The drive up quebec towards Gaspesie was absolutely beautiful. Our time was short and schedule tight - which is ever a good way to travel.. I felt lucky though to have the chance to drive through in our own vehicle with the freedom to make short stops at a nice view, sing songs from the backseat and hang my head out the window to point at that passing waterfall. Canada sure is a large country with many twists and turns wih too much to see! We finally arrived in St-Anne where we found a hostel by the sea. Everything you would want in a hostel was there; big bon-fire, cool themed tent/dorms, open friendly common areas, outside bar with its own brew on tap, resident dogs, ocean views, and best of all - a no shoes policy! :) I wish we could have stayed longer..

We managed to score a tent and sleeping pad from the hostel (someone had abandoned them on the beach below) and made our waay happily towards the parc. on arrival we climbed up an easy lookout mountain atop which had sign posts indicating which other moutains surrounded. As the trees thinned the grass became thicker and wind strong. It was silent though amazingly picturesque. In the carpark we came acrosss a moose and its calf! nice. they were quite possibly the funniest big hoofed mammal ive ever seen..

We then visited Lac aux Americains which was so peaceful. Such a nice change from the bustling tourist magnets of BC. Hear we met Pierre a lone traveller taking some time off his busy worklife to tough it in the mountains for a few weeks. He heard our story and offered to let us sleep in his cabin within the park! AWESOME! We climbed mont Xalibu which was near the lake. Here we saw a lone male caribou! we foundout later that there is only one remained herd in the region and that they are extremly endangered. For the decades that Pierre had been hiking these trails he had never seen one..

We cooked dinner and drank tea with Pierre that night and left early the next mornig for Forillion national park on Gaspe Penninsula. We wanted to make it as far as possible towards moncton so only make time enough for a day in the park. Visited a tranquil waterfall (nice easy walk to get to it). Nora was quite keen on swimming (its getting into autumn now so the temps this far north were not favourable for my tropical body to get into the ocean!) We went to this fully protected bay surrounded by salt marshes. The water was shallow and flourishig with benthic flora and fauna (haha i mean toe biting crabs btw). So yes, i went in.... I must say the dip was very refreshing and quite rewarding, i would have regretted not getting in. We were the only ones in the whole bay (bar a secret couple down the beach) the water was like quicksilver; so still, so silent, the sun peerig through the grey cloud cover reflecting off the chilly water.

I had been slightly disappointed with the amount of tourists and the footprint they left behind - my visionn of Canada prior to leaving was a fresh pristine northern temperate environment, one of which the goverenmtn and policy protected with utmost caution. I guess the pull for more was too strong as the national and provincial parks become more and more lean on conservation to make way for ease of access for those tourists with bulging pockets fancy cameras and brandname shoes that want nothing more then to walk a well paved path; eat in metal buildings away from 'society'; ride a gondola to that peak; take that snapshot holding the sun, all at the expense of the vegetation under their feet, then leave feeling richer then they left.

Gaspe penninsula left me feeling somewhat hopeful. the crystal clear waterfalls and dense moss covered forests were something else. The parks were easy enough to access, you had all the 'bear necessities' without the sacrifice of tranquility and beauty of nature not lost. Reluctantly we drove on -Nora and I still had studies to get to!

Sean and I dropped Nora off to Moncton where she hitched all the way to Charlottetown on PEI.I knew i would see her again sometime.

So off we went to Fundy and beyond...