In my many years of exploring Canada, Quebec has often been overlooked. Yet, last summer I had an amazing time in the Cote Nord region. There is a small bit of the other side of Quebec Highway 138 connected to Labrador, so I spent some time exploring there…and it was my favorite part of the trip!
There are a few places in Canada that are only accessible from another province…otherwise completely separate(road wise) from the rest of the province. There’s only 70 km of Highway 138 from Blanc Sablon to Old Fort. Aside from a long coastal ferry, the only way there is through Labrador. So it really would only ever be part of a Labrador trip.
From this point, the trip explorations were a little more all over the place. The area from Red Bay to Old Fort is only 145 km; approximately half in Quebec and half in Labrador. So exploring didn’t always happen in order…I was sometimes driving back and forth, often trying to escape bad weather. When I arrived in the area I decided to do the Quebec side first and work my way back, but I was actually in Labrador again once during this time. So I’m giving up telling this part of the story in chronological order.
While the Labrador side is amazing, the Quebec side is right away spectacular, and only gets better as you continue down the coast. After Lordes-de-Blanc-Sablon(the largest town on the Quebec side) the coast is rolling hills and sand beaches for a short bit. Off in the distance the rocks rise again in a menacing line.
On a slightly comical note: there is a place called Brador on the Quebec side. Some say this is from the French assuming Labrador was “La Brador”(the Brador) and removing the La. The name “Labrador” actually comes from a Portugese explorer, so it is all one word originally.
Then the highway rises over the rocks into the desolate tundra. Where the Labrador tundra is mostly green, on the Quebec side there are more rocks poking through, with more dramatic hills. The highway here is largely inland, but it is incredibly scenic.
There are some experiences that just don’t translate to text, and the photos are poor copies. As I drove down the road, I was in awe. I took less photos than I probably could have because I just didn’t know where to start. The best scenes are always like this. Sights that can’t be explained in a simple photo. And yet, these photos are some of my favourites…so they do capture something.
There was one viewpoint that was beyond comprehension. It was a 180 degree view of a bay surrounded by rocky highlands, with a small town below. It was absolutely breathtaking…and the photos are terrible in comparison. I tried doing a panning video as well, but couldn’t capture the immensity of it.
This is one of the things the trip had been missing up to this point. A perfect trip has a combination of adventure, story, trial…and finding scenes that are beyond amazing. Quebec was the spectacular awesome part of this trip! Days like these are less about story, and more about feeling.
The end of the road is the very quiet town of Old Fort. It felt like I was somehow invading their privacy as I drove through the small streets and walked by the shore. It did have a few old tourism sign posts, but they were worn and if I hadn’t gone out of my way to explore, there was nothing to point me in their direction.
I stopped by a couple small other small towns along the way as well, they were all very peaceful. Small enough that when I was running low on gas, I filled up at a single pump outside of a small grocery store.
Along the way I did branch out and drive a few backroads. I turned around on the one because it was getting a little too rough for me.
The other one went out on a small peninsula. It was very picturesque, with a few cabins by the shore, and the highlands rising in the distance. The “road” was very rough. It seemed like it was just worn down from people driving on the tundra…no gravel laid down at all. So it was very slow going, but the views and photos were worth it.
There were a few hikes to viewpoints that were quite epic as well. More scenes that don’t translate well to photos, but were absolutely amazing.
My favorite experience was a small abandoned fishery. It was kind of an odd spot, with a bunch of traditional fishing huts and old wooden docks, but then there was also a modern fishery building. The fishery was clearly abandoned, but there were boats tied in the water, so maybe the area was still used as a harbour?
On the Quebec side, fisheries were often separate from the towns, while on the Labrador side, they were the heart of town. So this place was very empty and quiet. I ended up camping here one night and got the best sunset show of the trip!
I spent a rainy morning here too. the next days of the trip were plagued with bad weather but generally the time in Quebec was sunny and perfect.
Overall, this part of the trip was the most unique and probably the best scenery. Clearly I need to spend more time in Quebec!
The Narrow Twisty Road 