We departed Montréal on Sunday, the 11th, and made the 79 mile run to Trois Rivières where we stayed overnight. Trois Rivières is a pleasant spot, not much around other than a park, but it was a good spot for a walk, and Molly got to do a lot of swimming! Water temps near 70. Lots of weekend boaters were packing it in to head home as we arrived.
We got under way at 0815 and arrived in Québec City at 1600. With the significant currents in the St. Lawrence, we’re able to cover a bit more ground than we typically can do in a day, thanks to a current that can sometimes chug along at up to 5 kts! The scenery along the waterway is beautiful, many churches punctuate the landscape with their silver colored spires, some are monstrous buildings, dwarfing all the surrounding structures. The geography is constantly changing as we progress further east on our route. The basin at Quebec City is unique in that it is behind a lock. An outer basin provides a place to get out of the current of the river and set up to lock into the upper basin. The lock keeps the water level in the inner basin at a more consistent level than the river’s 18 foot tidal swings and swift currents. We’re now dealing with tides again, and in a big way we’ve never experienced! The skyline of Quebec is impressive, especially at night. The plan is to stay for three days and explore.