Yellowstone (USA) to Quebec City
May 8th – May 17th, 2023
Our US visa was coming to an end so we had to cross into Canada. The plan was to go to Nova Scotia, more than 4,500 km away…
We crossed most of Montana, the scenery of rolling hills and green pastures framed by distant snow covered peaks made us wish we had the time to explore ! We then cut the north west corner of North Dakota and went through the border into Canada near Sherwood and into Saskatchewan ( very close to Manitoba). It was a small border post and the officer even gave us some tips of things to see in Manitoba and the best places to go fishing !
You do not have too much choice in terms of roads. The Trans-Canada Highway is pretty much the only direct road when you want to go East. It is not a scenic road, with long stretch of straight road going through forest of fir and beech trees and lots of lakes and water around.
Paul had bought a fishing rod and was keen to do some fishing. We stopped in a few places but no fish was biting !!
The weather was not too bad with warm, sunny days in Ontario but cool mornings and evenings (6 to 8 C). Mosquitoes were starting to be a problem though !
We finally arrived into Quebec Province, avoided going into Montreal and spent the night in the car park of the visitor Centre at Becancourt (150km from Quebec City). The weather had turned to rain and cold and we treated ourselves to a hot meal at an Italian restaurant just across the street !
Quebec City
We had been to Quebec City before but it was nice to revisit the “Vieux Quebec” and listen to the lilting accent of the locals! sometimes difficult to understand…
Paul wanted to watch the semi-final of the Champions League and found a pub showing it ! I went for a walk around Chateau Frontenac and its adjacent streets.
Chateau Frontenac is a historic hotel, built by Canadian Pacific Railway. It opened in 1893 and is one of the first completed grand railway hotels, a series of hotels across the country, each a local and national landmark, and most of which are icons of Canadian history and architecture. It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1981. The hotels were designed to serve the passengers of the country’s then expanding rail network and they celebrated rail travel in style.
Chateau Frantenac quickly came to be the symbol of the city. It was designed to rival any hotel in Europe. Its elevated location overlooking the city also made it a readily identifiable landmark as viewed from passing trains as well as ships plying the waters of the Saint Lawrence River.
After the football, we walked to the citadel along the boarded walk and a series of stairs( more than 400 steps!)
The Citadel is a National Historic Site located atop Cap Diamant in Old Québec. Its walls enclose 300 years of history from the New France period to today. Known as “the Gibraltar of the Americas” on account of its strategic location, the Citadel has the star-shaped form characteristic of Vauban fortifications. Breathtaking view of the city and the St. Lawrence River.
We walked on some of the fortifications and jumped on a bus just in time to avoid a hail storm !
It was late afternoon and we had to find somewhere to stay for the night. We drove out of town, crossing to the other bank of the Saint Lawrence River and stayed at a rest stop on highway 20. This was a big site. the toilet block had a purpose built room/kitchen with vending machines, microwave and table and chairs. A caretaker was looking after the place. We could not believe our luck: we could prepare our dinner and stay in a warm place !
