Many Rivers to Cross – St Lawrence

The course of the mighty St Lawrence River is also the course of Canadian history – in its time it’s been used as an route for exploration and conquest and a corridor of commerce, this great inland waterway led to the bounty of forests, furs and raw materials that was concealed in the Canadian heartland. Running between two sets of mountains; the Laurentians to the north and the Appalachians to the south, and serving as a pathway to the lakes of Ontario, Erie, Huron, Michigan and Superior, the river seems almost purposefully designed for navigation. But where the rapids, the constant fog and the occasional non-navigable stretches exist, humanity has been damming, diverting and dredging to make this one of the greatest river transportation systems in the world.

The best way to explore the St Lawrence is by kayak. In such a non-invasive and silent craft you will often find that you have grey seals, common eiders or double-breasted cormorants riding the water alongside you as you navigate the sandbars, spits, coves and tributaries of the river, but don’t spend all your time on the water. Make time to explore ashore, where you will find rare Arctic-alpine and sub-Arctic species that grow on the rocky outcrops in the transitional zone between deciduous and boreal forests. Take note though, that one thing Canada is famous for is mosquitoe s – they are persistent, powerful and painful. Take every form of mosquito zapper you can think of, and remember that midges, while not nearly so unpleasant, love the same territory as mozzies and need different protection. Equally, if you can manage it, hire a bike or hike along the trails that wind through this marine-edged landscape. There are over a hundred serviced campsites in the park which means you can leave your stuff and take a dive trip where you will see silver-spotted anemones, snow crabs and Acadian redfish down below the water, or if you’re not a diver, stay on the boat and photograph the beluga, minke and blue whales at water level.

St Lawrence photograph by Mandy Nogood, used under a creative commons attribution licence

 

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