The St. Lawrence river: 11 experiences to enjoy

Wildlife, forests and peoples, from season to season

With their abundant wildlife and unique landscapes, the St. Lawrence and its estuary are a geographic marvel and a wonderful destination for adventures in Canada. This wilderness’ panoramas are beautiful whatever the season. Naturalist and guide Benjamin Dy takes us down the “ocean river”.

A wilder life along the St. Lawrence

For 1,197km (745 miles), the St. Lawrence teems with unique creatures, from beluga whales to rorquals, seals and endemic seabirds. This remarkable biodiversity varies with the water’s salinity and levels of vegetation, transforming every meander into an eminently explorable sanctuary for nature.

The Labrador current is the coldest water in the world. It’s oxygen-rich and full of nutrients, which makes it a unique ecosystem for the cetaceans that come to feed on its amazing cocktail of living things.

Benjamin Dy, PONANT EXPLORATIONS naturalist guide

Beluga watching

In summer, a community of belugas appears in the mouth of the St. Lawrence between Tadoussac and Saguenay. Local naturalists and Benjamin Dy estimate that 800 or so whales come here from their more usual home of the Arctic Ocean, the reason being their ancient roots in the area. The current population’s ancestors lived here after the last Ice Age, about 7,000 years ago. The river is the only place where the whales are observed at such a southerly latitude.

Follow the paths of sea mammals

“The cold, nutrient-rich waters of the Laurentian Channel attract sea mammals,” explains Benjamin Dy. From blue to humpback whales via common rorquals, the Gulf of St. Lawrence offers plenty of opportunities to spot majestic wildlife. All kinds of Arctic species are drawn to a region that caters well for them over the winter, especially in terms of temperature and access from Labrador. Harp seals, for example, stay there from autumn to spring to breed. The Canadian government records between 30,000 and 50,000 births every year in the Gulf’s southern portion.

See the deer on parade in Newfoundland

The majestic inhabitants of Newfoundland’s forests take advantage of the region’s Indian summer to perform very precise mating rituals. You can spot herds of boreal woodland caribou as soon as you enter Gros Morne National Park, as every male has his own harem. Moose are more likely to shy away, but you can still hear them over great distances. Their characteristic bellows ring out during rutting season in autumn, and sometimes you can see individuals at the forest’s edge.

The graceful dance of the St. Lawrence’s birdlife

The river’s most famous colony of birds is its 100,000 or so northern gannets on Bonaventure island in the Gaspé peninsula, which appear from April to September during nesting season. However, common eiders are magnificent divers which tend to grab all the limelight on the Île aux Basques and Île aux Pommes in Bas-Saint-Laurent, where tens of thousands of pairs come to nest on the area’s rocks and sandy beaches.

The St. Lawrence estuary’s unique ecosystem and shoals of capelins attract all kinds of seabirds at different stages in their migratory and reproductive cycles. The Quebec and Montreal region is also a stop-off for snow geese, which arrive in their hundreds of thousands in April on their way back to the Arctic after wintering in the southern United States.

Benjamin Dy, PONANT EXPLORATIONS naturalist guide

Landscapes sculpted by ice and currents

Labrador’s temperate climate and cold current carve out the banks of Canada’s St. Lawrence river. “Here, the Arctic tree line is at its most southerly anywhere in the world,” says Benjamin Dy. The tundra and taiga lie side by side, creating a unique combination of boreal and Arctic landscapes.

Beyond a latitude of 50 degrees north, we are entering a world of granite and tundra. This is the edge of the Canadian shield, where the boreal forest starts to bow under the weight of the sub-Arctic climate.

Benjamin Dy, PONANT EXPLORATIONS naturalist guide

Hike unspoilt fjords

Gros Morne National Park and Saguenay Fjord are not just for contemplating. In summer, they form a beautiful backdrop for ridge walks overlooking sheer cliffs, while the winter transforms these stone giants into an explorer’s icy wilderness. You can use snowshoes to get to spectacular lookouts over the frozen waters, their silence broken only by the cracking sound of shifting ice.

Explore the Moisie river

In Quebec’s northern coastline region, “the river Moisie was an amazing place for the Innu people to live. They used the river to hunt and move around over hundreds of miles,” says Benjamin Dy. There is no better way to connect with this environment than the ancient tradition of dog sledding. This is a land that First Nations peoples criss-crossed for centuries, and its power is palpable when gliding over frozen rivers or boreal forest trails. In calmer spots, ice fishing offers another way to get into the rhythm of the local seasons.

Travel the ever-changing landscapes of the boreal forest

Summer is the season of beautiful contrasts between the St. Lawrence, its surrounding forest and the setting sun, but in winter, the trees are covered in snow to make the landscape sparkle. This is the perfect time for long trips out on a snowmobile, the best mode of transport in these parts for covering vast distances under fiery twilight skies. The forest near the Gulf of St. Lawrence, towards Port‑Cartier–Sept‑Îles, is “dense and somewhat impenetrable”, according to Benjamin Dy, but its secrets are revealed to those who enter on a fat bike or snowshoes in winter. The trails are waymarked and spectacular.

The St. Lawrence through Canadian history

From Newfoundland to Montreal, the St. Lawrence reflects the coming together of the different communities that live on its banks. The lands of the Innu, European fish markets and North American modernity have formed a rich architectural and sociological melting pot that reflects life as it has been lived on the river through time.

In this boreal world, for a long time rivers were the only way of getting about. Quebec’s history has been written by the river. When there wasn’t fuel for aeroplanes or road building, everything went via the river.

Benjamin Dy, PONANT EXPLORATIONS naturalist guide

Explore the heritage of the First Nations

Whether in Uashat Mak Mani-Utenam near Sept-Îles or Ekuanitshit not far from Havre-Saint-Pierre, modern-day Innu communities in the Laurentian Basin are descended from the First Nations that lived on the banks of the St. Lawrence 9,000 years ago, as you can see at the Rive-Ouest-de-la-Blanc-Sablon archaeological site. Their all-encompassing knowledge of the boreal forests and river’s tributaries enabled these indigenous peoples access to a vast territory, and they remain the guardians of its memory and its best ambassadors. Meet them and you will discover their traditions and essential bond with nature.

Meet the St. Lawrence’s island peoples

What makes the Gulf of St. Lawrence so unique as a region is its diversity. Whether on the Îles de la Madeleine or Miquelon, traditional island communities have formed over the decades, their lives long oriented around fishing. Colourful homes, life lived to the rhythm of surrounding nature and a do-it-yourself attitude are some of the characteristics shared by local people. Every community has, however, developed their own identity. Some blend together Innu and European cultures at Basse-Côte-Nord, while others on the Îles de la Madeleine retain their Acadian linguistic and cultural heritage.

Travel back in time in Quebec

Quebec is a stunning piece of 18th-century French heritage and gets its name from its unique strategic position. “In Quebec, the St. Lawrence is just 400 metres wide,” explains Benjamin Dy, hence its name meaning “where the river shrinks” in Algonquin. As the only fortified city in North America, its quaintly charming setting offers a remarkable panorama over the river from the Governors’ Promenade.

Montreal: where the city meets the St. Lawrence river

The city of Montreal is actually an island whose size is dictated by the river. Modern sky-scrapers line the islands of Notre-Dame and Sainte-Hélène bedded deep in the St. Lawrence. Travellers who return to urban life in Montreal from the wilderness will still feel the river’s presence. Everywhere from its historic port to its contemporary developments, the city offers impressive views over the waters that have shaped North American history and architecture.

Benjamin Dy

Benjamin Dy is the author of Québec – les Clés pour Bien Voyager (Quebec: An Explorer’s Guide) and a photojournalist and conservation biologist. Having lived in Quebec for 15 years, he is now also a guide specialising in the land-based and marine wildlife of the St. Lawrence.

Photo credits: PONANT/Julien Fabro; Ian Dawson; StudioPONANT/Noemie Watel; Doriane Letexier; andreanita; iStock.

PONANT passengers walking the icy banks of the St. Lawrence river in Canada

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Explore the St. Lawrence river

Wildlife, forests and peoples, from season to season

A wilder life along the St. Lawrence

Beluga watching

Follow the paths of sea mammals

See the deer on parade in Newfoundland

The graceful dance of the St. Lawrence’s birdlife

Landscapes sculpted by ice and currents

Hike unspoilt fjords

Explore the Moisie river

Travel the ever-changing landscapes of the boreal forest

The St. Lawrence through Canadian history

Explore the heritage of the First Nations

Meet the St. Lawrence’s island peoples

Travel back in time in Quebec

Montreal: where the city meets the St. Lawrence river

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Benjamin Dy

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