The St. Lawrence River

From the eastern end of Lake Ontario to its merge into the Gulf of St. Lawrence

Nord Hus arriving in Brockville Photo: Yolande Bernard

I spent 20 years of my early adult life near the St. Lawrence River; seeing that world from a different perspective was a treat. We passed under bridges that we used to cross weekly to access our weekend warrior playgrounds in upstate New York, the Adirondacks, the Green Mountains of Vermont, and the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

The St Lawrence river starts with a bang as we travel through the famous Thousand Islands. Incredible to see all the homes on these islands and the beautiful anchorages that part of the National Park. Our first longer stop was in Brockville - a place I called home for nearly a decade. It is also the nearest stop to my other friends and family in Ottawa. What great times to reunite and visit with everyone. A weird feeling to sail past DuPont, the chemical plant where I started my engineering career.

1) The tunnel in Brockville 2) The Brockville Mountain Bike Crew 3) DuPont from the river

RCMP pulled us over as a routine check. Photo: Pat Boyd

We navigated in and out of borders in these shared international waters - it was no surprise when the RCMP accosted us as part of their new Border Safety Team. Great guys, and we got some free swag :)

We got to share this leg with long-time friend Brian Robitaille, who was on many of these past cross-border weekend adventures and his sailor friend Pat Boyd, who had promised him a scenic, gentle Viking River Cruise. It was far from that as we packed long days and ended up having cold and wet days for most of it.

The Viking Cruise Crew - was no pleasure cruise!

Onwards through more locks and bridges that all needed careful scheduling, we finally transitioned into La Belle Province. Then Montreal, where our crew departed. Lonnie & I sailed to Trois-Riviere on our own. My cousins Audrey and Dominic treated us to an upscale duck and crispy prosciutto poutine prepared with duck fat - amazing! We departed with a precious jar of homemade tourtière and loads of fois gras and cretons! This town is also where our new crewmate Ashe Berton joined the crew.

1) More lock near Montreal 2) Duck poutine! 3) Ashe arrives

Onwards to Québec City, learning even more about river currents as we reached an all-time high speed record of 13.6knots! It was also our first taste of navigating tides - and they are 19-foot tides nonetheless! Our short overnight in the Vieux-Québec was a treat.

1) Vieux-Québec Cityscape 2) Lonnie walking the streets of Old Town

As we departed Québec, sailing past old playgrounds and family vacation places like l'Ile d'Orleans, the Ste-Anne-de-Beaupre cathedral, les Chutes Montmorency - where I first ice climbed, and classic spots in Charlevoix felt surreal.

Time lapse of rising tide at Cap-À-l'Aigle

Our stop at Cap-à-l'Aigle was a turning point in our adventure. We were now out of the metropolitan areas, the water tasted a little salty, and we got the first whiff of ocean air, and beluga whales were encountered along the way. THIS is why we are on this adventure; it felt like the expedition was starting here. I found it fascinating to see how every marina adopts a different system for functioning with the tides.

We travelled to Tadoussac, where we were treated to a fine evening of local music by candlelight due to a power outage. We now see whales daily: belugas, minke and even a large one!

Onwards to lovely anchorages along the shore, going past places I had kited or whitewater paddled during the pandemic. Finally, we arrived in Baie Comeau, where we took a few days off to do a full resupply of the boat, visited with friends Melina and Jimmy, went for a gorgeous hike in Baie St. Pancrace, even got an evening rock climbing crag session.

1) Tadoussac music 2) Baie St. Pancrace 3) Jimmy & Mélina

The next day, as we sailed past Pointe-des-Monts, considered the geographical boundary where the St. Lawrence River widens into a large enclosed sea that connects to the Atlantic Ocean. We were entering the Gulf of St. Lawrence!!!