The area’s biggest event is the Festival Western de Saint-Tite, a 10-day festival that takes place every September. Originally developed in 1967 to promote Boulet cowboy boots, the festival has become the largest rodeo in eastern North America, second in size only to the Calgary Stampede.
At the Classique Internationale de Canots de la Mauricie, some 80 teams from all over the world arrive on Labour Day weekend to take part in a 200-kilometre canoe race from La Tuque to Shawinigan. The four-day race is one leg in the Triple Crown of canoe racing.
La Mauricie National Park was created in 1970 and is located among the gently rolling highlands of the Laurentians. There are black bears, moose, deer, red fox, and over 211 bird species. Red ochre rock paintings testify to the existence of nomadic tribes some 5,000 years ago.
