Raftsmen, or log drivers, were an elite group of forestry workers. With a twelve-foot boathook and cantdog peavy in hand, they manoeuvred logs freely down the Rivière du Nord and the Rivière aux Mulets. When jams formed above the Grande Chute, at the chenal des Paresseux or near the chemin du Loup-Garou, the bravest log drivers deftly planted a stick of dynamite in the jam to clear the way.
The most notorious local driver was Arcade Desjardins, who was an excellent jumper. Log driving came to an end in Sainte-Adèle around 1920. In French, we say “drave”, from the English word “drive”, as in to drive the logs.