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LES AMIS DE LA MONTAGNE LAUNCH THEIR BENEFIT EVENT IN SUPPORT OF MONT ROYAL
News
Welcome to Les amis' newsletter - April 2010
Winter season wrap-up; French cultural heritage; mountain biking conference and more!
WINTER SEASON WRAP-UP
Photo: Samuel Montigné
NEWS
- Les amis contribute to the Encyclopaedia of French Cultural Heritage in North America
- Bravo to Wendy Graham and Daniel Chartier, recipients of the 2010 Frederick Todd Award
CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES
- Summer day camp on Mount Royal: still some openings left
- Participate in the photo contest “La montagne en images”
- One-day conference on the future of mountain biking in Montreal on April 9
TAKE ACTION
- Make a monthly donation to Les amis de la montagne
WINTER SEASON WRAP-UP: PARTICIPATION ON MOUNT ROYAL REACHES NEW HEIGHTS!
Here's a great big hill
With snow all over the side
Let's take down our sleds
And down the hill we slide.
- Marion Grayson
Despite the mildest and driest winter ever recorded in Canadian history, thousands of outdoor enthusiasts flocked to Mount Royal Park this winter to benefit from its snowy hills and trails, and to take advantage of the best this season has to offer in the heart of Montreal.
For the past three years, the Ville de Montréal’s splendid upkeep of the artificial skating rink and snow-making efforts on the toboggan hill beside Beaver Lake have allowed for a prolonged season of winter fun for Montrealers regardless of the vagaries of Mother Nature, namely warmer temperatures and less snowfall.
Photo: Samuel Montigné
As partners of the Ville de Montréal in services and programs offered in the park, Les amis de la montagne can attest to the high level of interest and unabashed enthusiasm citizens and visitors have for the mountain, good weather or bad.
Les amis de la montagne proudly present their winter season “by the numbers”:
- From early 2010, no less than 200 school groups – that’s 10,000 children! – participated in educational activities accompanied by our environmental specialists. The children discovered the footprints of wildlife in the snow, learned how animals adapt to the cold and how they make use of camouflage in wintertime.
- Inner-tubing was as popular as ever with close to 15,000 sliders of all ages merrily taking to the hill by Beaver Lake, guided by our friendly security personnel.
- 32 children took part in the Jackrabbit Ski de Fond Québec cross-country ski initiation courses, double the participation from last year! This excellent program is aimed at teaching children 6 to 10 years old this most accessible and family-friendly sport.
- More than 400 people strapped on a pair of snowshoes for our Amis-guided Saturday evening excursions by moonlight. Take note for next year – the specially-themed New Year’s and Valentine’s outings were sold-out successes!
- 300 participants from French-as-a-second-language courses, companies or visitors from other countries also participated in our made-to-measure guided snowshoe walks. Thanks to a new partnership with Tourisme Montréal, we helped groups of travel writers, journalists and bloggers from the United States and the United Kingdom discover the beauty of winter in Montreal and on the mountain.
- Finally, there was little rest this winter for the team at Les amis de la montagne’s equipment rental counter located on the ground floor of the Beaver Lake pavilion: 11,800 pairs of skates, 2,600 pairs of skis and 2,300 pairs of snowshoes were rented, and this despite the lack of snow!
And so the great big hill no longer has snow all over the side and our sleds have been carefully stored away … Les amis de la montagne are taking a brief in-between-season break to return with a fresh slate of springtime activities, beginning with the 19th Corvée du Mont-Royal mountain clean-up on Sunday, May 2nd. Save the date!
Photo: Samuel Montigné
NEWS
LES AMIS CONTRIBUTE TO THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF FRENCH CULTURAL HERITAGE IN NORTH AMERICA
Les amis de la montagne wrote two articles about Mount Royal for the Encyclopaedia of French Cultural Heritage in North America, a multimedia website that has been online since 2008. The site is dedicated to the heritage of French-speaking North America, its history and diversity, and the trends that have shaped and influenced its evolution over time.
The article titled “Parc du Mont-Royal, un précieux patrimoine naturel et culturel” explores the many facets of the mountain’s rich heritage in an urban setting, while the article titled, “Mont-Royal: importance de l’engagement citoyen” relates the community’s unrelenting commitment to the mountain’s protection over the last 150 years.
The articles will soon be translated into English. Click here to be directed to the site of the encyclopaedia.
BRAVO TO WENDY GRAHAM AND DANIEL CHARTIER, RECIPIENTS OF THE 2010 FREDERICK TODD AWARD
Wendy Graham and Daniel Chartier, landscape architects with the Direction des grands parcs et de la nature en ville of the Ville de Montréal, who have worked for more than 20 years to enhance and conserve Mount Royal, are the recipients of the 2010 Frederick Todd Award.
Photo: Ville de Montréal
Their work is distinguished by their considerable contribution to Mount Royal Park and more largely, the mountain as a whole. These two professionals form an ideal team dedicated to the protection and improvement of the mountain. They have contributed to the understanding of the mountain’s characteristics and have undertaken to facilitate the discovery of its natural and cultural heritage elements.
For more than 20 years, Wendy Graham and Daniel Chartier have participated in the conception and realization of a multitude of major improvement projects on Mount Royal: the Parc/des Pins intersection, Camillien-Houde lookout, artificial skating rink, children’s playground, Olmsted Road restoration, creation of a ring-road, simplification of the network of secondary pathways, creation of wet zones and water falls, planting of tens of thousands of trees and hundreds of thousands of shrubs.
The Frederick Todd Award has been conferred to members of the Association des architectes paysagistes du Québec and public personalities since 1995 in recognition of their exceptional contribution to the promotion of landscape architecture in Quebec. Frederick Todd was the first landscape architect who lived and worked in Quebec after many years working under Frederick Law Olmsted. His major works include: Beaver Lake, the Way of the Cross of St-Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal, the Plaines d’Abraham in Quebec City and the master plan of the Town of Mount Royal.
CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES
SUMMER DAY CAMP ON MOUNT ROYAL: STILL SOME OPENINGS LEFT
Les amis de la montagne, in collaboration with the Ville de Montréal, are pleased to offer their summer day camp for a second year. Children aged 6 to 9 years old will once again have the opportunity to discover the treasures of Mount Royal in a natural environment in the heart of Montreal.
Photo: Amélie Goulet
Supervised by an experienced and passionate team of environmental educators, Les amis’ summer day camp will be offered from June 28 to August 13, for a duration of one or two weeks, consecutive or not.
The cost of one week per child is $165 with the Accès Montréal card or $190 without the card.
To enroll your child or for more information, call 514 843-8240, ext. 235.
PARTICIPATE IN THE PHOTO CONTEST “LA MONTAGNE EN IMAGES”
To showcase the rich and varied heritage of Mount Royal through photography, Les amis de la montagne announce the launch of their photo contest titled, “La montagne en images” open to all admirers of Mount Royal.
Les amis de la montagne invite members of the community to submit their favourite photos of the mountain along five themes: Nature and Biodiversity; Architecture; Art and the Mountain; People and the Mountain; and Light. The contest ends on August 25.
Click here for full contest regulations, as well as the registration form (in French).
ONE-DAY CONFERENCE ON THE FUTURE OF MOUNTAIN BIKING IN MONTREAL ON APRIL 9
On Friday, April 9, an unprecedented event will take place at Le TAZ sports centre on the future of mountain biking in Montreal.
Organized by Bunny Hop, the official voice of the 50,000-strong community of mountain bikers in Montreal, and presented by Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC), the purpose of this conference open to the public is to sensitize the population and decision-makers about the importance of mountain biking and to reflect upon its place in Montreal. The high point of the day will be the inauguration of a permanent “bike park” infrastructure adjacent to the TAZ.
Click here to see the day’s complete agenda, as well as how to register.
TAKE ACTION
MAKE A MONTHLY GIFT TO LES AMIS DE LA MONTAGNE
A monthly gift to Les amis de la montagne is one of the simplest and most effective ways to contribute to the protection and enhancement of Mount Royal. Through monthly giving, you also help Les amis reduce postal and printing costs.
By becoming a monthly donor, you receive a “friend’s card” that provides you with a discount at the café or boutique at Smith House, as well as regular updates on news, activities and services related to Mount Royal via our electronic newsletter. A receipt for income tax purposes for the total annual contribution is mailed at the end of the calendar year. You may at any time cancel, reduce or increase your monthly contribution.
Click here to access the secure online monthly giving form or call 514 843-8240, ext. 243.
