Larose Forest

Larose Forest, owned by the United Counties of Prescott-Russell, is located approximately 50 kilometres east and slightly south of Ottawa. It now covers approximately 10,900 ha. The bulk of the Forest lies just to the southwest of the village of Bourget.

The area prior to 1928, was referred to as the “Bourget Desert”. The pine forests which originally clothed this land, disappeared down the Ottawa River in the first timber harvests. Farming on the light land was not successful and serious erosion of the fine sands followed.

It was this situation that, in 1928, led Ferdinand Larose, the local Agricultural Representative with the Department of Agriculture, to embark on a program of reclamation. Larose felt that the forest should return, to consolidate the sandy soils and thus enable the land to once again produce useful crops.

Larose Forest provides employment for local residents. It is open for year-round recreational activities with hundreds of kilometers of roads and trails. It provides wildlife habitat, controls erosion, and regulates streamflow.

Finally, the Forest is an example of a good economic venture, designed to encourage people in proper land use and good forest management practices for the production of various forest products.