Mont Bellevue () is a peak standing , situated in a public park located in the borough of Mont-Bellevue in

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional cou ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. The park also covers Mont Bellevue's

parent peak In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...

, Mont John-S.-Bourque (elevation: ),Plugging th
official coordinates for Mont John-S.-Bourque
given by ''La commission de toponymie'' into
Geoplaner
produces waypoint 01-A at 365 metres. as well as of land, of trails, and several different types of ecosystems. Claiming 20% of the total park land, it is the largest park in Sherbrooke.

Etymology

''Belle vue'' translates to "beautiful view" in English. The mountain, its park, and the borough in which it lies are named after "the magnificent landscape one discovers at its summit."

History

The

Université de Sherbrooke The University of Sherbrooke (French: Université de Sherbrooke) (UdS) is a large public French-language university in Quebec, Canada with campuses located in Sherbrooke and Longueuil, a suburb of Montreal approximately west of Sherbrooke. It i ...

, built in 1954, originally used the land for sports, recreation, education, and research. In 1959, the City of Sherbrooke constructed the first ski lift on the mountain, signaling the beginning of the development of Mont Bellevue for public recreational purposes. Between 1959 and 1975, the city reserved 45 hectares of land for alpine skiing, tennis, archery, and various trails. In 1976, the City of Sherbrooke undertook park management and maintenance. To this day, the City of Sherbrooke continues to improve the park with consideration for the environment through the ''Regroupement du Mont Bellevue'' organization. In August 2013, Mont Bellevue was one of the venues for the

Canada Games The Canada Games (french: Jeux du Canada) is a multi-sport event held every two years, alternating between the Canada Winter Games and the Canada Summer Games. They represent the highest level of national competition for Canadian athletes. Two ...

. In preparation for the event, the ''Club de vélo de montagne de Sherbrooke'' was granted CA $300,000 for the improvement of the park's mountain bike course.

Recreation

Mont Bellevue houses a small alpine skiing station that has six tracks and a chalet at which visitors may rent skiing, snowboarding, or snowshoeing equipment. Other winter activities available in the park include cross-country skiing, winter

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an ' inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ...

, and

snow tubing Tubing, also known as inner tubing, bumper tubing, towed tubing, or kite tubing, is a recreational activity where an individual rides on top of an inner tube, either on water, snow, or through the air. The tubes themselves are also known as "donu ...

. Summer visitors may participate in

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

, mountain biking,

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from t ...

, archery,

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

jogging Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...

, and

geocaching Geocaching is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", at specific l ...

Wildlife

Wildlife observers often view

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

, squirrels, groundhogs and

chipmunk Chipmunks are small, striped rodents of the family Sciuridae. Chipmunks are found in North America, with the exception of the Siberian chipmunk which is found primarily in Asia. Taxonomy and systematics Chipmunks may be classified either as ...

s in the park. Less commonly observed mammals include porcupine, skunks, foxes and

raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...

s. Among the many types of avian species in the mountain, birders may view blue jays,

cardinals Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

, wood thrush, veery, and

ruffed grouse The ruffed grouse (''Bonasa umbellus'') is a medium-sized grouse occurring in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. It is the most widely distributed game bird in North America. It is non-migratory. It is the only specie ...

. Reptiles on the mountain include

brown snakes Brown snake may refer to: * species of the genus ''Pseudonaja'', highly venomous snakes native to Australia * species of the genus '' Rhadinaea'', the graceful brown snakes, snakes endemic to North America and Central America * species of the genus ...

and

garter snake Garter snake is a common name for generally harmless, small to medium-sized snakes belonging to the genus ''Thamnophis'' in the family Colubridae. Native to North and Central America, species in the genus ''Thamnophis'' can be found from the ...

s, while numerous types of amphibians, molluscs, and insects also occupy the space.

Flora

A variety of wildflowers, ferns, trees, edible plants, and fungus inhabit the mountain.

Flowers

Trout lilies ''Erythronium'', the fawn lily, trout lily, dog's-tooth violet or adder's tongue, is a genus of Eurasian and North American plants in the lily family, most closely related to tulips. The name Erythronium derives from Ancient Greek () "red" in ...

* Pink turtlehead *

Lily of the valley Lily of the valley (''Convallaria majalis'' (), sometimes written lily-of-the-valley, is a woodland flowering plant with sweetly scented, pendent, bell-shaped white flowers borne in sprays in spring. It is native throughout the cool temperate No ...

Foamflower ''Tiarella'', the foamflowers, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Saxifragaceae. The generic name ''Tiarella'' means "little turban", which suggests the shape of the seed capsules. Worldwide there are seven species, one each in eastern ...

Blue cohosh ''Caulophyllum thalictroides'', the blue cohosh, a species of '' Caulophyllum'' (family Berberidaceae) is a flowering plant in the Berberidaceae (barberry) family. It is a medium-tall perennial with blue berry-like fruits and bluish-green foliage ...

* Pink streptope * Solomon's seal * Painted trillium * Pink lady's slipper * Jack-in-the-pulpit * Common hemp-nettle *

Euphrasia ''Euphrasia'', or eyebright, is a genus of about 450 species of herbaceous flowering plants in the family Orobanchaceae (formerly included in the Scrophulariaceae), with a cosmopolitan distribution. They are semi-parasitic on grasses and other ...

* Silvery cinquefoil * Common mullein * Indian pipe * Pinesap * Ground pine

Fruits and vegetables

Ramps An inclined plane, also known as a ramp, is a flat supporting surface tilted at an angle from the vertical direction, with one end higher than the other, used as an aid for raising or lowering a load. The inclined plane is one of the six clas ...

Horseradish Horseradish (''Armoracia rusticana'', syn. ''Cochlearia armoracia'') is a perennial plant of the family Brassicaceae (which also includes mustard, wasabi, broccoli, cabbage, and radish). It is a root vegetable, cultivated and used worldwi ...

* Blueberry *

Juneberry ''Amelanchier'' ( ), also known as shadbush, shadwood or shadblow, serviceberry or sarvisberry (or just sarvis), juneberry, saskatoon, sugarplum, wild-plum or chuckley pear,A Digital Flora of Newfoundland and Labrador Vascular Plants/ref> is a g ...

* Raspberry and

wineberry Wineberry may refer to the following plants: * '' Aristotelia chilensis'', Chilean wineberry * '' Aristotelia serrata'', a tree which is endemic to New Zealand * '' Rubus phoenicolasius'', a type of raspberry native to Asia and introduced to North ...

* Nannyberry *

Blackberry The blackberry is an edible fruit produced by many species in the genus ''Rubus'' in the family Rosaceae, hybrids among these species within the subgenus ''Rubus'', and hybrids between the subgenera ''Rubus'' and ''Idaeobatus''. The taxonomy ...

Chokecherry ''Prunus virginiana'', commonly called bitter-berry, chokecherry, Virginia bird cherry, and western chokecherry (also black chokecherry for ''P. virginiana'' var. ''demissa''), is a species of bird cherry (''Prunus'' subgenus ''Padus'') nat ...

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, ' ...

* Wild strawberry *

Elderberry ''Sambucus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Adoxaceae. The various species are commonly called elder or elderberry. The genus was formerly placed in the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae, but was reclassified as Adoxaceae due to ge ...

Trees

* Striped maple *

American basswood ''Tilia americana'' is a species of tree in the family Malvaceae, native to eastern North America, from southeast Manitoba east to New Brunswick, southwest to northeast Oklahoma, southeast to South Carolina, and west along the Niobrara River to ...

Invasive species

Buckthorn,

honeysuckle Honeysuckles are arching shrubs or twining vines in the genus ''Lonicera'' () of the family Caprifoliaceae, native to northern latitudes in North America and Eurasia. Approximately 180 species of honeysuckle have been identified in both conti ...

, and

Japanese knotweed ''Reynoutria japonica'', synonyms ''Fallopia japonica'' and ''Polygonum cuspidatum'', is a species of herbaceous perennial plant in the knotweed and buckwheat family Polygonaceae. Common names include Japanese knotweed and Asian knotweed. It is ...

are among the invasive plants on the mountain.

Black slug

The black slug (french: limace géante, local, ') is an invasive pest native to Europe that was transported to the area during the construction of the

in the 1950s. Windows imported from

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in wooden crates padded with straw are thought to have contained eggs from the pest. From there, they took to the Mont Bellevue Park, where the soil humidity is conducive to their

locomotion Locomotion means the act or ability of something to transport or move itself from place to place. Locomotion may refer to: Motion * Motion (physics) * Robot locomotion, of man-made devices By environment * Aquatic locomotion * Flight * Locomo ...

, and where their massive size and lack of shell means they easily outcompete native species. The black slug also has few natural predators in North America, meaning it is a threat to the stability of the ecosystems on the mountain. There is concern that the

molluscs Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is estim ...

might spread to other parts of town via accidental transportation by automobiles that stay for long periods of time in the Mont Bellevue or university parking areas.

=Eradication efforts

= In 2008, residents of the Mont-Bellevue and Mont-Sainte-Anne sectors surrounding the park reported major issues with the critters, who are known for decimating gardens. City councillors deferred their complaints to provincial ministers. In early 2009, the city drew up plans to pursue the eradication of the slugs, granting CA $12,000 to Environtel 3000 so the company could analyze the scope and distribution of the pests. However, that summer saw yet another worrisome abundance of the pest. The report revealed that 15-20% of the slugs begin their reproductive cycle early, allowing for the growth of two generations per year instead of one. Warm autumns and winters, as well as wet springs and summers, promote the growth of the slug population. Following the report, the city began the production of informative brochures detailing the steps homeowners can take to get rid of the pests on their properties.

References

External links

*
Official website for the park
*
Official website of the ''Regroupement du Parc du Mont-Bellevue''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bellevue Landforms of Sherbrooke Mountains of Quebec under 1000 metres Ski areas and resorts in Quebec Protected areas of Estrie Landforms of Estrie