Canada Farewell Tour

We carried on the journey by crossing over the St. Lawrence River to the northern side around Quebec City in order to avoid Montreal traffic on Labour Day. We ended up getting set back a couple hours due to accident-inspired traffic jams in spite of our best efforts. At the same time though, I had never driven along that side of the river, so it seemed good for a lark. There proved to be little of interest to speak of, so I will cease speaking of it here, other than to note that we stepped out of the vehicle briefly to see the Montmorency Waterfall (A on the map) near Quebec City, then kept going southwest on the way to Ottawa, Ontario. (One might wonder legitimately why we didn't spend more time in Quebec. It's mostly because we lived in Montreal for 6 years, and had seen a fair deal. Also, we are trying to get to Alberta/British Columbia before the days are too short, the weather is too cold, the leaves have left the trees, and so on). Montmorency is a cool waterfall, but in ...

We were now at the end of our lingering stage when it came to the Gaspe Peninsula. We had our fun, but Kenting said it was time to "drive on" and make some progress westward. Accordingly, we covered about 7 hours (as per Google Maps standards) of driving over the next 2 days through some wildly steep hills and wicked curves that rivaled (and potentially outdid) the worst of the Cabot Trail (tons of gearing down on the declines), especially on the first day. It was hard to make much progress through the hills. Google Maps said it would take 3 hours on the first day, but it was like we were going back in time. The speed limit said 90km/h, but only a madman would drive that speed on those roads with even a small RV like ours. 70km/h was our limit and we rarely made that. But we also discovered some outstanding coastal scenery along the way that was impressive enough to make us wonder if it shouldn't be rated higher than the Cabot Trail as a "bucket list" driving ex...

After a breif 1.5 hour or so drive (and a stop for groceries halfway), we arrived in Frollion National Park, which is just after the actual town of Gaspe and on the easternmost part of the peninsula. We would stay 2 nights there at separate sites within the park. The first night was Camping des Rosiers (A on the map; called Rosebush Campground in English). This site was attached to a nice (smooth) rock beach and I would highly recommend it.  At the end of this beach there is a lighthouse said to be the tallest in Canada. Kenting had himself a time with the driftwood. Lots to choose from. The campsite was just off the water, which was visible through the trees. Just missed the sunrise in the AM. Seemingly obligatory wigwam made of driftwood, plus the obligatory Kenting pose before it: We did a 2 hour hike to a lookout tower within the park on day 1. A steep climb for sure, but a quality view as payment at the end. My wife seemed happy enough with it. Kenting was keeping it together,...