Stop signs seem to mean nothing in the Town of Brome Lake. Drivers are brazen enough to barrel through stop signs at the four corners in Knowlton or at the top of the hill right across from City Hall. Long lines of motorcycles just drive through one after the other, on the assumption that on the backroads it is even worse. Some people might slow down to take a look, but then drive straight through. Motorcycles are another case. Long lines of bikers cruise through stop signs, working on the assumption that they have the same rights as a funeral cortege. The first one checked it out, so we are just following traffic.

Police are rare in the village, though there was a speed and stop sign check one day in August. The Sûreté is all but non-existent on the back roads. Speeding, even in school zones goes pretty much unchecked.

At the risk of seeming cranky, we now move off road to the shoreline. Brome Lake is a delicate creature. It reacts to phosphates and other nasties that seep in. That is why the shore is best left wild, or at least with the grass uncut. Some newcomers, as well as people who have lived here for a while, like a short suburban lawn. That is not good for the lake. There are rules that say it should not be done. But as far as we can see, no one police that. Then there is a final no-no: chopping the aquatic plants that grow in the shallows to make it easier to wade or swim. They help the lake breathing. They should be left alone.