My Shout

Leaving the area around Lac Saint-Jean, we headed south towards the town of Tadoussac, where we had been tempted by the possibility of seeing whales. Beyond there, we now planned to gun it and even head for the remote town of Gaspé, recommended several times by various people.

After a small detour to the town of La Baie and the nearby canyon, we backtracked and drove down the north shore of the Saguenay Fjord towards Tadoussac. Unbelievably, the scenery was even more stunning than what we had already seen and the weather was perfect for seeing it. The route led us past glass lakes reflecting the breathtakingly beautiful fall colours, waterfalls, fjord views and quaint old towns like Sainte-Rose-du-Nord.

Saint-Rose-du-Nord

Finally we settled in Hotel La Beluga in Tadoussac, a town almost entirely dedicated to whale spotting. The next morning we hopped aboard a zodiac dressed like we were headed for the Arctic circle to try and spot some of those snow-white Belugas. It didn't prove particularly difficult either and was a trip well worth taking, with plenty of whales spotted, Belugas included.

Petite Chapelle de Tadoussac

Having seen those beautiful animals, we shifted our sights towards the town of Gaspé. In order to make it there we would have to cross the Saint-Laurent river by ferry. In fact, it's more like a small sea than a river, with the shortest route taking 55 minutes. Naturally we headed for this 'short' crossing, only to be disappointed 200 kms later that it in fact wouldn't leave again till Thursday. argh. So onwards we went another 100 kms to a larger crossing in Baie Comeau. The ferry there would only leave once a day though. Lucky us, we were there 2 hours before departure. Unlucky us, we didn't have a reservation and it was all booked up. So we waited for two hours, 8th in line in the non-reserved queue. Only to be turned away after the first 5 cars got on. We decided to try again the next morning when there would be another ferry.

So bright and early we rose, 3 hours before the ferry's departure was due. "Surely, this would be early enough", we told ourselves as we drove to our fate. Shockingly, there were not 7 cars in front of us this morning, but 9. And so, the wait went on. We left our car in queue and indulged ourselves in some breakfast in the town, in fact probably one of the best breakfasts we had in Canada - the café was phenomenal. And so we waited, and waited and waited a little more. Slowly, cars boarded the ferry and we watched as they started to take on cars from our queue. Finally, just when we thought we didn't stand a chance, we were let on with only two other cars following us. Oh joy!

The ferry ride itself was pretty eventless - a 60km calm journey to the other side. The weather started to let us down at this stage and we made do by enjoying the coastline from the comfort of our car. Only really stopping for lunch along the way, we made good progress and rolled into Gaspé at nightfall, finally settling in a little hotel several kilometres outside of town when we found out that all motels were booked out. The lodging turned out to be quite pleasant. "Sorry, no TV in the rooms" was the only downside, but this in fact probably helped us fall asleep a lot earlier than we normally would. Just as well, because we had some long driving ahead of us.

The next morning we got up bright and early (sometime before 9 AM if I recall ) and went to see the world famous (at least in Quebec) Percé rock. A brief stop to admire this renowned rock from several angles proved enjoyable, before the rest of the day was spent driving the 1000 kilometres towards Montréal. And so, our road trip really came to an end. After a night's sleep in Montréal, we made our way through torrential downpour to Toronto for the conference that warranted coming to Canada in the first place. C'etait une bonne journée!

Can you figure out where to go?

On our way to Toronto. About time for some breakfast

After a week in Montreal, it was time for Sam and I to hit the road and explore some of the countryside and other attractions Quebec has to offer. After comparing prices, we settled on Avis for our rental. Of course, even though I asked for the smallest car possible, we were given a Grand Am, which seems pretty darned big to me. I'm starting to wonder whether rental companies should actually give you a discount when they do this, considering the extra fuel cost involved. After finding a decent road map, we set a course for Quebec City.

Quebec City is an absolutely gorgeous place, something like a North American Prague. Really a very quaint place, with some beautiful old streets, a gigantic castle and a very nice aspect on the river. After a drive-by view of the city, we pulled up at the Information Center to arrange some accommodation. Booked a nice little place in the old town; Hotel Vieux de Quebec, drove down, zig zagged down a few backstreets and finally found a metered car park right next to the hotel that would eventually save us a whole dollar compared to the parking garage; bargain! The next morning we walked around the city and enjoyed some incredible weather; warm, blue skies and barely a cloud to be seen. There were some gigantic cruise ships in town while we were there, so the streets were packed with tourists. It seems a popular stop for the cruise companies and for very good reason.

After a couple of hours of looking around, we set on our merry way towards lac (lake) Saint Jean, a couple of hours drive east through beautiful fall scenery. The leaves are changing colour this time of the year and it really does make for some spectacular views. In particular if you have colour tinted glasses like I do. I swear these shades serve a double purpose sometimes; saving my eyes and just improving my outlook on life.

We pulled into the small town of Roberval on the lake and booked into a motel with a pool table on display. Dinner in the nearby "resto pub" proved a cultural experience. The menu was entirely in French of course, so we spent a while deciphering it as best we could. In the end I chose the tempting Croque Monsieur Grande, which turned out to be a panini and beef sandwich of sorts. Pretty good fare actually. Sam's Beouf le Pub looked pretty apetising as well.

This morning we woke up to another fine Quebecian (made up word alert!) day. Starting to wish I brought some more t-shirts. The nearby Zoo sauvage de Saint-Félicien (Wild Zoo of Saint-Félicien), which proved to be a great few hours. In particular, seeing the polar bears dive into the water and swim about was well worth the entry price. Other attractions included Grizzly Bears, Lynxes, Cougars, Moose and so on. We hopped on a little train cart thingy for an hour. Supposedly "bi-lingual", but it turned out the only bilingual part about it were the small signs in our cart. In fact, I wish they didn't talk so much on this trip - it must have been the loudest wildlife experience ever. It felt good getting some peace and quiet when it was over.

Other than that, we've just been enjoying the beautiful scenery seemingly on offer in whichever direction we head.

Church in Alma

Ian (IMonaghan to TP'ers) spent last month in Melbourne and we had quite a few opportunities to catch up. And there's nothing better than going on a road trip with someone else who loves to see the world. So, the second weekend he was here, we loaded up his hire car and headed straight for the greatest natural attraction in Victoria - the Great Ocean Road. It would be a short trip, but we managed to cram in some great sights.

Getting to the Great Ocean Road is quite straightforward from Melbourne. You just head out on the Geelong Hwy and continue past Geelong following the big brown signs. Passing the small town of Anglesea, there is a famous arch that you go under to officially start your Great Ocean Road trip. You can usually find some tourists taking pictures there. It's almost obligatory to get a picture of yourself in front of that sign.

We meandered down the coast taking in the stunning views. You can't drive fast, but there really is no need to. Along the way, we spotted some Koala's sleepily going about their business. In Lorne, we decided to make a detour and check out the Erskine Falls. On the way, we practically screeched to a halt to give way to a little echidna crossing the road. The echidna was bemused by all the photo taking that was going on and didn't seem to mind it one bit. I guess they can't run fast, so they may as well enjoy the moment. One of the great and often unmentioned things about the Great Ocean Road is the Otway Ranges that it backs on to. There are some spectacular waterfalls, wildlife, forest walks and since recently, even the longest treetop walk in the world (more on that later). You could easily spend a mid-week going from sight to sight at a fairly hectic pace and still not see everything. The Erskine Falls provided a good taste of the rainforest.

Further down the road though we decided to stop at another great rainforest experience - Mait's Rest, an easy (mostly boardwalked) walk through some beautiful ferns and very tall trees. I've been there before but had forgotten how enjoyable it was.

After a lunch of seafood in Apollo Bay, we decided to pay the Cape Otway lighthouse a visit. Lighthouses are usually good fun and this was no exception. The views from the top of the lighthouse are simply stunning.

We noticed the sun was on its way down by now and we needed to make some serious progress to catch the star attraction of the Great Ocean Road, the Twelve Apostles. And we arrived there at exactly the right time - minutes before sunset and a perfect photo opportunity. This scenery never fails to impress.

It was getting dark quickly now, so we pushed on to Warrnambool where we stayed for the night. Warrnambool is a great little town, but sadly not much seemed to be going on that night. We had fish and chips for dinner, then tried the local Irish Pub, but had to leave when the rather dismal band came on stage. Driving around town, we didn't find many other options, so decided to call it an early night. After all, we had plans for the morning.

We didn't have long the next day (had to be back in Melbourne by 5), but we desperately wanted to go see the Otway Fly Treetop Walk, a fairly new attraction. Also, we wanted to stop off at some of the other coastal features we had missed the night before. So, we rose bright and early and headed back to the Road. There are several other great coastal scenic lookouts besides the Apostles. I found the Bay of Islands, which I hadn't seen before, quite spectacular. The Loch Ard Gorge is an old favourite and it didn't disappoint this time either, it's well worth walking down the steps here. Though, I'm sure the caves at the base was accessible last time I visited about 6 years ago. There's another cave that requires some negotiation with the tides that can still be explored though (probably not advisable, but oh well).

The Fly Treetop Walk was enjoyable. Plenty of freaked out people scared of heights to keep us entertained. The walk down to access the Treetop walk is longer than you would imagine though and means you will need to walk back up that hill as well. Still, well worth it.

And that pretty much ended the trip. From there we drove straight back to Melbourne for a bbq and some beers to finish off the day.