We left for Canada last Sunday, specifically to do some whale watching from the vantage point of sea kayaks, to the picturesque town of Tadoussac, Quebec. Tadoussac is one of the oldest settlements in all of Canada and is situated about 3 hours northeast of Quebec City, on the north shore of the St. Lawrence river, and at the confluence of Saguenay river. The mouth of the Saguenay forms one of the few natural fjords in Canada and is reknowned for it's concentration of all sorts of whales; Minkes, Belugas and a host of others. Apparently, krill concentrate there in the summer months and the whales come in to fatten up for the winter months ahead. To get to the village of Tadoussac, you have to cross the Saguenay via ferry, several of which run non-stop.
Here are some photos of the crossing:
At the end of the first day, we camped on the outskirts of Tadoussac at Domaine des dunes. Not a great campsite, as sites are very close to each other and offer very little privacy, but it was a place to settle in for the next couple of nights. At this point, after about 10 hrs of driving, we were happy just to have a place to sleep for the night.
Day 2 - Tuesday
Today, all we had on our minds was sea kayaking and hopefully seeing some whales.
But first, we had a couple of hours to kill, so we took a hike along the fjord and here are some of the views:
The village of Tadoussac
Put your shirt back on!
Nora taking in some sun, or fumbling with her pockets, or something...
Everyone we talked to who had been to Tadoussac told us we would see tons of them. Sadly, this would not be the case! In fact we would not see a one during our 2 hr kayak tour of the fjord, but we did have a great time, cruising up the fjord and back to the harbor. Later on we'd still have an opportunity to see some on the second part of our trip, a few nights in Forillon National Park, which is located on the very tip of the Gaspe peninsula.
Here are a few photos of the kayak trip:
Our kayaks with the company Azimut Adventures
Nora paddling in front - view looking up the Saguenay fjord
The others who made the trip with us
Nora enjoying the ride!
Dave at the stern
Nora and Dave
Later that same day, we drove out to Saguenay Provincial Park in search of beluga. This particular area is supposed to be a sanctuary for belugas. After mountain biking down a trail, we came to a lookout point with an observation deck. There was a naturalist there with high powered binoculars taking notes, looking for belugas. She had seen some during the day, but while we were there, none were to be found. 0 for 2 so far, but the scenery was gorgeous:
Nora looking and hoping to spot some belugas
More later - on to the incredible Forillon National Park!
