7 Day Roadtrip to Explore Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula

Posted byAbPosted inADHD, adoption, FASD, gratitude, Parenting, travelTags:, , , , , ,

Seeing wild whales and seals was among the highlights of our visit to beautiful Gaspé Peninsula in the province of Quebec.

We kicked off T’s summer in the beginning of July – and his graduation from grade school – with our annual family roadtrip.

I planned a visit to Gaspé after scrolling by a random social media ad in the wintertime and became obsessed with the region.

Day 1: Toronto to Rivière du Loup

We left early morning for a 9 hour drive to Rivière du Loup, a small town in Quebec about halfway between Quebec City and the border of neighbouring province New Brunswick.

Our long day of driving rewarded T’s limited patience with hotel pool time in the evening.

Day 2: Exploring Rimouski

We drove 2 hours to Rimouski.

We enjoyed a sweltering hike at Nationale Parc du Bic, where we spotted our first seal in the wild.

Then we headed to Pointe-au-Pere Maritime Historic Site to see the Onondaga submarine.

We didn’t pay to go inside. Looking at it from the outside was cool enough!

Day 3: Jardins de Métis

We spent a quiet Canada Day visiting the Reford Gardens (aka Jardins de Métis) in Rimouski.

We enjoyed a soothing scenic walk on the grounds.

We then drove an hour to Gate of Gaspesie.

Our hotel was right by the St Lawrence River and we enjoyed a sunset walk along the beach, where T searched for and found seaglass.

Day 4: Forillon National Park

We left early morning for a 3.5 hour drive from Matane to Gaspé.

The coastal drive skirted St Lawrence River and was so beautiful – enhanced by the foggy day.

We stopped along the way – for lunch by a riverside canteen and for a break along a pebbled beach.

We arrived at Forillon National Park late afternoon.

We were tired but persevered through a 2-hour hilly hike through Land’s End Trail.

The beautiful scenery was accentuated by fog that skirted the cliffs.

T spotted foxes along the way.

After our 8 km hike, the hubby and I were ready for food but T asked to stay at the pebbled beach to look for seaglass.

The hubby heard the whale first and screamed. I was halfway up the hill to the car and T was still on the beach.

He sat on a rock, we stood, and together looked out to the water in wonder – at a whale just a few hundred feet away from us.

Nature is amazing and what a gift it was for us to experience this together as a family.

Day 5: Whale Watching

I planned a morning whale watching boat excursion through Croisiere Baie de Gaspé.

We enjoyed a breezy ride and I loved watching the jagged textures of the rocky shore and cliffs.

The whales were generally elusive but when we caught a sighting from time to time, it was quite magical!

After lunch, we chilled at our hotel – T with his tablet and me with Madonna’s new album, Confessions II, which was released earlier that day.

Day 6: Percé Rock

On our last full day of sightseeing, we drove an hour from Gaspé to the small and scenic town of Percé, home to the monolith Percé Rock.

We took a late morning ferry to Bonaventure Island and enjoyed up close views of the famous rock on our way.

Bonaventure Island is home to 100,000 northern gannet birds.

We enjoyed an hour long hike, each way, to visit the colony of birds – and was it ever the sight, sound and smell!

There was also a charming restaurant on the island where we enjoyed lunch.

Day 7: Return to Quebec City and the Long Drive Home

The following morning, we started our two-day drive back to Toronto, with an overnight pitstop in Quebec City.

It’s funny how much time we spend planning and waiting for the big trip – and then it just flies by in the blink of an eye.

I look forward to our annual summer trips with T. It’s a nice way to celebrate making it to the end of a school year and halfway through the year.

There were some hard moments during the trip – of disregulation, of defiant and oppositional behaviour, of meltdowns.

But those moments fade away very quickly – and what remains is gratitude for the time spent together in beautiful scenery with majestic animals in the wild.

52 thoughts on “7 Day Roadtrip to Explore Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula”

  2. What a beautiful world we have seeing all your photos, Ab. Those birds, rocks, forests, whales, and I can’t enumerate one by one, but it’s just amazing! I smile all throughout. Thanks.💚

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  3. Oh, you went to the Gaspé Peninsula! I think Linda is also doing a road trip there at the moment. I had some dishes with lobster when I was in Quebec recently and I remember it was procured from this area as well. The lobster was really good! How nice that you’ve got to do this road trip with your husband and T, creating good memories along the way.

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    1. Thanks Bama. It seems a lot of us have Quebec on our minds this year. 😊 I have two separate colleagues going there this fall too. Gaspe was inspired by a random social media ad and I’m so grateful for it. Was such a beautiful place. Definitely one of our more memorable roadtrips. 😊

      I can imagine how tasty your lobster meals in Quebec were!

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    1. Thanks Ganga. Ontario and Quebec has many beautiful roadtrip possibilities that would pique your and your son’s love of the outdoors. I hope you’ll come visit us one day and please reach out if you ever need ideas! 😊

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  6. What a beautiful trip and meaningful way to celebrate T’s graduation. The photos are lovely and it looks like many memories were built during your celebratory trip. 🙂

    I especially appreciate your reflection at the end of your post, that the difficult moments can fade, while the wonder, connection, and memories remain.

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    1. Thanks LaDonna. We always look forward to these annual summer kickoff family vacations and this year was especially meaningful because of T’s graduation. 😊

      Some of his behavioral symptoms really do make travelling challenging but I’m always so thankful we experienced the trips together. 🙏

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  7. this was such a well-researched and planned family adventure. every place you went was so beautiful, each in a different way. glad the three of you navigated through all the transitions, and i think that the amazing things you saw upon each arrival was well worth it to all of you. seeing the whales and seals in their natural environment is very cool and would probably make me tear up to see these beautiful creatures in person. and the fox! and sunsets and seaglass and food and physical activities and down time! well done to all of you –

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    1. Thanks Beth. I did use AI to help plan my itinerary, which saved me a lot of time – and one of the few instances I use AI for.

      The whale was so breathtaking and unexpected – and we all did feel a bit emotional about it afterwards. 😊 It makes us all feel so small in this planet in the best and most humbling of ways!

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  8. Wow…wow…wow! I’ve read and savored all of this three times through. So much to love, Ab. I must say I’m especially taken with the pics from Land’s End Trail…what a terrific solo shot of you and then the image of T from behind, walking the trail? It tugged at my heart, big-time. He’s grown and matured so much, I feel like I’m watching the becoming of him, thanks to you.
    Sending much love to all three of you. 💝💝💝

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    1. Thanks Vicki. I’m glad you enjoyed it and I hope you get to visit and explore Canada one day – and if you do, make sure to swing by Toronto for a meet and greet! 😊

      I love that photo from Land’s End Trail too. The fog just added so much atmosphere and texture to the walk and photos. So blessed! 🥰

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  9. What incredible pictures and experiences! Love the coastline that looks so pristine and beautiful! Plus seals, whales and great food!? Such a great way to celebrate the end of primary school and create wonderful memories together. I love the way you all adventure together. Thanks for sharing the trip!

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    1. Thank you, Wynne. The unexpected whale and seal sightings were really quite magical and memories that will last a long time.

      Summer is just flying by. 4 weeks to go for us. A lot of anxiety building up about middle school but thankful for this break to just unwind and let the weight off our shoulders. 😊

      Hope you all continue to enjoy your summer too before the big transition for Miss O this fall too! 🙏

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  11. I’m impressed you were able to cover so much ground in just over a week! We’re spending two weeks along the Gaspe Peninsula but are obviously much slower and need to factor in nap times. How cool that you spotted a seal in Bic! We weren’t so lucky, but still enjoyed the spectacular scenery. Here’s hoping we see some whales in Forillon too. We’re heading there tomorrow afternoon and will be spending 3 days in the area. Sounds like you and your family had a delightful trip overall. And I can see why, it’s such a beautiful part of Canada. Also – I love how we have such similar ideas for road trips! Great minds think alike!

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    1. Thanks Linda. It makes me smile knowing you’re experiencing the same magical journey as we speak. 😊

      In hindsight, I wish we spent more time on our trip as it did feel like we hopped to a different hotel each night and didn’t really get to catch our breath.

      I’m looking forward to hearing about your more detailed stay in the Gaspe area!

      We’re already daydreaming about our summer trip next July. On the shortlist are the Calgary Stampede, Newfoundland or Vancouver. 😊

      Have a great rest of your trip!

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      1. It’s always tough to anticipate how much time to spend in a spot and so much of it can be dependent on the weather. And it’s natural to wish you could have spent more time somewhere after having an amazing adventure. If only we had more vacation time!!

        It’s funny because we have a very similar shortlist for next summer/fall. Currently we’re debating between Newfoundland and Jasper-Banff.

        Enjoy the rest of your time in NB and safe travels home!

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      2. Have you decided which side of Newfoundland? The Gros Morne side is where we’re looking at potentially.

        Enjoy your time in Gaspe today. The drive there from Rimouski through Matane is so beautiful!

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    1. Thanks Michelle. You will have to visit. It was just so wonderful. I hear it’s also great in the autumn with the majestic fall colours. I hope you get to visit next time you’re en route to PEI. It’s so worth it! 😊

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    1. Thanks Margie. It was so lovely. I didn’t even know about it until a random social media ad alerted me to it. I’m so glad we visited. 😊

      I’ll have a future update on Seaglass. We found some good ones in Toronto’s very own Cherry Beach!

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    1. Thanks Cherryl. It was a fun trip and I miss it already. 😊 We also saw a family of three foxes further away in an abandoned cabin by the cliff. It was too far to get a decent shot so we enjoyed it instead. 😊

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  15. That unplanned whale sighting from the pebbled beach, the three of you just looking out in wonder together, gave me chills reading it. Those are the moments no itinerary can promise. As a family that travels, I really appreciated your honesty about the hard moments alongside the gratitude, the meltdowns are real and so is the way the good memories outlast them. T’s seaglass hunting and 100,000 gannets (smell included!) sound unforgettable.

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    1. Thank you for visiting and commenting. The unplanned wildlife sightings are so memorable and will truly be lasting happiness one day! 😊

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    1. Thanks Viv. He does seem to getting taller. I do hope he’ll he taller than me one day. 😊 It was a wonderful trip and I hope you’re having a wonderful summer too.

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  17. So beautiful to see that part of Canada! Thanks for sharing all those photos Ab. You guys take the best vacations. Some day I’m going to figure out how to sneak into your luggage and go along with you 🙂

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    1. Thanks Deb. Canada has so much to see and do and I hope you get to come visit one day – luggage or otherwise. 😊 And in return, I do hope to visit your beautiful part of the world too!

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  18. AB! I want to take the same excursion with our camper – Amazing photos and descriptions – wild whales and seals- OH MY!!!! What a thrill! The waffle thing looked incredible (for someone else to eat! 😉) – Love these memories you are building as a family – I hope you are also creating photo albums! Great Blog, my friend! V

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      1. I can’t believe how long it has been since we have visited Toronto – so close yet so far – you and your family are on my bucket list to meet in person – Whenever you are near WNY – please let me know!!!!!

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  19. Um, if you’re not getting a check in the mail from the Canadian Tourist Bureau or whatever it’s called, you really should be Ab. Your pics are amazing. It makes me want to pull out my passport from my drawer and schedule a trip now. Lots of smiles . . . looks like everyone had fun.

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    1. Thanks Brian. It was an amazing trip and I’m happy to be paid to do this as a job if they’ll take me! 😊🤣 Canada does have so much to see and I hope you’ll get to visit one day!

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  20. Wow, what a lovely and interesting adventure Ab. T must have loved it. Seaglasses? I used to do that when I was younger and we would go on a road trip from time to time. It was amazing to see a colorful seaglass along the shores. I collected sea shells too.
    Speaking of seas and oceans, I always remember the book Gift From The Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh.🥰

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    1. Thanks Arlene. It was a wonderful time away. And seaglass is something he recently got into and he’s so good at finding them. 😊

      I haven’t heard of the Lindbergh’s book and will have to look it up!

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  21. Wow, what stunning photos! It looks like you visited all the best spots along your path. You were all real troopers–I know how tiring it can be to move from place to place, but it’s so incredible and worth it to have exposure to so many different sights and experiences.
    Also, I can’t believe how tall T is! He’s probably not even hit his growth spurt yet, but he’s catching up with you and the hubby real quick! 😆

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    1. Thanks Erin. You picked up on one of the challenging aspects of our trip which was the constant hotel changes but T did mostly ok despite the pace.

      It was a wonderful trip and I did use Gemini to help plan the itinerary – saved us a lot of time.

      And yes, T is getting quite tall!

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