Contrecoeur

Contrecoeur is a municipality with a riverside, forest and rural landscape, in the regional county municipality (RCM) of Marguerite-D'Youville, in Montérégie, in Quebec.

Contrecoeur is a recreational tourism destination facing Saint-Sulpice, Lavaltrie and Lanoraie, on the opposite bank of the river. The main attractions of Contrecoeur are, in particular:
 * its shore of on the St. Lawrence River (South Channel) and its 18 islands grouped together in an archipelago called "Îles de Contrecoeur";
 * its infrastructures and services aimed at serving pleasure boating on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River;
 * its infrastructure and its recreational tourism services, in particular its municipal parks, campgrounds, its summer camps and Des Grèves Regional Park;
 * its built heritage, of which several buildings display a rustic and well-renovated character, in particular the resort buildings along the St. Lawrence River;
 * its countryside, forest and riverside landscape, which bears witness to the activities of citizens in this part of the St. Lawrence plain;
 * its gourmet circuits (eg: beer and maple gourmet circuit, or edible circuit that visits community gardens or urban gardens);
 * its documented historical discovery Balado circuit offering 17 points of interest (e.g., windmill, summer camps, patriots, factories...).

Geography
The territory of Contrecoeur had a primary vocation in terms of agriculture, forestry, river and recreational tourism. Its port and industrial vocation gradually gained importance in the 20th century. It has a riparian zone of on the St. Lawrence River; the vast majority of the inhabitants live in this last zone which has three villages: Contrecoeur, Saint-Laurent-du-Fleuve and Saint-Arsène.

History
On June 19, 1610, French soldiers led by Samuel de Champlain, supported by Montagnais and Algonquins, engaged in battle at Cap de la Victoire against a hundred Iroquois who had erected a strategic fort there. This former cape de sable is now part of the grounds of the Grèves summer camp, at the northern limit of the parish of Contrecoeur. This cape was approximately southwest of Downtown Sorel-Tracy, on the borders of the Seigneurie de Saint-Ours. This course was undone over twenty years at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century by the operation of a sandpit.

The first establishment dates from 1667, under the aegis of Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecoeur, captain of the regiment of Carignan-Salières. In 1672, he received the concession of this seigniory.

The canonical erection of the Catholic parish of Sainte-Trinité de Contrecoeur was proclaimed in November 1832. The civil erection of the parish took place in 1845 by adopting the same toponymic designation as the religious parish. On April 20, 1902, the sector of the village of Contrecoeur was civilly erected as a municipality, detaching itself from the territory of the parish. The MRC of Marguerite-D'Youville came into effect on May 1, 1982. In May 1997, Contrecoeur became a city.

By car

 * From Montréal (57 km, time: 47 mins). Take the Jacques-Cartier bridge (east); take route 132 (eastbound) to Varennes; take Chemin du Pays-Brûlé (eastbound); take Autoroute 30 (northbound) to Contrecoeur; take rue Saint-Antoine (to the west); take route 132 (east).
 * From Quebec (236 km, time: 2 hr 42 min). Take Autoroute 20 (westbound) until after passing Drummondville; take route 122 (northbound); take Route 132 (west) to Contrecoeur.

Eat
Several restaurants or dining rooms in the Montérégie have transformed the mode of meals at the tables into take-out or delivery service.