The West Island's oldest community has history, tasty food and a waterfront
Travel to the opposite end of the same street and you'll see tiled roofs of the Romanesque-style buildings that Sir William Macdonald commissioned for the creation of the McGill Macdonald campus founded in 1905. With the John Abbott CEGEP on site as well, over a thousand students come here to explore paths available in today's working world. What lies between is a retreat from the daily grind sought by people from all walks of life. With the opening of its public lock in 1834, the community has had over 172 years to perfect its hospitality. Terrace dining offers views of sail, power and performance boaters from Lac St. Louis and Lac des Deux-Montagnes jockeying for prime dock space. The objective is step-up access to a canal-side drink and dinner. Regardless where they pull-up, they are eye candy for land-bound onlookers who sneak glimpses of lavish lifestyles aboard boats with clever names like L'eau Tide. Stroll the boardwalk and watch excited children tug on parents' arms, chatting seniors sit on shaded benches and hand-holding couples all mingle with black leather-clad bikers and helmet-carrying cyclists who travel to this western end of the island via the scenic Bord-du-Lac. Terrace dining offers views of sail and power boaters from Lac St. Louis and Lac des Deux-Montagnes jockeying for prime dock space. Walk the jetties past the lock for an open water view of Baie de Vaudreuil and the L'Île aux Tourtes Bridge. A chain across the lock walkway signals the gates are about to open for passing boats. Today, approximately 8,000 to 9,000 pleasure boats pass through the lock annually with the flip of a switch.Stand outside of G.D'Aoust & Cie for a moment and you're bound to hear passersby reminisce about their first visits to this general store where merchandise originally arrived by steamboat. Step inside and look up at the lines of pulleys and cables humming overhead. The store's ingenious yet whimsical cash railway installed in the early 1900s captivates children and adults as it busily carries baskets holding payments for purchases to an accounting office. Watch as the financial officer metes out the correct change and returns it by the same path to the waiting customer. If old Simon Fraser was the least bit community minded and in tune with Sainte-Anne's thriving future in the hospitality industry, he'd be pleased to know his home is now Au Petite Café. It opens for lunch and offers a changing menu of homemade specialties and desserts. Volunteer run, all revenue from the café benefits the Victorian Order of Nurses.
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