Leaving Quebec – Travel Photography – Trans-Canada '25 (IX)

June 23^rd, 2025: Day Nineteen

Distance Travelled: Approx 177km
Days in Hotels VS Campgrounds VS Guest: 6/9/3

Motel Camping Metis, Quebec –
Saint Anne des Monts, Quebec

Today was expensive. I knew it would be. I had several errands to run, namely the car’s cabin filter, but also food & laundry.

First, I headed to Bumper-to-Bumper after saying my goodbyes to the campsite owner and leaving a business card.

I lucked out and the mechanic, Matthew, spoke good English and noted my relief. He had a look and put a new filter in. He also suggested a little Febreze on it to help remove and lingering odors.

I then tried to make my way to the next stop but there was an accident on Route 132, so I had to detour quite a ways.

Did I mention I went to several more places today looking for a Quebec sticker? No dice.

When I arrived in Saint Anne des Monts, one of the first things I saw (besides a minus three meter elevation on my GPS) was a giant church. Possibly the biggest I had ever seen. Despite looking run down, and parts roped off, it was amazing. I quickly realized this called for the wide angle and went back to the car.

Also nearby was the Exploramer Aquarium, and while I opted out of the museum tour, I did take the time to shoot the surroundings.

So, at this point I have a restock of food, my car smells like Hawaiian Breeze, and tire pressure is good. The tire that I was told was low back in Sault Ste. Marie is actually a few PSI higher than the others. They must have read it wrong and slightly overfilled.

I found a campground within the city which allowed me to easily explore, so after a rough conversation with a gentleman who spoke English as his third language, I secured a spot nice and close to the facilities.

Now I had a sincerely and selfishly long shower in the morning so I was good, but the toilets were also private. I welcomed some privacy.

Off to the laundromat! Even though “Camping Ancre Jaune” had one I didn’t want to wait and figured it would cost about the same.

There was an old lady and young man in the laundromat and after getting change I dumped two loads worth in. I even risked washing my bed liner and managed to dry it without shrinking or destroying it.

When I was done, food was the next thing on my list. The issue was everything I saw on Google was closed for the day, or permanently closed.

I had been craving Subway for a couple of days, but every chat request is a gamble on how much English they speak and the Ray Bar Meta’s live translation was janky. Hit with the post office when I sent mail. Miss with the Spanish-French Receptionist.

I lucked out with a staff member who spoke good English though, and got a foot long steak with what was likely my first vegetables in a week.

With a racing heart from the carbs but a full stomach, I drove back and parked in my lot, then walked to the beach.

A feeling of loneliness washed over me as I looked into the endless waters of the St. Lawrence

It’s been almost three weeks now and my human interaction has been scattered. Most of it was with family, but being an anglophone here in Quebec only multiplies it.

All the stories I read about travelers connecting with strangers got my hopes up.

June 24^th, 2025: Day Twenty

Distance Travelled: 534 KM
Days in Hotels VS Campgrounds VS Guest: 6/10/3

Saint Anne des Monts, Quebec –
Quebec/New Brunswick Border

Last night shortly after I finished my journal, I heard music in the distance being amplified on speakers. Now, I had heard from reception at camp there would be some kind of festival, so I knew something was going to happen, but I wasn’t sure what. The lady at the post office mentioned a holiday, and I saw a giant pile of wood on the beach earlier in the day. Two of them and one could have been twenty feet high. With my only alternative lying in the car and waiting for the day to end, I decided to follow the sound. It would take me about a kilometer from the campground but what I saw was a large crowd of people, of all ages, gathered near a large tent and inside a band playing. Who was the band? Don’t know. What were they saying? Also don’t know. Only thing I’d understood was “applause tabernac!!”

I wandered the area, noted a food truck and saw people with Quebec flags on sticks, and draped over their backs. After listening to the band for a while, I noticed a second crowd across the road at the beach. That’s when I saw people lighting the wood to start a massive bonfire. It took a while but eventually it would be the biggest fire I had ever been close to. Embers flew high up into the sky and were carried by the wind for over a hundred feet. People were rowdy but at no point out of control. I watched, mostly from a distance as I don’t handle the smoke well.

I would learn this was the Saint Jean Baptist Day.

“A national holiday in the Canadian province of Quebec and celebrated by French Canadians worldwide, especially in Canada and the United States, St. Jean Baptiste Day, June 24, honors the traditional feast day of the Nativity — or birth — of St. John the Baptist. The religious nature of the holiday has been de-emphasized for civic events, and “la St-Jean” is now mainly a celebration of francophone culture and history filled with public events, parades, barbecues, picnics and fireworks. Bonne Saint-Jean-Baptiste!“
– nationaltoday.com

When I was closer to the fire, I noticed something near a large log for sitting. A long stick with the bark removed. It was wet so it had been there from the rain earlier in the day and I decided this would be my new walking stick. I knew I looked a little weird walking around with it, but I didn’t care. I saw it as a gift from the universe for breaking out of my comfort zone like this.

After I got my fill, I made my way back to camp and called it a night.

The next morning, I was feeling pretty cranky, pretty sore. This was my fourth night in a row in my car and it might be taking a toll on my mental health. Being in Quebec and having a language barrier also had been taking its toll. When I arrived, I was all smiles and apologized for not speaking French but now I had resolved to just start speaking in English. I learned a lot about my patience and how I’ll occasionally (or not so occasionally) place the blame on others. There are no excuses here. I chose to drive here. I’m the one who doesn’t speak the language. They’re just living their lives. None the less all the extra steps to accomplish the simplest tasks, combined with every car in Quebec riding all the way up the ass of the car in front of them had worn me to the nub.

By the time I got on the road, heading towards the next national park, it wasn’t a feeling of joy or anticipation that washed over me, but dread, thinking about the next three or four planned days on the peninsula, struggling to have a basic conversation with people of the same heritage, not to mention swerving out of the path of potholes. Oh my god the roads in this Provence are next level. Albertans like to complain about how the eastern provinces have it better, but we have really good roads, and reasonable drivers. Everything is relative.

I did some self-talk. I said I wasn’t doing YouTube anymore, I had no obligation to anyone, this was about learning about myself and pushing myself, but also knowing my limits and making sure it was an adventure…not a chore.

Throughout the day I had been making stops at interesting sites and snapping photos. By this time I wanted to get the hell out of dodge, I just started making those kilometers and taking less breaks.

Near the end of my marathon, at the New Brunswick border, I saw some crows along the side of the road, scavenging. I noted one in the middle of the road and decided the best thing to do was drive over it, placing it in between the wheels. It was not moving at all, There was a double yellow line and a car behind me…my options were limited, and I honestly thought it was the right move. When I passed over it, it startled the bird, and it tried flying up, but hit my undercarriage and my view in the mirror showed it tumbling with feathers flying.

First, I lose the crow feather on the ferry to Tobermory, then I (likely) kill one, right after listening to part of The Crow Soundtrack. You can’t make this shit up. Of course, I asked myself if I wasn’t in such a hurry and if I were in a better mood…would I have avoided it? Would I have gone back to check on it?

Right as I was about to hit the border, I saw a hotel called Hotel Interprovincial. I went inside, made sure their security deposit was reasonable and booked a room. For several hours now I have been tossing unused items (did I mention I ditched my tarp at a rest stop?), backing up files, watching TV, and all this after having a giant pizza at the restaurant in the lobby.