Julien Labedan, circa 1950
Source:
Archives of the Club de Montagne le Canadien.
In the beginning, the story of rock climbing in Québec was almost exclusively being written by English speakers. All that changed thanks to Julien Labedan who, on a cold and rainy day in May 1949 in Sainte-Marguerite-du-Lac-Masson, founded the Club de Montagne le Canadien (CMC). Julien Labedan, a member of the Club Alpin Français and recently arrived from France, spontaneously recruited its first members in a restaurant in this small Laurentian village.