As You Wish - Our Adventures: July 23, 2025 Under the Weather

Wednesday July 23, 2025 St-Anne-Des-Monts to Riviere au Renaurd 103 miles and 9.75 hours

We had planned for a 2-day stopover in St-Anne-Des-Monts but strong winds and waves helped push the decision to stay an extra day. Added to it was the fact that we both picked up colds. The usual stuff. Feeling fatigued, stuffed up heads, sore throats, cough, etc. Certainly not the worst cases we've had but enough to make us decide to just chill out. We're not at 100% but I'm feeling well enough to get going and we've got a great day forecast for another long 100 mile day. Martha still suffering a bit more - seems to be a few days behind me with a bit worse symptoms.

St-Anne church looms over the waterfront.
Pretty substantial church for the population size.

St-Anne-Des-Monts is one of the larger towns along the Gaspe peninsular with an area population of around 6000. So they have a few amenities - a small museum (aquarium based), a grocery, pharmacy, liquor store, patisserie, chocolate shop, Tim Hortons, and even a microbrewery. While the town used to be a major drop off point for the fishing fleet, it now serves tourists visiting the area and Gaspe National Park. We are in the middle of "Construction Holiday" - last 2 weeks of July when construction workers take off. Explained the large numbers of campers we saw around town. There's an extensive concrete pier that used to be the commercial dock and has been converted for recreational fishing. Watched a guy pull up a HUGE lobster on rod and reel. Not sure how he was able to get it up on the dock but he quickly bagged it. Commercial lobstering season finishes here July 1, so not sure if it was a legal catch. Only other things being caught were some smaller Atlantic mackerel.

Display headed to the wharf commemorates a record Mackerel caught by locals

Numerous driftwood carvings and works of art around town

Winds finally shifted direction and lightened up so made our 7AM escape for Riviere au Renaurd relatively easy. Outside temperatures pushing 70 with hazy sunshine, but the 55 degree water still put a chill on things. Nice day to be out on the water. Mostly flat seas and much of the day we had a minor positive current. Ran mostly 1-2 miles offshore in 200' of water. Hills and cliffs falling down to the water's edge and another small hamlet every place a stream discharged and created a valley area and some flatlands. Most were/are based on fishing so have a small harbor for a few boats. Not really designed to accommodate us.

Start of the day with the sun trying to force it's way out.

Passing the lighthouse at La Martre with its population of 180

Pointe-a-la-Renommee Lighthouse

Calm seas and nice scenery ahead

And behind !

Saw a couple more whales breach the surface but again never quite quick enough with a camera. Highlight of the day was passing through our furthest point north 49°16.099 at Cap du Gros Morne. This is even further north than we traveled on the Great Loop when in the Georgian Bay and North Channel of Canada. Arrived at the fantastic harbor at Riviere Au Renaurd. It's the current fishing center with a large fleet of commercial boats. Inner harbor has a marina, but the outer harbor is large and protected with plenty of room for multiple boats to anchor. So we dropped anchor with about seven sailboats for the night and slept well to gentle rocking.