This was an interesting part of the trip. It’s about the best way I can describe it. We left Tadoussac in nice weather with relatively calm seas with a reasonable forecast, 10 to 15kts on the nose. Well it turned and became 25 to 30kts on the nose. It was like a washing machine out there with up to 2 metre swells and short steep waves. The most awful weather I have ever been in. Of course being in that I was not able to take any pictures or record anything. The boat Aladin II following me did manage to get a picture of me at the start. Pictures even than do not do the situation justice. If you look close you can see the boat ahead of me heeling over and this was just the begining. This was taken at 1:35 in the afternoon and we still had 5 hours to go! I had to hand steer since the autopilot could not handle the seas. In hindsight we should have stayed in port but when it was over I was glad we went just for the distance covered. Not a good day and probably seared in my memory forever now. Once out there you can’t turn back because the tide is with you but the wind against. You can’t power against the current that the tide is creating. That is what makes for the short steep waves as well as whats called tide rips. This is where there is current coming up from the bottom and creating a standing wave as well. Another part of the adventure!
After arriving in Cap A A’laige we left the next day at noon again for Quebec city or actually Iles De Orleans. You can see its low tide so the rule is you leave at low tide and arrive at high tide running upstream with the current and adding time to the rise as well. This worked very well and we arrived in Iles De Orleans at about 9 at night doing 8 kts upstream.
Leaving Cap A L’Aigle there is a beautiful house built into the side of the cliff just about next to the harbour.
This is a picture of Aladin II sailing with me.
And Independence as well.
Another picture of the two ahead of me, coming in later in the evening and you can see the stern light on on the first boat.
The tide was so high at this point that the steps were going down to the club and they were under water right at the entrance.
A view of the Bacchus marina.