By Karine Wolter

The golf course called La Belle will celebrate its 100th birthday in 2020. Shaded by its tall trees, the last and longest witness to Gray Rocks resort still infuses the Mont-Tremblant landscape with its history….

The cult of life in the outdoors

In 1894, George and Lucile Wheeler, originally from New York state, moved to Saint-Jovite to set up a sawmill. In 1905, after several setbacks, their wood business was going downhill but the same could not be said of their entrepreneurial vision. Accustomed to hosting, every summer, American friends who were partial to hunting and fishing, the couple created a ten-room boarding house in their home, which was built on a granite headland. The tourism pioneers obtained a permit for an inn in 1906: it was the start of Gray Rocks Inn (1). While Mrs. Wheeler managed the kitchen, Mr. Wheeler and his sons Tom and Harry developed outdoor activities for both winter and summer on the property. In 1914, the inn had 35 rooms. The recipe for success included the pleasant, friendly atmosphere of the inn as well as the recreational enhancement of the territory. And in this early part of the 20th century, a new Scottish sport called golf was growing in popularity in the English-speaking middle-class neighbourhoods of North America. One of the Wheeler guests, an amateur golfer, started to get the family interested in the sport. “He was able to persuade my grandfather, my Uncle Tom and [my father] Harry to build a course early in the ‘20s,” recounts Lucile wheeler Vaughan.

First golf course in the Laurentians

“It took horses, wagons, shovels and a lot of dynamite to create a nine-hole course,” she remembers. The fairways were maintained by a flock of sheep! “René Fleurant participated for 30 years in the constant improvement of the course,” Lucile further recounts. In the ‘40s, there were few golf courses and Gray Rocks built its reputation through lessons given by professional golfers such as Jimmy Black. At the time, fees were $1 per day and $15 per season, and a members’ tournament was instituted at the end of every September.

Many residents of Saint-Jovite worked at the inn and on the golf course, where the young people were hired as caddies. In the ‘50s, there were more than 30. “The clubhouse was located at the time half way along what is now the 12th fairway, overlooking the airfield (2),” explains Tom Junior. Always innovative, Gray Rocks started offering packages – “Learn to play golf” weeks – thanks to professional golfer Bob Kerr. The purchase of new land permitted the building of a second nine holes. During the ‘60s and ‘70s, membership numbers grew as local players joined the ranks. Major redevelopment of the courses with new paths for the golf carts characterized the ‘80s. Until 1995, Golf Gray Rocks was the only 18-hole golf course in the Laurentians.

Today, La Belle retains its “friendly, relaxed atmosphere,” says Guy Ouimet, general manager since 2005 and a club member for close to 30 years. This “country course” with its playful changes in elevation and majestic views continues to inspire beginners as well as more experienced players….

(1) In January 2018, SOPABIC created an exhibition on the history of Gray Rocks, now available virtually on its website: sopabic-patrimoine.org/gray-rocks.

(2) The airfield was created by Tom Wheeler in 1924 to take clients to remote hunting and fishing camps.