DESTINATIONS — CANADA
French connection
Katie McGonagle has a
whale of a time in Quebec’s maritime region
extra pounds of blubber. It might sound like another no-hoper auditionee on The X Factor, but the shy beluga whale isn’t one to pose for a camera. So as I sailed from Tadoussac on a whale-watching cruise along the St Lawrence River, I crossed my fingers in the hope of catching a glimpse. My luck must have been in,
S
because as the first shout of ‘beluga’ came, I raced across the
mall, pale, with a great vocal range, but carrying a few
deck to find a dozen-strong pod of these milky-white whales bobbing around beside us. They’d brought along a few babies too, their darker grey heads popping up here and there, never straying too far from a protective parent. This was the first of several
captivating wildlife encounters in this rural region, showing why it’s worth going beyond the flagship cities of Montreal and Quebec City to discover another side of French Canada.
Blooming marvellous: Reford Gardens
l HERITAGE TRAIL That’s not to say the cities don’t deserve attention, and handily they’re also the gateway to the region. Air Canada flies daily to Montreal in seven hours or so (from £629), from which clients can catch an hour-long connection to Quebec City (from £735 in total), or look around Montreal then take the three-hour Via Rail service to the province’s capital. Once in Quebec City, visitors will find a small, walkable city with history at every turn, from the 17th-century ramparts and Plains
of Abraham, recalling Anglo-French skirmishes over the city, to icons such as the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac, built by the Canadian Pacific Railway.
The name Quebec comes from the Algonquin word meaning ‘where the river narrows’, and the St Lawrence coast makes for a scenic self-drive. Quebec Maritime’s tourist board publishes routes themed around whale- watching, national parks and a lighthouse trail. Anyone interested in the sea-faring history that shaped this region should make Pointe-au-Père maritime historic site near Rimouski their first stop. It’s home to Canada’s only publicly-accessible submarine, the second-tallest lighthouse in Canada, but most impressively, a touching display commemorating the 1914 sinking of the Empress of Ireland in the St Lawrence River, which killed more than 1,000
passengers. It’s less well- known than the Titanic, but no less deserving of
attention, and this collection
of artefacts sheds valuable light on the tragedy.
Museum entrance is £5 or £12.70 for all three attractions.
While most first-time visitors to Quebec will be surprised by how French everything is – it’s the most widely spoken language, and everything from the cuisine to the culture reflects those historic ties – there are some pockets that seem like a little England. They include Reford Gardens
at Mont-Joli, which will appeal to anyone who likes visiting National Trust properties. It began as a fishing lodge built by the first Canadian member of the House of Lords, then was bequeathed to his niece Elsie, who developed the extensive gardens with flowers from around the world. Fast-forward a century
11 September 2014 —
travelweekly.co.uk • 63
▲
PICTURES: LE QUÉBECMARITIME/JEAN-PIERRE HUARD/JEAN-PIERRE SYLVESTRE/CLAUDE BOUCHARD/MARC LOISELLE/STEVE DESCHENES ; CANADIAN TOURISM COMMISSION
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84