Steam locomotive 909 pulls into Wakefield, Quebec, along the Gatineau River, north of Ottawa. The steam train takes thousands of tourists along the scenic Gatineau river every summer and through to the fall colors. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Fred Chartrand)

WAKEFIELD, Que. — At the crest of One Mile Hill, the blue of the Gatineau River emerges through rust-tinged leaves and a plume of vapour sweeps past the train’s window as locomotive 909 chugs through the rolling Gatineau Hills.

Inside the 1940s-era car several young children dance in the aisle to the playful accordion notes of the chicken dance squeezed out by a man wearing a striped railway hat.

A tour guide in the car says the river is named after Nicholas Gatineau, who drowned in its waters. An elderly man leans over to a child and adds a little more information: “He was a coureur des bois.”

Logs bob near the shore or poke through the waters, remnants from a time when the river, now a scenic playground for sailboats and canoes, was the main thoroughfare for mill-bound lumber.

Every whistle blast from the 100-year-old, Swedish-built locomotive brings passengers on the Hull-Chelsea-Wakefield Steam Train a little closer to yesterday, making the five-hour round-trip to picturesque Wakefield from Gatineau, Que., an experience in time travel just minutes from Ottawa’s downtown core.

“It’s magic,” says Montreal resident Robert Serois, 47, after disembarking in Wakefield to watch four of the train’s musicians use their elbow grease to spin the 93-tonne locomotive on a rare rail turntable.

The steam train runs from May to late October. Fall foliage tours range from $47 for a single adult to $119 for a family of two adults and two children. There are also sunset dinner trips and Sunday brunch trains.

“It may not be the Rockies, but the Gatineau Hills seem to charm everyone else around the world,“ says Andre Groulx, the train’s director of operations.

The trip includes a two-hour stop in Wakefield for shopping or simply to explore this historic village built by Scottish and English immigrants.

Steam locomotive 909 crosses a small wooden bridge along the Gatineau river, near Wakefield, Quebec, north of Ottawa. The steam train takes thousands of tourists along the scenic Gatineau river every summer and through to the fall colors. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Fred Chartrand)

The village not only sits at the meeting place of the La Peche and Gatineau rivers, it’s also where the hip meets the antique. A short walk from the main train platform is the nearly two-centuries-old Wakefield Mill, now an inn and spa that offers a timely noon buffet in its dining room overlooking a waterfall. The inn offers its own rail “escapade” for overnight guests.

Nearby, along main drag Riverside Road with its restaurants, cafes and art shops, is the Blacksheep Inn which has earned a reputation as a trendy venue for top-notch musical acts like indie sensations Final Fantasy in April and Julie Doiron in September.

The train passes through, but does not stop in the cosy nearby community of Chelsea, a 15-minute drive from Ottawa on Highway 5.

In fall the maples blaze red and orange turning Gatineau Park forests into a “perfect paradise” of colours, says Francois Leduc, park manager for visitor services.

“We have gorgeous forests with diverse species of trees, no bugs and it’s not too hot or too cold, making it perfect for hiking. It’s a perfect paradise this time of year,” he says.

The park offers French and English guided nature hikes on the weekends, and its campground remains open until Thanksgiving.

—

On the web:

www.steamtrain.ca

www.capcan.ca

www.tourismeoutaouais.com

———

Jorge Barrera is a Chelsea, Que.-based freelance writer.