Quebec & New Brunswick

7/4/25 - We took an Uber into Quebec City (the capital of the Province of Quebec) for a 10:30am walking tour.

Our tour guide, Louise, had excellent English and provided facts in an interesting way. Here, she is showing us the dates of French, British, and Canadian rule in Quebec City

Our tour lasted almost three hours. We saw major sights and learned key history of the city and the province.

"Quebec" comes from the Algonquin word for "narrow passage". It referred to the area around Quebec City where the Saint Lawrence River narrows to a cliff-lined gap (as seen in this picture).

Chateau Frontenac - the most photographed hotel in the world (per Google).

After our tour, we had lunch, walked down pedestrian-only streets (some with lockable cabinets holding artists' work), and visited a cathedral and an Irish pub.* After watching one (of several) street performers, we spent some time in the Chateau Frontenac's bar, where we watched the bartenders crafting unique cocktails. After a light meal there, we took an Uber (driven by a nice guy from Haiti) back home.

Thing we found interesting:

• Quebec City is the only remaining walled city north of Mexico.

• About 2/3 of city residents can only speak French. (French is the primary language of instruction in most schools. English is taught as a second language.)

• *Irish immigration began in the 1600s and increased in the 1800s (due to cholera and famine). In the 1870s, the Irish made up 20% of Quebec City's population. Today, about 5% have Irish ancestry.

• The province makes 72% of the world's maple syrup.

• Poutine originated in Quebec.

7/5/25 - We travelled parallel to the St. Lawrence River for awhile before heading east into the province of New Brunswick. English returned to most signs (in addition to French)!! Eventually we were traveling parallel to the border with Maine.

The moose (why not "meese"?) in New Brunswick appear to be much larger, but slower, than the Ontario signs indicated.

We stayed at a tree-filled campground that overlooked the 75' falls in Grand Falls, NB.

After a walk along the riverside trail and a 3-mile run, we walked into town to look at the dam and the main falls

There is a 26 foot diameter tunnel that runs from above the dam, UNDER THE TOWN, to the power generating station 0.5 miles away.

7/6/25 - We drove about 1.5 hours to Mount Carleton Provincial Park with the goal of seeing some wildlife.

We hiked up a trail with a pretty stream, different kinds of mushrooms, LOTS of bugs, and moose & porcupine poop

Near the halfway point, the trail got really challenging...with some scrambling required. In this picture, Pat is up the hill from me.

The view from the top of Mt. Carleton, New Brunswick's highest peak at 2690 ft

Luckily the return route was easier, because it started to downpour. We didn't see ANY animals on our 6-mile hike, not even a squirrel!!

On the drive home, we were amazed by this pile of wood. It appeared to be a pallet plant.

We drove back to the RV and glamped (ate crockpot chili and warmed up in front of the TV) while feeling a bit sorry for the tent campers dealing with the rain.

7/7/25 - Luckily we had a quiet day planned because it was still raining.

I enjoyed reading and listening to the rain and falls while staying dry in our pop-up tent

In the afternoon I did some chores and then we both relaxed for the evening.