Île d'Orléans

The Île d'Orléans in the St. Lawrence River, across from Quebec City, is known as the “Garden of Quebec.” One of its several villages, Sainte-Pétronille de Beaulieu, was long a summer retreat of the English families of Quebec City, according to the tourist information booklets we read. We also particularly enjoyed the workshop of the blacksmith Guy Bel, cleverly named La Forge à Pique-Assaut, and the farmlands and forests at the heart of the island.