Saint-Maurice Wildlife Reserve

The Réserve faunique du Saint-Maurice (English: Saint-Maurice Wildlife Reserve) is a public conservation and development area, in Mauricie, in Quebec in Canada. This reserve offers a variety of recreational tourism activities for vacationers: hiking trails, water sports, camping, in a wild environment. This reserve is not a protected area because forestry and mining activities are practiced there.

This wilderness has typical attractions of the boreal forest. This wildlife reserve offers recreational tourism activities in a nature centered on the forest, flora and fauna. The main activities on the territory of this reserve are hiking, observation of flora and fauna, gathering in the forest, camping, water activities (swimming, pleasure craft, canyoning), cycling, fishing (day, wading) and hunting (bear, moose, small game with accommodation, small game for the day).

The reserve's recreational tourism program offers a special place to families, with accessible activities specific to young people, so that they can play in the sand, on the water, on the trails, fishing or hunting. (12 years and over).

Geography
The Saint-Maurice wildlife reserve is located at the confluence of the Matawi and Saint-Maurice rivers, in the heart of the Mauricie. The northeastern limit of the reserve is delimited by the course of the Wessonneau River. This reserve covers an area of ​​ and is adjacent to La Mauricie National Park to the south; the two territories are separated from east to west by the Matawin river. This wildlife reserve is part of the network of wildlife reserves in Quebec managed by the Société des establishments de plein air du Québec (SÉPAQ).

The Ministry of Forest, Wildlife and Parks (MFFP) and the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (MERN) are responsible for the management of natural resources on the territory of the Saint-Maurice wildlife reserve. The management and use of the natural resources of this reserve, in particular the forest and the fauna, are based on a legal vocation of conservation and development of the fauna of the wildlife reserves. The forest of this reserve is exploited by forestry companies having a harvesting agreement with the MFFP, according to the tactical and operational integrated forest management plans (PAFI) at the level of each management unit. Thus, the forest management of wildlife reserves turns out to be integrated wildlife-forest-recreotourism. In the Saint-Maurice wildlife reserve, wildlife development work is carried out with the aim of restoring the native trout population of certain lakes, in particular by creating spawning grounds.

Geographical maps
SÉPAQ makes available to the public
 * General map of the Saint-Maurice wildlife reserve: [citeweb|url:https://www.sepaq.com/resources/docs/rf/stm/stm_carte_generale.pdf General map of the geographical map]
 * Canoe-camping card: https://www.sepaq.com/resources/docs/rf/stm/stm_carte_canotcamping.pdf canoe-camping card
 * Map of trails and hiking trails: https://www.sepaq.com/dotAsset/3b9a7317-f701-4535-bfac-295e15be57b7.pdf trail map

Matawin reception station
The administrative office of the wildlife reserve is located in Trois-Rives (Rivière-Matawin sector), along route 155, on the east side of the Saint-Maurice river. Serving as the reserve reception center, this center provides information to users and offers registration and reservation services for the reserve.

From now on, Sépaq collects rights of way on the Mékinac bridge which spans the Saint-Maurice river at the level of the Matawin sector of Trois-Rives. This right of way provides access to the Saint-Maurice wildlife reserve and to the Zec du Chapeau-de-Paille. Only the Matawin reception post provides access to the Saint-Maurice wildlife reserve. The rights of way on the bridge are priced by the Corporation du Pont Mékinac. The cost of passage applies per vehicle; this right of way can be purchased online at https://www.sepaq.com/fr/reservation/pont-mekinac-reserve-faunique-saint-maurice SÉPAQ-Réserve faunique Saint-Maurice. Users can subscribe to a 12-pass card or a prepaid seasonal card (limited number of passes depending on the card chosen). All-terrain vehicles and heavy vehicles are subject to special pricing.

Go
The Saint-Maurice Wildlife Reserve is accessible by road vehicle, ATV, snowmobile and even by air (via seaplanes).

By car

 * From Montreal (. Time: 3 hr 24 min. Take take highway 40 (north shore) eastbound, to Trois-Rivières; take highway 55 (northbound) to Grand-Mère, which becomes route 155 and cross the Saint-Maurice River bridge; take route 155, cross the villages of Grandes-Piles and Saint-Roch-de-Mékinac, to the Mékinac bridge over the Saint-Maurice river, in the Rivière-Matawin sector, where the toll booth is located to enter the reserve.
 * From Quebec (city) (. Time: 2 hr 103 min. Take highway 40 (direction West), to Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade; take route 159 (northbound) passing through the village of Saint-Stanislas, Saint-Séverin, Saint-Tite and Saint-Roch-de-Mékinac; take route 155 (northbound) to the Mékinac bridge over the Saint-Maurice River, in the Rivière-Matawin sector, where the toll booth is located for entering the reserve.

From the Matawin Visitor Center (Mékinac Bridge), visitors must travel approximately on Route 3 along the north shore of the [atawin Rive] and thus reach the southern limit of the Saint-Maurice wildlife reserve, ie at the junction of road 1 of the reserve. From there, visitors can travel further along the southern boundary of the reserve, to the junction of Route 11 which leads north in particular to the Brown Lake, Dunbar Lake and Normand Lake.

Drink
The territory of the Réserve faunique du Saint-Maurice does not have a public place serving alcoholic beverages.

Sleep
The five accommodation sectors include around 100 lakes:
 * Brown Lake,
 * Dunbar Lake,
 * Lake Normand / Baude
 * Tousignant Lake / Soucis
 * Lake Wessonneau.

Camping
Saint-Maurice Wildlife Reserve offers three campsites and several other rustic camping areas.