Quebec City & Gaspe Peninsula
 

Hello all,

I have vacation time and am planning a bicyle trip in late July or mid August. My plans are to take the Via Rail train from Toronto to Quebec City. I would have liked to take the train from Niagara Falls but they do not allow bicycles. From Quebec, I will follow the St Lawerence North to the Gaspe Penisula and follow it clockwise till I reach Matpedia (or some other location). From that point I can hop on a train & head back to Toronto and somehow find a way home back to Buffalo, NY.

I have two weeks and may be able to extend it for a few days. An appealing factor is that the train seems to follow the bike route for many parts of the trip.

Some of my concerns are the following:

How bad are the mosquitos in late June or August? I remember being in Barrie, ON and being eaten alive at dusk.

How cool do the nights get? I would not mind sleeping out side in the woods a few nights. I do not plan on taking tent or even a sleeping bag in order to keep weight down.

Quebec has a Construction Holdiay in late July & Early August. Does the Gapse region get quite busy during this period? Would I be better securing motel rooms, BB, & Hostels in middle August?

Any other advice would be appreciated

Hi there,

I don't know if it's too late to reply, but here it goes.

The mosquitos will be bad in june especially in the Matapedia area, but they should be lessof a problem in august. The Gaspe area gets quite cold at night even in July so do bring a good sleeping bag. I was there in early August 3 years ago, we were sleeping in a VW van with a sleeping bag and blankets and we were still cold. You could be lucky with the weather, but I wouldn't chance it. As for the construction holidays, they're scheduled for the last two full weeks of July (July 27 is the last day of the construction holiday this year), if you're there during this time it might be tough getting a room, but I don't think this would be problem in August.

Have a nice trip.

Thanks for the reply,

I actually will be leaving August 9 or 10th so that was exactly the information I was looking for.

Hello there,

some more info: we have an especially wet summer here in Quebec ( I live in Qc City, but everywhere it has been really damp), so be prepared to have some rain on the road. I don't wish you some though! On road 132, which is the national road that goes along the St-Lawrence, be careful cause at some places, the shoulder gets pretty thin to roll on. Usually drivers are somewhat aware of cyclists there, and pay good attention. But still, it's North America :p

Campings should not be a problem: most of the vacations are almost over, and this is not the most crowded place in Quebec in all summer. For the sleeping bag question, I usually get along with a bag around 0deg (32F), and it's perfect. You can have 5-10 deg nights at this season, usually. Not much big heats (they have passed between rainy days). Most of the time you will have a west wind on your back, but it's common to see easterly winds pick up with the bad weather. Be prepared for a constant 10-20 km/h of wind almost at all times. Mosquitoes should not be much of a problem either, as it is usually windy, but as we had an horrendous wet summer, you can bring along a little tube of Watkins stuff (lots of place where you can buy it). It's DEET (28), but it works even in James Bay (I know, i've been working/canoeing there).

Road stops: if you follow the north bank of St-Lawrence and want to go to Matapedia, you will have to take a ferry, something like Saint-Siméon to Rivière-du-Loup, or Matane/Baie-Comeau. But be prepared for LOTS of hills on the north shore! Great scenery but not very accomodating for cyclists since there is a lot of heavy traffic there. I mostly recommand you get on the south shore from Lévis (you can take a ferry from Qc City), and follow the Route Verte (http://www.routeverte.com) or the 132 road. You WILL have to stop in Saint-Jean-Port-Joli nice little village with a penchant for wood carving), Kamouraska (for the great bakery there: Niémans and Poissonnerie Lauzier), and Trois-Pistoles for the famous cheese curds at La Fromagerie des Basques. Try to camp one night in Saint-Andre-de-Kamouraska (a great climbing spot; incredible sunsets) at the SEBKA.

Matapedia valley is a little more isolated and wild but you will find enough villages with grocery stores around so you won't have to carry a week's worth of food on the bike. Get ready to carry some spares bike stuff as there are almost no bike shops there but you will find one in Amqui and afterwards in Baie des Chaleurs area.

I know a little less about all the Gaspe peninsula (mostly been there by car, or ski touring) but lots of little villages there and around. Beware of the wind and the long distances you could have to put between two places!

That's it for me now. Hope you will enjoy your trip, it's a very great and pittoresque region! Hope this all helps!

Caro :)