I’m heading to Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, home of the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park and the Parc national du Fjord-du-Saguenay—and one of the most dramatic landscapes in North America to explore all that the amazing region has to offer by sea kayak. Along the way, I paddle alongside towering cliffs, sail through the heart of the fjord and whitewater kayaksdown the world-class rivers Québec is known for.
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean is located in the middle of Québec and it's the third largest region of the province. With three national parks, and a marine park within its boundaries, it's no surprise that adventure tourism and nature are defining features of the area. It's a rugged and inspiring land that features a lake so big that it feels like an ocean, one of the longest and most dramatic fjords in the world and some of the best whitewater rivers that you'll find anywhere.
To begin my adventure, I headed to fjord en Kayak in l’Anse-Saint-Jean, the premier kayak company in the area, to meet up with one of their guides, Mathieu Boulanger-Messier, who knows the waters of the fjord as well as anyone. At just over 100-kilometers long, the Saugnenay fjord is one of the longest in the world and is world-renowned, making it an ideal spot for sea kayakers.
As we paddled, we passed through both the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park–which was created to protect the beluga whales–and Saguenay National Park, which was created to protect the towering cliffs of the fjord. It's easy to see why the region is often referred to as the land of giants–everything about this landscape is huge and there isn't a better way to get a real sense of the size, than paddling along the base of the cliffs. They’re beautiful and impressive to look at from shore but looking up from below, it's hard not to feel a little overwhelmed and a little insignificant.
While kayaking has always been one of my favorite ways to explore a place, it has one obvious disadvantage: you just can't cover distance quickly. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time to paddle the whole stretch and so I met up with Sophie Drolet, a captain for Voile Mercator, a company that offers sailing lessons and vacations through the Saguenay fjord. Our mission was to reach the most famous and dramatic bay on the Saguenay River, La Baie-Éternité.
Our trip started slowly as the light winds pushed the boat through the waters slowly and smoothly. It wasn’t long, however, before a weather system approaches. As the wind picked up, the sunny skies were replaced by thick clouds and a fine mist. Right away, the boat jumped to life and then, as if on cue, the wind died down as we reached a narrow bay surrounded by the highest cliffs of the fjord. We reached La Baie-Éternité, otherwise known as Eternity Bay, the crown jewel of Saguenay National Park.
It was amazing how quickly the excitement of the run down the fjord was replaced by the calm of the bay. It really is a magical place and the clouds and mists that hovered around the mountains gave it all a surreal “Lord of the Rings”-like feel. I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting this sailing trip to be one of the highlights of my summer and boy was I wrong.
Following the Saguenay River upstream, we left the fjord behind and made our way towards the Lac-Saint-Jean region. The Lac-Saint-Jean region boasts some of the most beautiful rivers that you'll find anywhere, making it an outdoor and whitewater paradise. I was excited to get my feet wet in some of the rapids, so I met up with Sheril Gravel, co-founder of the Pink Water Community—a nonprofit organization who's main objective is to encourage women to participate in whitewater activities.
If there's one thing I've learned in all my years of whitewater kayaking it's that as amazing as it is to push your own limits, there's nothing more personally satisfying than helping someone else reach their goals or push themselves do to something they never thought they could. I'm sure that's one of the things that made my day with Sheril so special. We both share that passion for pushing and inspiring others to try new things and take advantage of, and take care of, the incredible natural playgrounds that surround us.
My time spent in Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean was further proof that paddling is only partly about the places you go and the things you see–it's also about the wonderful people you meet along the way.
Special Thanks To:
Aventure Écotourisme Québec | Tourisme Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean
