Publish Date: Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Location: East of Batiscan, West of Quebec, St. Lawrence River
We spent the last two days cruising down the St. Lawrence River from Montreal to Quebec City. Although it’s about 140 nautical miles between the cities, it’s only a two-day cruise because of the help from the current. Our normal cruising speed is 6.5-7 knots, but yesterday we averaged about 9 knots, and today we’re up near 10 knots. We’ve gotten pretty used to our normal 7-knot-pace, so these speeds make it feel like we’re really covering some big distances.
The shoreline along this segment of river is dotted with small French villages, most with their own beautiful church. Apparently before modern navigation methods, mariners navigated these waters by recognizing and counting the church steeples along the shore. There is also an occasional commercial wharf where freighters stop to load or unload cargo.
I’m a bit surprised by how brown and dirty the St. Lawrence River is. I’m sure some of it is silt and mud from the tides and currents, but I’m afraid some of it is also pollution. After all, this is the exit waterway for all the environmental sins committed along the shores of the Great Lakes by seven U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. The water looks much more like the Hudson River than I expected it to. We learned in Montreal that the carcasses of dead Beluga whales a little further down the river are treated as toxic waste because of all the pollution in their bodies. It’s 2009 — we should be able to do better than this.
With the Seaway locks behind us, and the wide-open ocean ahead of us, this stretch of river is a pretty low-stress cruise. The influence of the tide on the current starts about halfway between the cities, after which you need to time your departure so you’re not fighting the current all the way to Quebec. We spent the night at Batiscan last night, and our tide calculations told us to leave at about noon to get the most out of the current from the ebbing tide. I’m kind of a “get up and go” sort of traveler, so I had to find things to keep myself busy this morning before it was time to depart. I’m glad we timed it as we did, as we’re riding a nice 2-3 knot current right into Quebec.
After spending the last 35 years sailing the uk waters, working the tides is a given and makes the world of differance to your trip. I cant wait to get my N43 motor boat, but I will always have my Tide, Reeds, Charts (paper as well as hard) and Pilot book at hand. Just think about the money you save when you work the tide!
Mark & Patricia
Dave, I think something else might be going on regarding the brown color of the St. Lawrence…..and moreso locally to the St Lawrence . If this was the result of the other Great Lakes upstream then the water going over the Niagara Falls should be brown too (and the Welland Canal) . Interesingly, in the last 30 odd years while actions have been taken to improve quality for many aquatic areas (think the burning Cuyahoga River in Cleveland in the 1970’s), the quality of the St Lawrence has gone in the other direction…….mainly sewage and industry from Ottawa River and Montreal: http://www.glu.org/news/2008/09/sewage-in-the-st-lawrence-problems-and-solutions/
Hi Deac,
Thanks for the article. This makes more sense to me. Earlier in the summer I was impressed with how clean the Great Lakes were, especially Lake Erie (after it’s infamous low-point in environmental history), so it didn’t quite compute that the St. Lawrence was dirty because of the cumulative flow.
When we were in Montreal we had read about their efforts to clean up the water, and it sounds like they’re making some progress. I’m sure in time the St. Lawrence can be cleaned up as well, but it will take coordinated action by all involved.
Thanks again,
David