Pit stop at Herb’s
In 1977, Herb Vink Sr. bought property on the new highway 417 linking Ottawa to Montreal. There, he built a restaurant, a gas station, and a towing business at the intersection of Highway 34. Since there was no other business nearby, travelers and truckers started to make regular pit stops. Herb’s Travel Plaza is still a thriving business in Vankleek Hill, and was fully renovated a few years ago. You can not only get gas and food, but also buy souvenirs, St-Albert cheese, take a shower, do your laundry and get a haircut. Herb’s is hard to miss, with gigantic signs announcing its presence and its iconic red roof. There is lots of room to move around and a handful of old Cessnas are in the field, not far from the old airstrip. I don’t come here very often, though, but from time to time I do make a stop.…