Quebec City - and back across the St. Lawrence River

Day 28
June 10, 2018
Levis to Quebec City

We are happy to be on the north side of the Saint Lawrence (the Pont de Quebec is in the background).

looking down on our bikes from a tower in the park 

Quebec City sits on the St. Lawrence river with beautiful views in every direction.  It is the capital of Quebec and it has a long history dating back to 1608 when it was founded by Samuel Champlain.  It is the oldest city in North America (excluding all the first nations settlements) and is fortified with city walls and a big fort called the Citadel.  

We rode into Quebec City via the Pont du Quebec which is a 3,238’ long cantilever bridge built in the early 1900’s.   Today it’s one of the two very busy bridges serving the city. There is a pedestrian walkway which also serves as the bike passageway.  Riding across with panniers was challenging. It is so narrow that when we passed a bike coming toward us, one rider had to stop and lean over against the side to allow the other to pass.

Crossing Pont du Qubec

We have planned a warm showers stay with a cyclist from the north end of town quite a ways from the historic tourist area.  We take a look around the oldest part of the city while we are passing through. The Château Frontenac dominates the landscape and looks like a big castle, but it’s really just a fancy hotel.  

Chateau Frontenac

The streets of Vieux-Quebec are full of tourists on this sunny Sunday. The old part of the city is a UNESCO World heritage site and it feels like we have left North America and been transported to  Europe.

We check on our bikes from above.  We left them in a bike-specific parking area hidden by a low wall and between two very busy outdoor dining area.  It seems safe, but since everything we need for the next three months is on our bikes, we are a little nervous about being parted from them.

We left our bikes and bags just to the right of the yellow umbrellas as we wandered the old city streets

When we arrive at our host’s house, he is still out but has given us the code to the door and the house alarm.  I hope no one is calling the police as we enter his nice home. He has left notes all around encouraging us to feel at home and directing us helpfully to the beer glasses and snacks!

Our hosts, David and Andree, are about our age and have spent their careers running a family transport business.  Because they have their own company, they have had very little time off but managed to take a 6 month long cycling trip a couple of years ago.  They cycled through France, Great Britain, Ireland, and Holland and probably other countries I am forgetting. This was a life- changing adventure and they met so many kind and generous people.  They obviously have a strong relationship and work well as a team. They share unstintingly with us and their consideration and friendly hospitality is so appreciated after our days of camping out and tolerating black flies.  

On Monday, David offers to drive us back to the Old City and we spend the day as tourists.  We tour the Citadelle of Quebec (insert link http://www.lacitadelle.qc.ca/en/)  which is located on top of Cap Diamont where we can see for miles and miles.  We walk all over the city and over to the https://www.quebecregion.com/en/old-quebec-summer/plains-of-abraham/  which is now a huge city park.  By the time we find an Uber back “home” we are exhausted.  That evening after working all day, somehow Andree prepares a fantastic dinner of duck and the tastiest potatoes I have ever eaten.  I want to try to reproduce this recipe when I get home.

-possibly Julia's first time eating duck.  It's delicious!

Our hosts and new friends, David and Andree

Day 30
June 12, 2018
Quebec City to Montmagny

We leave Tuesday morning and David offers to lead us back downtown to the ferry.  The ride is entirely on bike trail and considerably easier when accompanied by a local who knows the way around the construction barriers.  It is literally all downhill to the river.

coasting to the ferry

David seems to ride with no hands on the handlebars most of the way.

The day is sunny with a southwest wind at 20 miles per hour, and we ride Montmagny which is about 50 miles away.  At times we ended up coasting on flat roadway at 25mph. The wind is amazing.

the ferry has a bike rack and plenty of other cyclists

Looking back at Old Quebec

A very easy 49.6 miles to the campground

We ride past farmland and with the wind and the flat landscape it feels like the American midwest.  The fields go all the way from the river to the Appalacian foothills in the south.

Camping at Pointe-aux-Oies where so many birds pass through on migration.  The winds are howling, but the sun still shines and it's exciting to be outside at the river.

Our site is all the way out on the point where the winds are gusting and testing the strength of the tent.

The winds shifted overnight and a north wind began to blow.  We hid in the shelter of a building to cook breakfast and decide to ride to the nearby town St-Jean-Port-Joli to wait out the headwind and the impending cold temperatures and rain.