Rte. 138 on the North Shore of the St. Lawrence River is known as the Whale Watching Trail. Thirteen species of whale visit the North coast of the Gulf of St. Lawrence during the summer months in search of plentiful plankton. The road traverses many different ecosystems, from the hardwood forests of birches and maples to spruce and fir forested mountains, mud flat coastal plains, and rugged rocky shores. At Baie Ste Catherine the road ends and a ferry ride of fifteen minutes takes you across the Saguenay River Fjord, where the forested mountains kiss the waters. For a distance of forty miles on either side of the fjord is Parc Saguenay, a Provincial Park of Quebec. This is an excellent place to catch a whale watching excursion, which also takes you up into the fjord. On our way across the fjord we had to wait while one of these boats made its way up the fjord. Nearby, just South of Baie Ste. Catherine is a casino, where you can try your luck at the slots or gaming tables. We played the pass line on that.After eight hours of driving roller coaster roads for over 250 miles, we looked for a place to stay overnight. We came across a scenic outlook stop just outside of Ragueneau, about ten miles South of Baie Comeau. What greeted us was very surprising: two coral-pink concrete dinosaurs and a white 100 foot obelisk. The area was the brain child of M. Rinald Girard, who wanted to erect a monument to the spirit of the area. The dinosaurs represent the forces of nature and the beauty of the region before recorded history. The obelisk represents the bounty of benevolence which the area has given to the settlers. At the site is a boat ramp, numerous potted plants, and a gazebo with benches and tables to watch the birds on the offshore islands, the harbor seals, and the occasional whale. Even though this place is not in the tourist books or on the map, there was a constant stream of visitors to take in the view. We fell asleep listening to the waves lapping of the rocky shore and the fall of the rain on the trailer.We awoke to a cloudy misty day. A group of kayakers were getting ready to shove off from the boat ramp. I did not think it was such a great day to kayak: cold and rainy. Baie Comeau was established by Robert McCormick, owner of the Chicago Tribune, because of his need for pulp wood to make newsprint. Besides the logging industry, Alcoa Aluminum has a large processing plant there.Our first stop was at the tourist office to find out about road conditions to Labrador City and make reservations for the ferry to Newfoundland. While talking to the reservationist on the phone, we found out that the ferry service to Newfoundland was discontinued from Goose Bay to Lewisport NF. What a bummer that was. We had hoped to make this journey on the Eastern highway to the North, a distance of over 500 miles, and write an article about it. This would have been one of the great adventures, since half of the distance was on gravel roads. Needless to say, we were greatly disappointed, like the dark rain clouds overhead. Instead we were fortunate enough to book a ride on the ferry across the St. Lawrence to Matane on the Gaspe Penisula, a two and a half hour trip for 2000 that evening. The only other option was to return to Quebec City and cross via the bridge.The gentleman at the tourist information office gave us some interesting sightseeing options in the area. We decided to take the eleven mile trip to the hydro-electric dam, Manix 2. This was on the route which would take us North. We had planned to visit the dam on our way. The journey of ten miles took almost one half an hour, due to the terrain of the roads, another roller coaster ride.The dam is pretty impressive. It is one of a series of nine hydro-electric dams in the area, which produces about thirty percent of the electrical needs for all of Provence Quebec. The ninety minute tour was in French, but we were given English translations. The guide took us through the interior of the dam itself (very impressive), and the powerhouse, where we actually saw the electricity being made by the massive turbines. The process is like a water mill. The water flows over the wheel, which spins a larger wheel surrounded by electromagnets. The spinning causes negative and positive charges with the magnets: ergo AC current.We took the trip back to town and went to lunch at a Chinese Buffet. The food was mediocre, at best, and the service was nonexistent. Since we had about five hours to kill we parked at a local park near the ferry dock and watched the harbor seals cavort in the bay. When the time came to board the ferry, we were in line. We were very impressed about how close we were packed into the ferry. The cost for our transport over the waters was $131.00 Canadian. We had spent almost $100.00 filling up the truck earlier that day. We felt that the trip across the water was a bargain.The ferry offers many different services: dining room, cafeteria, bar, play room for children, and lounge chairs. With dusk approaching, we put our noses into books and read during the journey. Morgana was left in the trailer in the hold of the ship. I don’t know how she reacted to the constant rocking of the ship, but she left a mess (furball) for us to clean. When we reached the other shore, we were greeted by a fog so think we decided to stay on the dock. We were permitted to park over to the side with a few other trailers for the night.
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