In Search of the White Whale: Van Touring Quebec’s Côte-Nord and Gaspé Peninsula

By Perri

After a challenging, wobbly time back home in New England, we decided to take a jog north and visit Northern Québec. Although Dan is Canadian, he hadn’t spent much time north of his home turf of Montreal and I hadn’t either.

25 years ago, when we first met, we talked about taking a trip North “to where the roads end” to see the beluga whales that live in the Saint Lawrence Seaway (I have a thing for beluga whales, dating back to childhood visits to the Brooklyn Aquarium and this population of belugas are the only ones that live south of the Arctic Circle). But 25 years ago, we had no money and little free time, and our trip North remained imaginary. Two houses and three children later, we have a little more money and a lot more free time… and we have Steven.

It seemed about time to go see those whales!

Though our preferred mode is slow (verrry slow) we had just over two weeks for this adventure, as we were due at a family gathering in Michigan mid June. Not a whole lot of time to explore the 300+ thousand square miles of northern Quebec. But we planned to make the best of it… and to see those adorable white whales.

Crossing the Border

We crossed the Canadian Border in New Hampshire, at the small Canadian town of Coaticook and immediately headed North, boondocking at a rest area we found on iOverlander.

And what a rest area it was! Among many other amenities, it had a lookout tower in the shape of a giant cow. Though its head and neck were sheet metal, much of the “cow” was made up of black and white painted boulders. As you can see, it was pretty awesome!

Quebec City

The next day, we set out for Quebec City. With help from some RV friends who’d visited Quebec last fall, we found a free spot just outside the city’s center. It was a parking lot, but we had a view of the city … and we immediately walked over to check out the sights.

Quebec City is beautiful, chock full of charm. There were tourists from all over the world wandering the winding, narrow streets. Milo joined us on our first Quebec walkabout, but we quickly learned that this city was tough on old dogs. Milo huffed and puffed up the steep stairways and streets, and drew looks of fear and worry as he nosed through the crowd.

When we finally reached the deck of the beautiful Chateau Frontenac, we spent some time enjoying the view. Milo definitely seemed to prefer that. He stayed in the van when we returned to the city later that night to enjoy some fancy drinks, steamed mussels and local fish. It was a glorious and delicious visit. And it was just long enough for us to enjoy the city without totally blowing our budget.

Côte-Nord

The Côte-Nord (or “North Coast”) of Quebec follows the Saint Lawrence Seaway from the town of Tadoussac to the border of Labrador. The drive along the coast is also known as “The Whale Route” as many types of whales frequent this area from May to September.

We planned to drive up the coast as far as we could, camp cheaply, hike and beachcomb and (of course) see whales– especially belugas. The drive was beautiful and interesting. The Saint Lawrence, for most of the Côte-Nord is a very wide, salty half-river. And it grew wider, wilder, and more rugged with each kilometer. I will try to cover some of the highlights below.

Tadoussac

The small town of Tadoussac is the center of the Saguenay-St Lawrence Marine Park. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in this small, whale-focused town. For starters, there is a free ferry across the mouth of the Saguenay Fjord to reach Tadoussac. Though short, it gives you some lovely views of the fjord and also a chance to see the Saguenay’s famous belugas. (We didn’t though.)

Most of the town is waaay downhill by the water. There’s a beach, marina, museum, a fancy hotel, whale-watch companies, restaurants and gift shops in Tadoussac. Also: limited parking. We visited in May, just before the tourist season kicked into gear, but there were already groups of visitors about. I imagine this town gets super busy in full-on summertime.

We opted to camp on the hill above Tadoussac, at Camping Tadoussac a private campground. This was a bit of a splurge for us ($30 CD), but we wanted access to the town. And showers, we definitely wanted access to showers after several days on the road and no Planet Fitness in sight. (FYI: There is no Planet Fitness in Quebec.) The campground was mostly empty, and we got a site right on the cusp of the hill, overlooking the town and seaway. It was a lovely spot. We parked so the van doors opened to this view:

Then we headed down into town to explore. We walked on the beach, on the town trails, and into the local microbrewery. It was a lovely afternoon. However the walk back up the hill to our camp was challenging after so many sedentary days in the van.

We later visited the Marine Mammal Interpretation Center which was really interesting. It has the largest collection of complete whale skeletons in Canada. Though the exhibits are in French, the docent gave us an English copy of all the text to carry around with us. He also provided us with a private tour of the main exhibits, in English and answered our MANY questions about when and where to see whales.

When we returned to our campsite, we found we had a neighbor: a young man named Brayan, traveling Quebec with his dog Franchesca and camping in his Tesla. He invited us over for dinner, and we spent a lovely evening by the fire, talking about life and travel and sharing stories of our lives on the road. For us, it’s rare and wonderful, to meet folks we connect with on the road. I’m sure we’ll run into Bryan again– maybe out west next time!

Anyway, we liked Tadoussac so much, we visited again on our way back to the US. This time around, we parked at the trailhead (also in the hills above Tadoussac) and walked a gazillion stairs down to town. We spent a few hours gazing off into the bay looking for the belugas. It was beautiful and a bit stark on the coast that day.

No whales though.

L’Anse Au Roche

On the hunt for belugas, we traveled up the Saguenay Fjord to the tiny town of L’Anse Au Roche. Tucked into a steep-sided cove along the north shore of the Fjord, this town has a pier with picnic tables and marine mammal related exhibits. It is known to be a good spot for beluga whale observation. Here, we had a lovely lunch of tuna wraps made with spicy ghost pepper aoili. But we saw no whales and took no pictures.

We spent the rest of the day, gradually moving up the coast. We stopped at Cap de Bon Desir Interpretation and Observation Center, and though this park had not yet opened for the season, we hiked out to the observation point anyway. It was beautiful and windswept. No whales though.

Les Escoumins

We next spent the night at a lovely free campground provided by the town of Les Escoumins. This spot was beside a salmon river and had a dog park, bathrooms with flush toilets, and picnic tables.

Our site was just outside of town aaannnd it was kinda rainy. So we opted to skip soggy van cooking and walk into Les Escoumins for pizza(!) The next morning, was bright and clear. We met our campground neighbor, an older gentleman named Claudio. He had spent many years touring Quebec in his teardrop trailer and highly recommended the Gaspe Penninsula. Many, many people we met recommended the Gaspe Peninsula.

We contemplated our next move over breakfast while scouting for whales at another lovely Les Escoumins town park.

From Les Escoumins, we headed further up the coast, exploring the multitude of waterside parks and rest areas. We stopped at a seafood market, but it was too early in the season for the salmon we’d hoped for. And we ended up buying pickled mussels …um, not something we expected (thought they were fresh ones!) and not something we’d necessarily eat again. But, hey, here’s to trying local foods!

Franquelin

We continued up the coast to the small town of Franquelin where, according to our iOverlander app, there were several free wild camping beside the water. It was hard to gauge the condition of the road in as the reviews were all over the place, from “not too bad” to “4 wheel drive needed”. After getting stuck in Kentucky, we were leery about heading into rough terrain. So we parked and walked a good ways into the woods, before making the call: Steven would probably be alright on the rutted brushy road if we took it slow.

We inched as far as we dared, staked out a site with an expansive view of the seaway and kept our eyes peeled for those ever-elusive whales.

The next morning, we scouted the road a little further in. It seemed doable– though narrow and rutted and steep. There was a lovely spot down there– with a picnic table and just enough room for Steven. We went for it… and this marvelous, free spot was ours!

We set up camp and planned to stay put a while. AND while eating a late breakfast in this lovely new spot, we saw a whale! It was a Fin whale, and surfaced quite close to shore. The sound of its exhalation rumbled right through us. A moment to remember.

Later, we sat in the sun and discussed our next move. We wanted to continue up the Cote Nord to Labrador, but we also wanted to cross the seaway and check out the Gaspé Peninsula, which was so highly recommended by practically everyone we’d met.

We had no idea that a new factor would come into play.

Dan began to feel sick, quite sick soon after that. In our 9+ months on the road, we hadn’t gotten so much as a cold. We’d updated our vaccinations in November and took precautions, maybe not as many precautions as we should have and– Voila! — COVID.

We spent the next couple days hunkered down in this lovely spot. Dan slept (and slept and slept) and I walked the beaches and read and hiked. I also made hearty breakfasts, brewed tea, pushed advil, and… worried.

I wasn’t sure we’d be able to turn Steven around and get back up that rough road by myself. Dan can manuever that van up like nobody’s business, and he worries not a bit when he has to back up towards a cliff face or scrabble for traction on rubble-strewn roads.

We took a wait and see approach and waited and saw.

A few days later, Dan still wasn’t feeling great. He had progressed from exhausted and sniffly to exhausted and a horribly sore throat. For days now, we had been sleeping with masks in our 77 square feet of living space, and I had no symptoms. But we worried about what would happen if I got COVID as well, and we were both incapacitated in our beautiful, remote, hard to get to spot.

In the end, we decided to take the ferry over to Matane on the Gaspé peninsula and hole up in (gasp!) a motel, so that there would be a little more space between us and more help available if needed. Once we decided on a plan, we had to drive back up the rough road and an hour north to the tiny town of Godbout to catch the ferry.

Were lucky, though Dan did feel pretty draggy, he was able to make a heroic 5-point-turn and get us back to the hardtop.

The ferry was a bit tricky. We were not allowed to stay in the van during transit. So we stayed outside on deck and masked up. It was pretty chilly and exhausting (for Dan) and stressful for me. Suffice to say, we did not see any whales.

Gaspé Peninsula

Matane

We arrived in the larger, more industrial town of Matane a little weary and a lot stressed. I had researched motels while we were in Franquelin, but the only “dog friendly” one in town seemed empty and closed. We drove around to others but none allowed pets. In desperation, we returned to our original choice, and though the lot was totally deserted, the office turned out to be open!

The woman behind the counter was super friendly and accommodating, and dogs were indeed allowed. So we blew our budget on a small room that, after taxes and pet fees, cost about $140 USD. But it was clean and quiet, with a fan and enough space to wait out COVID the best we could.

And so, while Dan slept, I walked the dog and made runs to drug stores and supermarkets. It wasn’t the best time ever, but we made it through. And after a while, Dan felt well enough to continue our journey.

Gaspé

I’ll admit that, my first impression of the Gaspé peninsula was … “eh”. We had come from a rugged, wild place and, at first, Gaspé seemed less so. Matane, where we arrived, had an old industrial city feel, and for miles north, it was strip malls and Walmarts and the usual stuff of civilization.

But gradually, the wild coast re-asserted itself. The drive north from Matane was spectacular. Truly. For much of the way, the ever-wider Saint Lawrence is just to the left, and there are deep woods and mountainous headlands and picturesque towns tucked into coves.

We didn’t stop much; Dan slept most of the way, and I just drove and gawped and listened to my Curated Road Trip Playlist.

We ended up at a private campground, Camping Gaspé where the super friendly owners did their best to make us comfortable. It was before the start of the season here too, and the campground at the mouth of a river, was quiet and well kept. We hunkered down for another few days of rest. Showers, laundry and comfort were the order of the day. The campground owners let me borrow the kayaks and bikes and, while Dan rested, and I explored the bay and the nearby beach. It was just what we needed.

When Dan felt better, we drove to Forillon National Park and hiked up to the point of the Gaspé Peninsula.

The five mile uphill hike was maybe a bit too much too soon for Dan. And Milo went a little crazy with all the wild new animal smells and overdid it as well. But we saw a beautiful sunset, a black bear and cub and a couple of moose. It was lovely and wild and everything a windswept headland should be. (A quick note: while dogs were allowed on this hike, we wouldn’t recommend taking a pet here as there was large animal tracks and scat all over the place. We were lucky that the moose we saw beside the trail was tolerant of Milo’s excited woofing.)

A Speedy Little Tour of Gaspé

Once Dan was recovered and we were ready to move on, we had very little time left to explore. We zoomed around the far side of the peninsula, checking out the iconic Percé Rock and the entire eastern coast of Gaspé in one day.

We camped inland at a budget-friendly town campground in Matapedia with the nicest campground shower situation we have ever seen and traveled down to to Riviere du Loup to catch another ferry back to the Côte-Nord. We “stealth camped” near the marina in Riviere du Loup, caught both a beautiful sunset over the St Lawrence and the early ferry back to the Côte-Nord.

We re-visited Tadoussac and drove up the Saguenay Fjord to St Rose du Nord, a small town known for beluga whale viewing. We hiked along a rocky trail by the water, looking–one last time– for those wily whales. And, whale-less once again, we drowned our sorrows in a supersize serving of poutine. Which was tasty and terrible at the same time. Don’t ask me how, it just was.

Then we sped south towards Michigan and our nephew’s bar mitzvah. On the way, we boondocked in the wildlife reserve south of the city of Saguenay, stopped over at our youngest’s apartment in Montreal, camped in a small town park in in Ingersoll, the cheese capital of Ontario, and crossed the border with one day to spare!

Van Living in all its Guts and Glory

Whew! That was a long one! As I wrote this post, I realized that this leg of the journey, from the New Hampshire Border to Quebec City, along the Côte-Nord, around Gaspé and on through Ontario is “Van-Life” in a nutshell. In a little over two weeks’ travel we stealth-camped in cities, spent time at civilized campgrounds and in free wild spots. We took in breathtaking vistas and struggled with unexpected illness. We caved and got a hotel room, enjoyed local foods (sort of) and local drinks (definitely). We hiked, and beachcombed and inched down a rugged forest road and camped on the side of the road. We even made a couple of new friends. Down days, awesome days, always something new and unexpected, this is the stuff of the nomadic lifestyle.

We even saw a whale (…though, sadly, not a beluga).

And somehow, we already feel the pull of the Côte-Nord. We will definitely return in pursuit of our white whale, whether it is a beluga or a perfect van life adventure.

A few things to know if you travel to Quebec:

• Be prepared at the border Have your passports and, if traveling with a pet, rabies vaccine documentation. Guns, bear spray, and some foods and drinks are not allowed. Provide a purpose and time frame for your visit
• Expect French Quebec is a French speaking province. Although many people are bilingual and will switch to English to help you communicate, some may not. In Gaspé and the Côte Nord, many folks do not speak English. We were lucky in this regard, Dan speaks French. I am working on learning it too– through the Duolingo app
• Check Your cell phone policy Rural Quebec generally has better cell coverage than rural places in the US. But some phone plans will restrict your usage in Canada. You may need to check with your carrier about adding features for your trip.
• Expect Metric In Canada, speed limits, distances, gasoline amounts and almost everything else are in measured in metric units. $1.79 per liter of gas, the most expensive we bought on our trip, is quite a bit more than $1.79 per GALLON in gas (We calculated that, with the exchange rate, it was about $4.85 a gallon)