#2 Tadoussac

We left home a little later than anticipated but this turned out for the best. Along the way, we were not on the scenic route but had amazing scenery on the drive over regardless. When I say it worked out for the best it's because it permitted us to stop at a small place in Tadoussac called "Bistro de la Baie" and to discover the very best fish and chips that Canada has to offer.

Now I say this because I have been all over Canada and I take fish and chips at every reputable restaurant in the regions we visit. From east coast to west coast and even from inland, these are the best yet for my personal taste. So I guess it would be safer to say, "Best fish and chip ever yet!” Along with us for the trip were our very close friends. They had sleeper over the night before so we could leave as early as possible. Just like us, they could not believe how the Fjord was stunning and offered one of the most impressive views we had seen yet on the trip. We also had the chance to see cottages on stunning lakes, we took the ferry across the St-Laurent and saw the sunset over the Fjord and Sarah even got to see a Loon on one of the lakes.

Arriving a little late at our campgrounds, we checked in and made our way to the sites. Tent set up was fast and effective as usual and the fire was going in no time. The stars were shining bright, the wind was in our favor and the waves were calming as we were set up at about ten feet from the river. We all sat around the fire with our lawn chairs, and on the picnic table, and we roasted our famous golden marshmallows and opened a bottle of Sortilege. The only downfall of being so close to the water was that one of the only things we could hear other than the fire and waves were the hundreds of seagulls signing the song of their people...all night long. The fire finally died down, we could slowly start to see the bottom of the bottle and we noticed that we were the only ones still up in our vicinity. When we realized it was 01:30am, we took the executive decision that going to bed would be the responsible choice in our case. As we were planning to get up at 05:00am to see the whales jump from our camping sites.

Shortly after going to bed, 05:00am came around to let us know that it was indeed time to see the whales jumping from our own temporary back yards. Oh how wrong 05:00am was. We stayed up, stared at the horizon and gave our ears to the sea but no whales were spotted. 

After a good hour or so, we decided that it would be wise to go back to bed for at least another hour. So we did. But then again, the seagulls tuned in on us pretty quickly also. At 07:00am, we got up and made our way to breakfast at "Down town Tadoussac" after packing and erasing our footprints from camp spots. As usual, Sarah picked a spot to eat that had a beautiful ambiance and amazing food. I had the duck for breakfast. The name of this place was called "Café Boheme". At the time it was rated one of the top for breakfast in the region. This started of the day perfectly. Was it ever beautiful outside! After paying e bills, we made our way to the charter shop to get fitted and geared up. The process was fairly quick and before we knew it, we were mounting the big yellow twenty-five people Zodiac to go whale watching on the St-Laurent River. The initial plan was to go 45 minutes out to see the whales. On our way, we stopped to see Harbor Porpoises.

A very common mammal in these types of places. Then, we were fortunate enough to see a Beluga with what we think was her baby. We then set out for our original destination. On our way we stopped again. This time we could see Finbacks and a Mink whale. Hearing on the radio that other boats spotted humpback whales, the driver told us to hang on and brought us up to our destination. There were two of them. They were not jumping out of the water but were not shy in showing their tail patters to us.

In total, the whale-watching trip went on for 3 hours. On our way back we were able to see a few of the whales we had seen before. Luckily, we had turned back when we did because bad temperature was rolling in as we were returning to the dock. After we brought our warm wet gear back to the hut, we found another little quaint local restaurant for lunch. And we were not disappointed. That was my second time that day having duck. "The Pick up" it was called. On our way back home, we took the scenic route to enjoy every last bit of the trip. We stopped along the way at a look out that rested on top of a mountain facing the river. A few twists, turns, ups and downs and we were home a few hours later.

All is well that ends well. We had gone whale watching in the past. Last time they were Orca whales. But this story is for another time. Just to say that I had forgotten how impressive these mammals are to see in action and how gentle they can be. And might I add, the score is Loon: 2, Frank: 0

Until next time,

Frank