A Rustic Lodge Close To Quebec’s Mt-Tremblant Ski Area In Canada, Where Owners Could Get Away With Their Dogs And Be In Nature
At Domaine Summum, a rustic lodge close to Quebec’s Mt-Tremblant Ski Area, a dinner includes more than a bottle of wine and a gourmet meal. You also get cuddles from the resident Bernese Mountain Dogs. And your own pooch is invited as well.
This unique lodging caters to its canine guests in more ways than one. Owner Birgit Schultz wanted Domaine Summum to be a place where owners could get away with their dogs and be in nature.
“There are so many restrictions on where you can take dogs now,” she says. “Dogs have to always be on a leash, some even have to be muzzled. You can’t leave your dog alone in a hotel room. But here we have no restrictions.”
Guests at Domaine Summum can run through the woods off-leash with their human “side-kicks” and swim in the lake. There’s a special menu for dogs, including dishes that appeal to both canine and human palates.
Birgit traces the roots of her current enterprise back to her childhood in Berlin. “I always had the most fun playing with dogs,” she says. “They’ve always been important to me.”
They became even more important when the death of her husband Mark turned her world upside down. “Mark and I built this place from scratch,” she relates. “It took us two years to find this property and there was nothing here… just pine forest and a lake. We bought a sawmill and began to build.”
Mark also gave Birgit her first Bernese Mountain Dog, a Swiss breed noted for its good-natured personality. Then he gave her another. The first litter of puppies arrived in 2000.
When her husband died, the dogs became the center of Birgit’s life. “I lived for my dogs,” she says. “My four Berners kept me going.”
In serious debt, Birgit had to decide between selling her property and starting a new career from scratch, or trying to make a success of her dog-friendly resort. Fortunately, help soon appeared in the person of Shell Spillenaar. “She saw the potential here,” Birgit says. “She said she would love to help me.”
Shell, another dog lover, has a background in journalism, previously operating her own magazine, and is expert in photography. She’s behind Domaine Summum’s attractive website filled with fantastic photos of dogs enjoying a getaway in the woods. She also produced a YouTube series, “Bone Appetit,” a cooking show featuring dishes that dogs and their human side-kicks can enjoy together.
Beginning with a boarding facility, dubbed the Woof B&B, aimed at vacationers visiting nearby Mt-Tremblant, Domaine Summum has steadily expanded its offerings, adding doggie day care, a “spaw” with grooming, indoor playrooms for winter, and lodging options where owners can vacation with their four-pawed friends with no restrictions. The 200-acre property is laced with groomed hiking trails where dogs can play off-leash. Dogs and their side-kicks can swim in a private lake, or take a cruise in the resort’s canoes and kayaks. An old row boat is especially popular with canine sailors, Birgit says.
“People kept saying to me, ‘You’re so lucky. I wish we could stay here. I wish we could be in nature with our dogs.’ So we decided to add accommodations where humans could stay with their animals,” Birgit says. Four suites, completely equipped with kitchens, satellite TVs, electric fireplaces and doggie beds, are spread through the pinewood forest, as well as a larger “Grande Cabin” that can accommodate up to 16 people and their pets. All are built - walls, floors and ceilings - from pine harvested in the local woods.
“People are always surprised by how great our suites smell. They come in and are amazed that they can smell the wood,” Birgit says. All the rooms are named for her Berners, as the Bernese dogs are affectionately known.
Birgit, Shell and their dog-loving staff maintain a year-round series of events for guests of both the 2- and 4-legged variety. Bonfires by the lake in winter, beach parties in summer, seminars with a canine specialist, Happy Hours with proceeds benefiting the SPCA, are all ways Domaine Summum helps guests enjoy their time.
“Our staff will take dogs for walks or for a swim, but lots of people just want to chill out with their 4-pawed friends,” Birgit says. “We discovered that people don’t even care about going up to the mountain to ski. They’d rather hang out here, away from the traffic, away from the city, away from all the restrictions. It’s like Club Med, something’s always happening.”
And then there are the puppies. Birgit has raised more than 400 Bernese pups since that first litter, but this is about as far from a puppy mill as you can get. Every dog’s pedigree is scrutinized before breeding to ensure no genetic defects are passed on. And families that want to adopt have to come to Quebec several times to win Birgit’s approval and attend a seminar on “bringing up puppy.”
One unique experience guests like is the chance for their dogs to mingle with other dogs on the trails, with sometimes a dozen dogs having fun together. Birgit says she has become an expert at spotting potential problems, and rarely has an issue with a dog.
Another popular activity is getting together with Birgit and Shell in their private quarters to have a glass of wine, eat pizza and meet the resident Bernese. Domaine Summum also offers catering and has hosted several weddings where dogs were included in the wedding party.
“I want this to be a real vacation for dogs,” Birgit says, “a pinnacle experience, that’s what ‘summum’ means. They have so much love to give. When you look into their eyes, you can see their souls.”
Renee Wright
A graduate of Franconia College in Social Psychology, Renee has worked as Travel Editor for Charlotte Magazine and has written three travel guidebooks for Countryman Press among other writing assignments. She enjoys food and camping.
Make Sure To Stay At:
Domaine Summum, located on 200 acres surrounded by forest in Mont-Tremblant and proud of their facility where Bernese Mountain Dogs roam free throughout our large property.