Saguenay is on the Saguenay fjord off the Saint Lawrence seaway. The fjord was formed by a retreating glacier and is now a protected marine environment sheltering Beluga Whales where they live all year round.
We went to Saguenay national park and did a ranger led hike.
Start of the walk.
Amazing cliffs near the start of the walk.
The first lookout was 150m height.
The trail was mostly “stairs” like this.
Ronnie enjoying the Autumn colours.
Midway outlook 150m high.
Halte Bellevue lookout 230m
Halte Bellevue lookout 230m
Path in the way backdown.
Path on the way backdown.
Giant overhanging rock.
Giant overhanging rock.
Ha Ha pyramid (named after the nearby river) commemorates the Saguenay flood of 1996 when 12 people died and 16,000 were evacuated. It was conceived as a form of therapy to help residents recover from the trauma of the flood. It’s covered in 3,000 yield signs, based on the similarity of pronunciation of the French words for "to yield" (céder [se.de]) and "to help each other" (s'aider [sɛ.de]).
They have pretty extreme tides here usually but today was only a 1.2m difference between high and low.
We left port a bit early (everybody was onboard!) and the Captain sped up the ship so we could see the fjord before sunset and in particular a statue.
But first we saw the Cap à l’Est lighthouse which marks the start of the marine park.
As you can see my phone camera (or the operator) was useless capturing the little white figure miles away. But, Ronnie’s new super zoom camera (thanks Ellen) got a great shot - everyone noticed because he climbed on a chair to get it. Then when people saw on the screen how clear his picture was we‘re now distributing it after he download his photos.
The story: In 1878 Charles-Napoleon Robitaille was traveling upon the frozen Fjord-du-Saguenay when the ice broke. He along with his horse and sleigh were cast into the freezing waters. Charles prayed to the Virgin Mary that his life be spared. He survived.
Charles soon became deathly ill from his experience in the freezing waters. He again prayed to the Virgin Mary, this time asking for 10 more years of life in order to raise his children and provide for his family. He again lived.
Charles vowed to create a monument to his two miracles. He asked sculptor Louis Jobin to make a 9m high statue out of white pine of the Virgin Mary. It was covered in lead and painted and has stood on Cape Trinity since 1881. Tradition calls upon mariners who pass the Cape to slow their vessels and sound their horns in honor of the Virgin Mary and the memory of Charles-Napoleon Robitaille.
The fjord isn’t as spectacular as New Zealand fjords because the sides are covered in trees in most places.
One of the guys we met got some photos of the northern lights last night. You couldn’t see them with the naked eye but the camera picked them up. We went up on deck after dinner but we couldn’t pick up a thing and it was 4*C and windy so we didn’t stay up there for long.
