
Across the river in Châteauguay is a wonderful park: Le réfuge faunique Marguerite-D'Youville. It sits on an island surrounded on two sides by the Châteauguay River where is flows into the St. Laurence River (the part of the island facing the St. Lawrence -faces the section which is Lac St-Louis). The island was once owned by the Grey Nuns. Some years ago I stayed at the convent (now a hotel) when the Montreal Recorder Society rented rooms for the weekend for a workshop. I've written about this park before
here and here

The nuthatches are amazingly tame - swooping down to feed from one's hand. They are wary of the chickadees and stay away until they see the coast is clear.

The chickadees take turns, perching on nearby branches watching for a moment to dash in. Sometimes they fill their mouths with more than one seed and then fly off to eat.

You can hear their wings as fly in and then off.
The park has different ecosystems: the forest, the swamp, fields - each with different aspects to enjoy.

We walked past the swamp just as the sun had set. The stillness was palpable - broken only occasionally by a splash in the water. Fish? An otter? The list of animals that live in the park is extensive.

As we left the park, a buck strolled out of the woods foraging for food. A delightful place to walk!!