Mulvihill Lake is a small and exceedingly lovely body of water located in Gatineau Park, in the Gatineau Hills of Quebec, a large nature preserve that is administered by the National Capital Commission, and it is located about a 30-minute drive from the nation's capital, just across the border between Ontario and Quebec. It has wonderful sight-lines, and in autumn the brilliant colours of the fall leaves in the surrounding forest are symmetrically echoed in the placid waters of the lake.

When we were there a few days ago, it was a windy day, for which we were grateful, since it was also an exceedingly hot day. The wind rippled the water from time to time, giving it an additional aspect to admire, and we did that, in abundance. After our hiking circuit, we couldn't have asked for a more peaceful place to rest and admire the surroundings that embraced us.

There is a dock with an extended platform edging a few hundred feet into the lake, with seating along the exterior edges for people to rest and inhale the wonderful fragrance of the lake, and the surrounding forest. There are schools of minnows always swimming about in the lake, and there are frogs, and fat tadpoles galore, and there are also small turtles to be seen.

And we saw them all, as we poked our heads above the railing and encouraged the fish and the turtles to mill frantically about and even surface, tossing small bits of twigs to entice them to frenzied response.

We watched as a Great Blue Heron winged its way from one end of the lake to the other. It settled in a small lagoon, and began preening, remaining where it had landed, busy with its grooming for the extent of our stay there. We watched as the lake responded to the sky; bright and reflective when the sun was out, dimming and translucent when the puffed white clouds obscured the sun.

Restful, relaxing, beautiful beyond peer.