omega. (Jim Fox photo) |
We took a 90-minute,
winding 15-kilometre road journey to discover animals living in the wild in
their natural habitat. (There is also a safari bus, open vehicles and tour
guides available.)
Animals at almost
every turn kept coming up to Lussier’s vehicle to see what treats we had for
them.
A
feast on wheels
Several varieties
of deer and elk feasted on carrots that can be bought at the Park House.
 |
| Well hello there, what’s for lunch? Just help yourself to the carrots. (Barbara Fox photo) |
Be ready to dodge
lots of slobber as the animals often put their heads inside to see what’s on
the menu.
Along the way,
there are forests, lakes, prairies and hills where you can also see wild
turkeys, alpine ibex (a species of wild goats) and bison living in
“semi-captivity.”
There are valleys
with wolves, bears, Arctic foxes, caribou, coyotes and wild boars and muskox
making their homes.
Don’t be surprised
to see a herd of buffalo and moose lumbering along the roadway along with wapitis
(large deer) and wild goats.
 |
| Sharing the road with a bison in Parc Omega. (Jim Fox photo) |
Park the vehicle
and explore on foot along three walking trails and at playgrounds and picnic
areas where the deer will join in.
There’s also
a footbridge overlooking the bears and wolves for a closer view.
Open daily
year-round, visitors often snowshoe and ski amongst the deer in the
winter.
The First Nations
Trail offers a “rendezvous with history” along a one-kilometre hike around
Trout Lake where you can learn about the 11 aboriginal nations in Quebec,
Lussier said.
 |
| Fast friends at Parc Omega (Barbara Fox photo) |
“A totem pole of
the Seven Fires evokes a prophecy that guides us towards a world of peace and
reconciliation,” he added.
There are inuksuk stone landmarks to
illustrate the close relationship with nature and legends and a symbolic thunderbird.
This is the area to
see beaver, Canada geese, bald eagles, turtles, fish, ducks and great blue
herons.
In the park is a trading post with
illustrations and artifacts, the Old Farm from 1847 and its miniature village
with donkeys, ponies, rabbits and other animals.
 |
| Serge Lussier, zoologist at Parc Omega in Quebec. (Jim Fox photo) |
Seasonally, there’s
a restaurant at the Park House with a panoramic view and a maple sugar shack.
Spend the night in
rustic accommodations with access to an observation lookout and bridge to watch
the animals from above.
 |
|
A couple of black
bears enjoying their natural environment. (Barbara Fox)
|
Offered are tents, a
house on stilts, teepees and a log cabin from $100 a night, along with a community
building to prepare meals and have showers.
The park has
two FM radios stations that provide guidance and direction, in English and
French.
If you go
Park Omega
is at 399
Road 323 N., Montebello, Que.
Hours now through May 19 are 10 a.m. to 5
p.m.
Admission
is $22.61; $20.87, seniors; $13.92, ages six to 15; and $7.83, two to five
years, plus tax. parcomega.ca/en;
(819) 423-5487
Bello the lab
Our animal
adventures continued by meeting Bello, a “Canine Ambassador,” at Fairmont Le Chateau
Montebello.
A favourite of
guests at this luxury rustic property, called the “world’s largest log cabin”
along the Ottawa River, is Bello, the black lab, one of 16 guests’ best friends
at Fairmont properties.
 |
| Writer Jim Fox with Bello the “Canine Ambassador” at Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello. (Barbara Fox photo) |
These resident dogs
are “gentle, affectionate and can often understand matters in a way no other
human can,” said Mike Taylor, Fairmont public relations director.
“Their job – as
official members of the hotels’ Guest Services teams – is to provide companionship,
security and that special wisdom that only a pet can provide,” he added.
Guests can take the dogs for walks, vigorous
hikes or rest in the lobby lounge beside Montebello’s massive fireplace for a
soothing scratch behind the ears. fairmont.com/promotions/canineambassadors
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Jim Fox can be reached at onetanktrips@hotmail.com
For more One-Tank Trips: http://1tanktrips.blogspot.ca
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