Carla Harren

After Breakfast we started our journey to Lachenaie/Terrebonne because it would be to far to Quebec City. Daughter Jessica was the only one driving the car. It certainly was a scenic ride along forest areas, farms, lakes and rivers. The traffic was good fortunately we were on the right path of the highway for we could see on the other side that sometimes there was a yam near major cities.

We arrived at the Super 8 Hotel early in the evening and an open space to do some swimming in the pool along with the jacuzzi. By that time after a nice shower we were all ready for a good night sleep as we wanted to start early in the morning the next day to travel to Quebec City.

Starting off in the morning to be with Mother Nature. Certainly the surroundings here was a sanctuary to behold. On our way to Sainte Anne we stopped as we were attracted to visit “Sainte Anne de Beaupre”.

Some more information via Wikipedia:

Basilica:
This building is in Romanesque Revival style and built in the shape of a cross.
The Basilica is approximately 100 metres high, from the floor to the top of the bell towers.
It is about 60 metres wide at the transept crossing and 50 metres at the façade.
The building extends about 100 metres in length.

Sculptures
The tympanum: St. Anne in her glory! At her feet and on either side is a long frieze showing important moments in the history of this, our devotion.
Just above the tympanum, the Angel of the Pilgrim watches over the faithful who come to visit Saint Anne each year. Above, the 12 Apostles surround the large rose window.
Finally, several statues decorate the façade including Mary, Joseph, Joachim, John the Baptist, Bishop François de Laval and Mary of the Incarnation, all masterpieces of the Quebec sculptor, Émile Brunet.

Copper doors by the sculptor, Albert Gilles
The main doors of the Basilica are hand-made of copper and they present many scenes of the life of Jesus. This exceptional work of art created by the artist Albert Gilles was originally hanging on the doors of the St. Joseph Church in Quebec City in the 1950’s. The three double doors alone represent 12 months of laborious work. After the closing of this church in 2003, Albert Gille’s masterpiece was given a second chance at life when it was transferred to the Saint Anne de Beaupré Basilica the same year, to the great benefit of pilgrims and visitors.

Statue from the first Basilica
At the peak, between the two bell towers, you can find the statue of Saint Anne which was saved from the destructive fire of the first Basilica in 1922.

Discover your sacred history
To enter a Basilica is to enter a sacred place where an atmosphere of peace reigns. It’s the House of God. Let us discover this place, whose decoration is like a great history book, a sacred history, our history.

Blessed Sacrament Chapel

Marius Dubois is the artist who decorated the Blessed Sacrament Chapel.
The decor focuses on the Eucharist, from the Mystical Lamb to the abundant harvest foretelling the Eucharist.
Throughout the year, from Monday to Saturday, the Eucharist is celebrated every morning at 6:30 a.m.. This mass is televised throughout the Greater Quebec City area, through Télé-Communautaire (Télévision d’ici, Côte de Beaupré) on the MATV Canal 609 network.

Immaculate Conception

We are now in the lower floor of the Basilica, in this beautiful chapel dedicated to Mary, the Immaculate Conception, the daughter of Saint Anne. Another way of glorifying the grandmother of Jesus.

Paintings
With a typical Romanesque architecture, the chapel is decorated with paintings, some by Frédéric Doyon and others by Marius Dubois.

The capitals
As capitals for the columns, there are 176 small mosaics that can be admired, representing birds, flowers, butterflies, all small things but so pretty, reminding once again of all nature, creation of a generous God who shows us his love through all these beauties.

• Saint Alphonsus, founder of the Congregation of the Redemptorists
• Our Lady of Perpetual Help, whose devotion is entrusted to the Redemptorists
• Saint Patrick, in honour of the numerous Irish pilgrims
• Saint Joseph, the son-in-law of Saint Anne
• Saint Benedict, a spiritual leader, founder of the Benedictines, the origin of all religious congregations
• Saint John Baptist de la Salle, educator and founder of Christian schools
• Saint Joachim, husband of Saint Anne
• Saint John the Baptist, patron of French Canadians
• Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, Chapel of the Reserve Tabernacle
• Saint Gerard Majella, Redemptorist brother, a remarkable Saint

Saint Anne’s Fountain

In front of the basilica, a beautiful fountain welcomes pilgrims.
Installed in 2008, for the celebration of the 350th anniversary of the Shrine, this fountain reaches a height of ten meters. Water flows over the scalloped lips of a bronze basin of some 4 meters in diameter. At the summit is a statue representing Ste Anne and her daughter, Mary.
This statue is the work of Canadian sculptor Mr. Émile Brunet. It represents Saint Anne teaching the Virgin Mary, with Mary holding a scroll with the word “Caritas”, Latin for Charity.
Mr. Brunet once shared that the expression on Saint Anne’s face is one of “meekness and kindness” and that “Saint Anne would be about 45 years of age and the Virgin, three”. He didn’t ignore the fact that this statue would stand on Canadian soil: “Since Saint Anne’s statue will be set up in Canada, I thought the Canadian spirit would require a crown of maple leaves to be made as a tribute to Saint Anne and the Holy Virgin”. (Émile Brunet, 1958)

Reference: https://sanctuairesainteanne.org/en

Next stop Sainte Anne Canyon a heartfelt beauty to be in. Good to walk upon on all levels (Physical, Emotional, Mental and Spirit).

Here some extra information via Wikipedia:
Canyon Sainte-Anne is a spectacular, steep-sided gorge, carved by the Sainte-Anne-du-Nord River., 6 km east of Beaupre, Quebec, Canada. The river drops over a 74 m (243 ft) waterfall within the canyon.

Location
Canyon Sainte-Anne is located 25 to 30 minutes east of Quebec City, at the edge of the Beaupré Coast and Charlevoix regions. It lies on the border between the municipalities of Saint-Ferreol-les-Neiges and Saint-Joachim. The Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré Basilica, the ski resort Mont Sainte-Anne, the Montmorency Falls and the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Reserve are in the same area.

Geology
The canyon is part of the Canadian Shield, a fundamental rock formation of northern parts of Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec, all around the Hudson Bay. It all started in the Precambrian Age (1,2 billion years ago) when hard rock formed the canyon’s underlying rock. This metamorphic rock, called granitic gneiss, was formed at high pressure in the extremely hot depths of earth then rose to the surface through erosional uplift. It comprises much of Mount St. Anne. Later, some 450 million years ago, a sedimentary Palaeozoic sediment, a marine mud, was deposited in ancient seas on top of the gneiss, and consolidated into a rock called shale. The shale was metamorphosed into slate during the Acadian orogeny (a mountain building period 375 million years ago). Slate is a hard, resistant rock, able to withstand the erosive power of water.

Much later, two successive ice ages covered North America. The advance and recession of the last ice age helped sculpt the region into what we see now (the St. Lawrence Lowlands area with the St. Lawrence River, Orleans Island, and the Magdalene Islands, as well as all the rivers known today). The weight of the ice depressed the crust so that, when the ice retreated (melted), the Atlantic Ocean waters invaded to form the Champlain Sea (and deposit the most recent sediments of sand, gravel, and clay). The subsequent rebound of the crust and erosion produced the landscape we see today.

History
Because of its advantageous route, the Sainte-Anne-du-Nord River was widely used by loggers at the start of the 20th century. During a camping trip to the area in the summer of 1965, a former logger explained to Jean-Marie McNicoll how to reach the Sainte-Anne River falls. As there was no road to the river, Jean-Marie had to make his way through the woods but was rewarded with the discovery. He returned to his brother Laurent telling him he had discovered a unique place.
Two years later, they leased the immediate shores of the river from Hydro-Quebec and purchased the wooded lots between Route 138 and the leased riverbanks. Slowly but surely, work began to clear a road. All was in place to welcome the first visitors on July 14, 1973.

Onwards to Parc de La Chute Montmorency. Jessica and Diego walked all the stairs downwards and upwards whilst I zoomed in at the top. Some photographs were taken bij Jessica others from Google images.

Some more information via Wikipedia:

Location
The falls are located on the boundary between the borough of Beauport, and Boischatel, about 12 km (7.5 mi) from the heart of old Quebec City. The area surrounding the falls is protected within the Montmorency Falls Park (French: Parc de la Chute-Montmorency). The falls are at the mouth of the Montmorency River where it drops over the cliff shore into the Saint Lawrence River, opposite the western end of the Ille d’Orleans. The waterfalls are 83 m (272′) tall, a full 30 m (99′) higher than Niagara Falls.

After all this splendor we decided to go to a Public Swimming Pool in Quebec.
Baie de Beauport

A beach just 5 minutes from downtown? Yes, it’s possible!
Discover one of the “coolest” places in town on the shores of the St. Lawrence River: Baie de Beauport. Do a little sunbathing on this kilometre-long sandy beach or, if you are more the active type, play soccer, volleyball, or toss a Frisbee. Canoes, kayaks, rabaskas, centre boarders, catamarans, windsurf boards and paddle boards can also be rented on-site. Children will have a great time on their very own playground with water games to keep things cool.

Thursday, August 22, 2019
Tzolkin KIN 41 – Imix, Red Lunar Dragon – keywords: nurtures, birth, being, beginnings, mother of life
Tone 2: stabilise, polarize, challenge, working together
Planets: Neptune, Venus, Pluto

Today we went what later in the morning to go to the National Park de La Jacques Cartier for hiking. Canada is a wonderful country to enjoy Mother Nature’s gifts.

Some more information about the National Park:
Jacques-Cartier National Park (French: Parc national de la Jacques-Cartier) is a provincial park located 50 kilometres (31 mi) north of Quebec City. The park aims to protect wildlife in the Laurentian massif. It lies within the Eastern forest-boreal transition ecoregion.

History
The Montagnais and the Huron peoples used to inhabit lands that currently make up Jacques-Cartier National Park. During the 17th century, Hurons worked as guides for Jesuits who wanted to travel between Quebec City and Lac Saint-Jean without using the St. Lawrence River.

Starting in the mid-19th century, the area was a major producer of lumber. Due to pressure from the American conservationist movement, the Laurentian Wildlife Reserve, whose lands the park was formed from, was created in 1895. The end of World War II, as well as improved road networks, brought in an considerable increase in the number of visitors to the area. In 1972, Hydro-Quebec proposed building a dam on the Jacques-Cartier river, which would have resulted in flooding the valley. Due to public pressure, the project was abandoned in 1975. That same year also saw the end of the lumber industry in the region. In 1981, Jacques-Cartier National Park was created from the southernmost lands of the Laurentian Wildlife Reserve.

Geography and geology
Jacques-Cartier National Park is located in the Laurentian Mountains along the Jacques-Cartier River valley, to the west of Quebec Route 175. Jacques-Cartier is a 30 minutes drive from Quebec City, Grands-Jardins National Park is located to the northeast of the park, while the Laurentian Wildlife RCFB Valcartier.
The park contains several glacial landforms such as drumlins and moraine.. The most prominent glacial landform in Jacques-Cartier National Park is the Jacques-Cartier Valley (French:Vallée de la Jacques-Cartier). The U-shaped valley is 550 metres (1,804 ft) deep and was formed during the last glacial period.

Flora and fauna

The plateau consists mainly of coniferous trees such as the black spruce, while the valley consists mainly of deciduous trees such as sugar maple and yellow birch. The invasive Japanese knotweed has also appeared in the park’s boundaries.

The wildlife is typical of a boreal forest. Animals that can be found in the park include moose, caribou, white-tailed deer, gray wolf, red fox, the Canada lynx, the black bear, river otter, porcupine and the Canadian beaver. Atlantic salmon, brook trout and Arctic char, can be found in the lakes and in the Jacques-Cartier river. The park is also visited by more than 100 species of birds.

Isle d’Orleans

The next stop was the Isle d’Orleans. Quite a different scene with lots of handcrafted places such as a Chocolatery (something to make you smile inwardly and outwardly), Strawberries, Blue Berries, Bakery and Wineries.

More information via Wikipedia:

Île d’Orléans; English: Island of Orleans) is located in the Saint Lawrence River about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) east of downtown Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The island was one of the first parts of the province to be colonized by the French, and a large percentage of French Canadians can trace ancestry to early residents of the island. The island has been described as the “microcosm of traditional Quebec and as the birthplace of francophones in North America.”
The island is accessible from the mainland via the Ile d’Orleans Bridge from Beauport. Route 368 is the sole provincial route on the island, which crosses the bridge and circles the perimeter of the island. At the village of Sainte Petronille toward the western end of the island, a viewpoint overlooks the impressive Chute Montmorency (Montmorency Falls), as well as a panorama of the St. Lawrence River and Quebec City. Île d’Orléans is twinned with Ile de Re in France.

Geography

The Island of Orleans is situated between the Laurentian Plateau or Canadian Shield to the north and the Appalachian Mountains to the south. Its north-eastern point marks the boundary between the St. Lawrence River and its estuary (the largest in the world), where fresh water begins to mix with salt water.
Of irregular form with jagged coves and capes, the Island of Orleans is 34 kilometres (21 mi) long and 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) wide at the widest point. It is 75 kilometres (47 mi) in circumference, with a total surface area of 190 square kilometres (73 sq mi). It has a hilly relief, small valleys, and gradual crests that reach a maximum height of about 150 metres (490 ft) at Sainte-Pétronille and Saint-Laurent in the south.

History

Map from 1641 of Île d’Orléans

The island had long been inhabited by the indigenous tribes. The Huron called it Minigo (meaning “Enchantress”, because of its charm). The French explorer Jacques Cartier first set foot on the island in 1535 near the present-day village of Saint-François. He called it Île de Bascuz (from Bacchus) because of the abundance of wild grapes growing on the island. Officials later changed the name to Île d’Orléans in honour of the second son of King Francis I, Henri II, the Duke of Orleans. The island was also known as Grande Île, Sainte-Marie, and Saint-Laurent for certain periods in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Early French settlers, immigrating mostly from the Normandy and Poitou regions in France, were attracted to the island because of its fertile soil. They colonized it according to the seigneurial system of New France, which is still evident in its layout, featuring residences close together, with outlying long, narrow fields and a common.[1] In 1661, the first parish of Sainte-Famille was founded, followed by another four parishes in 1679/1680. By 1685, there were 1205 mostly French inhabitants and 917 livestock.

In 1744, colonists completed the 67 kilometres (42 mi) Chemin Royal (Royal Road), which encircles the entire island. Jean Mauvide, a surgeon for the King of France, built the Manoir Mauvide-Genest in 1734 as his residence. In 1759 it was occupied by British General Wolfe when his forces occupied the island shortly before the Battle of the Plains of Abraham during the Seven Years’ War. Great Britain was victorious.

In the 19th and early 20th century, several boat-building yards operated on the island, especially in Saint-Laurent de I’lle Orleans. Together with the thriving fishing industry of that era, it gave the Island of Orleans a maritime character.

The Island of Orleans retained its traditional rural way of life until 1935, when construction was completed on the Pont de l’Île bridge, allowing much more traffic. The crossing connects to the Chemin Royal, which was set to music in 1975 by francophone singer Felix Leclerc, in his song “Le Tour de L’île.” In spite of this, the island has maintained its pastoral image and historic character, with more than 600 buildings classified or recognized as heritage property. In 1990, the entire island was designated a National Historic Site of Canada.

Today the island is a mix of suburban communities and farms. It is a popular destination for day trippers and bicyclists.

Economy

Since the days of the first French settlers, agriculture has been the main economic activity. The island, known as the “Garden of Quebec”, is still an essentially rural place famous locally for its produce, especially strawberries, apples, potatoes and wineries. Sugar maple stands produce maple syrup and other products.

While the old trades of fishing and boat building have been abandoned, the island’s rich cultural heritage and pastoral scenery has led to a flourishing tourism industry. It attracts more than 600,000 visitors each year. Numerous bed and breakfast inns, regional cuisine restaurants, roadside fruit stands, art galleries and craft shops also attract visitors.

2019

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