This past weekend, for the first time ever, the Chutes Coulonge Park hosted a Lumberjack Day to raise money for the park’s revitalization.
More than 150 people of all ages descended on the park in Mansfield to take part in the day’s events, which included a log race, a live wood carving demonstration from a local artist, as well as live performances from Danny Sylvester and two local musicians, Gabriel Malette of Campbell’s Bay and Liam Kenny from Fort Coulonge.
Kyle Bertrand is a local chainsaw carving artist from Campbell’s Bay. He was one of the people at the event where he did a live carving demonstration, taking a stump and turning it into a bear.
“I haven’t done any events since COVID,” Bertrand said. “It’s a nice family event that gives not only myself but gives local talent a chance to express themselves.”
Another popular feature at the Lumberjack Day was the log race, wherein 252 small logs, each one purchased by members of the extended Pontiac community, were sent over the waterfall in a race to the finish line at the base of the falls.
Log #398 took home the first prize of $1,000. Log #376 came second, winning its owner a two-night stay at one of the park’s yurts. Log #418 came third, winning its owner an experience of their choice in the park’s aerial adventure section.
“The profits from the log race event was about half of our goal,” said park director Brittany Morin. “We’ve already reached $4,000 from that. I couldn’t have asked for a better turnout for our first event so we’ll definitely be repeating it.”
Morin said the main goal of this event was to raise funds to help create new jobs and events at the park, which will help achieve the larger vision of putting the park on the map as a destination for education on Canadian history.
The Coulonge Falls, over 40 metres tall, presented a significant obstacle to log drivers on the Coulonge River who were trying to get cut logs downriver to sawmills. To get logs safely around the falls, wooden channels were built. It’s this history, along with the natural beauty of the site, Morin wishes to highlight.
“Really the goal is to have the park as a career opportunity for some locals who wish to pursue a career in outdoor adventure or recreation,” Morin said. “Many seasonal businesses, especially in tourism, have a high turnaround for employees.”
Morin said they hope to hire four to five more people to work regularly at the park. Some of the other ideas they have include building a new campground and some small cabins.
Beside the yurts and the waterfall, the park has an aerial park where individuals can zipline and climb through the trees. Morin said that this caters to a specific type of clientele. One of her big goals is to provide more options for more people.
“Right now, our aerial park is fantastic but it’s only for a certain height and weight and age criteria which is limiting to families,” Morin explained.
Morin also said that they hope to stretch the season past the summer.
“Touristically, our season in the summer is fantastic,” said Morin. “What we’re lacking is off-season activities.”
The weekend’s Lumberjack Festival, according to Morin, was a great way to welcome people into the park and develop its presence in the community.
“The community participation was really heartwarming,” Morin said. “It was fantastic to see all these families come out.”
Morin said that it was a very positive experience and hopes to make the Lumberjack Day an annual celebration.
