My pictures from Magog: http://motorcycle-journeys.com/current/photos/magog/index.html
I was really taken with the Eastern Township area of Quebec last summer and since I wasn’t ready to return to the Texas heat I decided to go north and explore the town of Magog and the area around it.
Magog is on the northern tip of the long narrow lake Memphremagog that extends from Vermont up into Quebec. The majority of the lake is in Quebec. It’s surrounded by green rolling hills and mountains. What I didn’t know until I stopped at the information center after crossing the border was that I would be arriving on the last day of the La Traversee Internationale du Lac Memphremagog — a 32 kilometer swimming event held annually in Magog. The people working at the information center thought there were no rooms available in the entire town of Magog. I called the motel I wished to stay out (a short walk from downtown and the lake) and could not believe my good luck that they had just had a room cancellation.
When I arrived in town the traffic was backed up, the sidewalks were packed with people and in a town of 24,000 it took me 30 minutes to get to my motel. After I unpacked the motorcycle and got cleaned up I walked to a nearby restaurant and found it also packed with people since it was across the street from the park where the event was being hosted.
The next day I left Magog to ride south along the edge of the lake and visit Bleu Lavande a lavendar farm in Fitch Bay. The lavendar was no longer in bloom since it had peaked around July 10 — a day the farm had a record breaking 9,125 visitors. After visiting the lavender farm I continued my ride along the Chemin des Cantons to see small villages around the area.
The next morning I was out exploring the town at sunrise and saw the Aquilo 36 that offered tours of Memphremagog on the catamaran. I went out on the 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM tour and had a great time. The captain of the boat and the man helping crew both spoke excellent English and filled me in on area history.
I got back to the motel and shortly after ran outside to help pull down umbrellas and secure lawn chairs as a storm with very high winds hit the area. Want to guess how happy I was that I hadn’t done the afternoon tour on the catamaran?
I spent three days in Magog and figured it was time to get the ride back to Texas over with. I rode out of Magog on August 11 at first light with a temperature of 59 degrees and very heavy fog.
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