After a quick walk with Mazy we bid adieu to Ann on Thursday morning and set off to pick up the trailer from its resting place in the mom and pop campground south of the city. From there it was a quick link over to the 417 and onward to Quebec. Thanks to Michel for his suggested route that had us avoiding most of the Montreal traffic by diverting north of the city. We had made a reservation for two nights at Camping de la Joie which was billed as the closest campground to Quebec City. We were set up in a slightly awkward (the slope had the water in the shower running away from the drain) and narrow but adequate site in the midst of the seasonal campers.
This campground which includes the usual facilities of pool (but with lifeguard here), playground, volleyball court, small camper's store, iffy wifi, etc. also features a small restaurant (yes poutine was on the menu), internet station, games room with wide screen TV. What was particularly attractive about this option was that they offered a shuttle service into Old Quebec city. So after a quick swim for me, dinner, and a walk with Mazy we made reservations for the 9:00am departure. The $14 per person fee seemed well worth the price for another non-driving day for Pete.
It turned out that we were the only passengers on this trip for the mini van shuttle, driven by the genial campground owner. We were able to have an interesting conversation on the history and background of the campground (about half the sites in forested hillside site are seasonal with most of the occupants wintering in Florida or Mexico and returning to Quebec in May) politics, (the Quebec election had been called the day prior), and BC (his daughter had spent 4 yrs in the orchards of the Okanagan).
He dropped us off at the Chateau Frontenac and confirmed our 1:30 pick up time. We headed off along the Dufferin Terrace in front of the Chateau and up to the Citadelle but opted not to bother with the hour long tour and changing of the guard ceremony given our short time frame and instead headed off and walked around the Plains of Abraham
and then over to the Quebec Parliament buildings which were already edged in election posters.
Our walk took us back past the Chateau and then we made our way down the steep steps to the old town. Our visit happened to coincide with the Fete de la Nouvelle France which saw this UNESCO site decked out with many costumed characters in period costumes, street musicians, and demonstrations of life in Nouvelle France.
One of the storefronts also featured a number of local fibre artisants and I was able to chat, albeit haltingly with a couple of weavers and knitters displaying their work.
We had a quick lunch at Le Cochon Dingue (a recommendation from our neighbouring campers) sharing a Croque Monsieur and a piece of Sugar Pie and a tour of some of the many shops of the crowded quartier before braving the even steeper climb back up the hill in the sweltering temperatures to the Fort and Eglise before resting by the Chateau taking in some of the street performances as we waited for our return shuttle ride. When he arrived and six people exited the van we were happy that we had decided on the early departure and the privacy it afforded. We got a bit more of a tour from our driver and were back to the relatively quiet campground by mid afternoon for a relaxing afternoon puttering around the trailer and van, having a swim, and reading.
The traffic leaving Quebec City on Saturday morning was reasonable and soon we were over the Pierre LaPorte bridge and travelling along the south shore of the St. Lawrence. I was now in new territory, not having ventured further east than Quebec City previously. We were suprised at how close to the wide river we were at times as we travelled on to Riviere du Loup. From here we headed south and after a short stop for groceries and a bite of lunch we passed into New Brunswick and lost our last hour due to time changes as we hit Atlantic time. Once we hit NB, the highway improved dramatically and the scenery became one of rolling forested hills as we followed the St. John River Valley route. Just past the border we had stopped at a very well appointed rest stop/information centre and picked up brochures and travel guides which proved very useful as a phone call to the provincial park confirmed that they were full on this long weekend. So I called ahead to the Sunset View Campground in Hawkshaw (just outside of Nackawic, home of the world's largest axe - who knew?) and shortly after 5pm we pulled into a grassy well spaced pull through site in this neat and tidy campground across the road from the St John River.
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