30k and a spa

Today was an excellent day for a bike ride.

A little cool. We did 30km. What's with the hills around here? Always going up hills or down hills. And what a weird bike path. It started as hard packed limestone, changed to a nice wide paved path, then loose gravel. It went through a forest and gradually became narrower. I'm sure that I heard banjo music, so we turned around and went back to the street and followed the bike lane. Check out that cool new cycling shirt. Got it in Quebec City.


Along the road we saw these weird houses.

Then it was time for the spa.

Much smaller and intimate than the spa in Gatineau, but still quite nice. It had all the usual things - sauna, steam room, hot and cold pools. We did the hot-cold-relax cycle a few times. We were there for 3 very relaxing hours. A nice way to end the day. Unfortunately they do not allow you to take a glass of wine to the hot tub.

Capital City

So, it's off to visit Quebec City. I was there about 40 years ago for the winter carnival while in college. What a party!! Today was completely different. Much warmer and no ice castle.
Of course, we visited Chateau Frontenac and walked along the boardwalk.

We explored lower town. Narrow streets of restaurants and shops.

While we were in Tadoussac we met Stephanie who told us that she worked at a restaurant, Lapin Saute, in lower town. She told us that it means "crazy rabbit" but my French-English dictionary translates it to jumping rabbit. They specialize in serving rabbit & duck dishes. We decided to pop in for a bite. Unfortunately, Stephanie was not working today. But we met her good friend, Marie. I made her a balloon rose and left a note for Stephanie.
It was a wonderful warm day so, we enjoyed our lunch on the patio. 

I tried the rabbit stew with puff pastry. It was quite tasty. Maryann was not as adventurous. She had the old standard - French onion soup and a salad.

New rubber

When we reached Mont St Anne, as I unloaded the bikes from the carrier I noticed a hole in the side wall of Maryann's front tire. We have a cheap ( OK ... free) bike rack that friends gave us. I guess the 2 bikes were too close and Maryann's tire was rubbing against some part of my bike and it cut a hole in the side wall.
Fortunately, there was a bicycle shop about 5 minutes from the resort. We popped in and they were not busy at all. They had a tire that would work. He sold it to us for 15% off list, he fixed it right then while we waited and did a minor adjustment to Maryann's bike. $6.00 labour charge. And he was a really nice friendly guy.
If you ever need bike repairs near Mont St Anne, go to Epic Bicycles. Tell them Bob sent you.

Mont St Anne

Arrived in Mont Sainte Anne. We are staying at the base of the hill. No skiing - but lots of biking and hiking. Weather is great for these activities. Not too hot, not too cold.

This trail was only about 6.5 km but was uphill most of the way out. A couple of really steep sections. Very scenic right beside a small river. It was a lot more fun coming back down. But a little treacherous on the corners. It had rained during the night so there was lots of wet slippery gravel. But we made it back with no incidents.

Next day we went to Canyon St Anne - http://www.canyonsa.qc.ca/en - a spectacular, steep-sided gorge. An amazing waterfall with 3 bridges that cross over the canyon. This waterfall is almost 100 feet higher than Niagara Falls.
Little Red Dog met a friendly Blue Jay on the path to the falls.

And the canyon and high bridge:

There is a story for the kids about the legend of giants, petraminis and the rainbow. there are 8 chapters told by signs along the path. It is quite an awesome gorge & waterfall.

There is an adventure course through the gorge, similar to tree top trekking. Cables are attached to the rock and you can climb down into the gorge and across the river. Unfortunately, it was closed during the week. I would love to come back and do this adventure.

To the dunes

The next day we were feeling energetic so we broke out the bikes and went to the dunes.

Apparently, they used to sand ski here. Not any more. But it looks like someone still hit the slopes with the dirt bikes and 4 wheelers.
Just past the dunes we hiked up to a look out tower for a different view of the dunes.

Little Red Dog goes east

Little Red Dog is off on another adventure. This time to Quebec.
First stop was the Nordik Spa-Nature in Gatineau Quebec for a nice relaxing afternoon. Hot tubs, saunas, steam rooms, outdoor & indoor relaxation areas. All this and a great view. They suggest we do hot-cold-relax. Repeat. So we did. Stopped in the middle for a light snack & beverage. Didn't get a picture of LRD enjoying the spa cause they have this stupid rule about cameras in the hot tub.
Next day we Mont Tremblant. Quaint little ski village. And great view from the gondola.

Then, off to Tadoussac for some whale watching. Tadoussac is the site of the first trading post between the Europeans and the natives in the early 1600's. It was also a vacation spot for wealthy Americans. The Hotel Tadoussac has been in operation since 1864.

It is also a great feeding ground for whales. Frequently seen whales include minke, beluga & finback. Occasionally, blue, humpback & sperm whales are also seen. We went on a 12 person zodiac to look for whales.

We saw a pod of 7 finback whales. It was quite imposing when the second biggest animal on earth glides by within 100 feet of this tiny boat. We also saw a couple of minke whales and a pod of about 200 grey whales. Also saw a couple of harbour seals.