The WakaNahannis at Sea: Quebec City to Tadoussac

After Quebec City, the distances between ports get longer and the areas become more remote. Tides and currents need to be considered when navigating. Things like fuel and food that are easy to obtain upstream, become less accessible. So, we needed a little time to prepare and plan.

Before we returned our little Fiat, we did another big grocery run and visited the Marché du Vieux-Port for fresh fruits and vegetables. The kids took over some of the shopping in the market to practice their conversational French. We also did one last walk around the old port.

Shopping in the Marche

We ate baskets of these fresh, local strawberries

Across from the marina

Who can resist climbing into this sculpture?

As most people know, we are not early risers. So, when John told me that we had to leave Quebec City at 0345 to catch the ebbing tide downriver, I winced just a little. We did however, manage to rise on time to stagger our way into the cold, dark morning. Simon made a cameo appearance and then retreated back into his warm bed as the city lights on the river began to fade.

Leaving early morning

The conditions were calm as we motored downstream.We had a few knots of current against us at the beginning, but when the tide turned, we raced along at about 13 knots. After 9.5 hours, we arrived at the Port de Refuge at Cap-a-l'Aigle which is a fully equipped marina established for boats making their way on the river. We were struck by the effects of the tides, which at this time were about 4 metres.

Onshore, the kids got their first look at the marine life that can be seen during the cycle of the tide. It was difficult to get them back to Bomeschool after their prolonged playtime.

We had another early morning the following day at 0530 when we departed for Tadoussac. This town at the mouth of the Saguenay River is a famous place where many kinds of sea mammals come to feed. There are thirteen species of whales here!

Sunrise on our way to Tadoussac

Around 0930, we were about one hour from Tadoussac. The kids got up, dressed and geared up with binoculars. The sun was shining, the seas were calm and visibility was perfect. As we approached the famous lighthouse outside of the Saguenay, we started to see the blowholes. We stood in awe and pointed all around us as our whale-watching adventure began.

Searching for whales

First, we saw Belugas with their white backs swimming in pods. Then came black fins, which were likely Minke whales. Shiny black heads turned out to be about fifty Harbour seals diving, eating and swimming. We could hear them breathing they were so close.

Thar she blows!

Prince Shoal Lighthouse

Seals and a Minke whale which just dove before getting this photo

Seals

As we got closer, pods of Beluga came fairly close to the boat. We could see the mother whales and their greyish baby calves. The Marine Park dictates boats do not come within 400 metres of the whales so as not to disturb their activities. But they were coming closer to us, and there was no where to move without coming closer to other whales or seals. It was breathtaking, exciting and awe-inspiring all at the same time. I kept chanting under my breath, "We are sooo lucky." (Of course, I cannot multi-task while watching and chanting and did not get a closer photo.)

As we were drifting into Tadoussac watching the whales, tour boats started coming out with boat loads of tourists to see the whales. Whale watching is big business in Tadoussac and there are many tourists that come to observe and appreciate these amazing animals.

Enthusiastic tourists in perfect whale watching weather

We made our way into the port and tied up next to several other sailboats. After a hot meal, we took a stroll around this old town that has been an important trading post in history.

Breakfast for the crew after a day of whale watching

Hotel Tadoussac

Marina from the town above

The kids were itching to get to the beach and squealed with delight as they found starfish, sea urchins, crabs and krill that they collected in pails and studied. They built forts in the sand and watched as the rising tides washed them away without a trace.

Starfish and sea urchin

Baby crab

Sea life and forts...what could be better?

Beach time

After we brushed most of the sand off, we visited the Marine Mammal Interpretation Centre (http://www.quebecmaritime.ca/en/company/marine-mammal-interpretation-centre-cimm/activities). We learned heaps about the whales and the research being conducted here. Their whale skeletons were very well-displayed and the exhibits were interactive. The staff were passionate about the marine mammals in the area and were eager to share their knowledge.

The Marine Mammal Interpretation Centre

The kids awoke to our second day in Tadoussac with a low tide. The beach they had been playing at the previous day had doubled in size and there were more treasures to explore. After some negotiating, they were excused from Bomeschool for the morning to poke around on the beach. They returned back for their afternoon classes with strange new requests for lunch (e.g. "Can you please cook up this sea urchin?") and new injuries (e.g. Wavey's pinched finger from her new crab buddy.)

First crab injury

I heard some yawns a bit through math, but our students perked up as we started a new Science unit starting with the lunar cycle and the moon's effects on tides. We ended the day by watching a past episode of CBC's The Nature of Things, "Call of the Baby Beluga". Fascinating look at this endangered whale.
(See at http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/call-of-the-baby-beluga)

The only down side is that I cannot get that Raffi song out of my head. You know the one. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mK1sF6kv0l8)

After two days in Tadoussac, we started to prepare for our departure to Rimouski. Out of the blue, we got a text from our friends Tom, Chris and Noah. They informed us that they were in Quebec City and wondered if we were in the area. Simon immediately stated, "Can we go back to Quebec to see Noah?" We shook our heads. Despite our wish to see our friends, we could not make the 100 nautical miles back upstream. Then we got the text: they were going to rent a car and make the three hour drive to come and see us!

The following morning, the kids raced through their language, math and science so they could collect sea creatures to show Noah. Noah and his parents arrived around noon and the kids quickly fell into their comfort zone, as good friends will do.

Life at low tide

Starfish and sea urchins

The fog had been rolling in and out all day, but we felt we had a window of good visibility to go for a sail and see some whales in the process. As we got half a mile out of the harbour, the icy fog rolled in and the visibility was reduced to about 50 feet. Luckily our RADAR was working well and we could see the boat that passed in front of us about 100 feet on the computer screen. About 1.5 miles out, we encountered some standing waves as the ebbing current from the Saguenay was meeting the St. Lawrence current. It looked very ominous in the fog.

Chris and Tom

Noah and Simon before the fog rolled in

We decided to turn back into the port as there was no way we were going to spot any whales. The fog lifted briefly when Tom yelled, "Whale!" We all scrambled to see three Belugas swimming off our starboard side. As we made our way we sighted them again, and this time, they swam right under out boat and alongside! One was particularly curious and swam around to the back of the boat before diving. It was unbelievable how lucky we were to see these amazing animals!

Belugas swimming beside the boat (taken by Chris Pollard)

We stayed on our high for the rest of the day visiting with our friends, walking around the town, going for a hike, and dining out. We were sad to see the day end and wave goodbye to good friends.