GNBR East Day 12 - Saint Raymond to Quebec City

45.2 miles, 961’ climbing

Sept 3, 2026

Moose sightings: 0

Hilton Quebec

It rained a couple of centimeters overnight, and it was still coming down in the morning, so we took our time packing up. We had a continental breakfast in our hotel which consisted of toast, banana and coffee. Finally we put on the rain gear and headed out.

Today’s route was supposed to take us on some local singletrack which we were looking forward to. On the other hand, puddles and mud on loaded bikes didn’t sound fun. Finally we made the decision to skip the single track and roll into Quebec City on the rail trail. It continued to rain all morning, sometimes hard, so we probably made the right call for ourselves.

As we pulled onto the rail trail, we saw a plaque describing the 1915 visit of then ex-President Teddy Roosevelt to Saint Raymond. He was pictured with a moose. Today was probably our last chance to see one with the likelihood decreasing as we roll thru more urban areas, but we kept watching. The only wildlife we saw was a soggy and slightly befuddled grouse who was trailside.

After about 7 miles of forest, the rail trail passed beside a large lake. To our left were floating docks, and to our right were beautiful homes with terraced, landscaped paths leading down to the docks and the rail trail. There was more forest, then more and more neighborhoods on the outskirts of Quebec City. We passed a preserved train car from the old railway and afterwards rolled onto the paved path, Chemin des Cheminots, which may be part of the rail trail too. It was cold, and we stopped for lunch at a burger joint adjacent to the path. When we came out, the rain stopped and the sun came out. 

Because our bags and bikes were mud splattered, we made our way to a nearby self-service car wash to spray everything off. We would be on pavement the rest of the way. We didn’t book our hotel until 2 days ago, and the only place we could find we decided would be too nice for mud encrusted bikes.

We wound our way into town, first weaving our way through detours and road closures, then taking paths through parks alongside a canal. The route took us all the way to the waterfront at old Quebec. It turned out that our hotel was on top of the hill blocked by a cliff. We laughed when Google Maps directed us up a very long steep staircase to get there. Instead, we pedaled west and found a steep path up the hill, undoubtedly our biggest elevation gain of the day. At our hotel, we locked our bikes in storage for a few days while we explored the city a bit. The old city is very European looking and somewhat touristy with many shops, restaurants, old buildings, public art, and some old town walls. 

GNBR East Day 11 — Lac aux Sables to Saint Raymond

39.3 miles, 1775’ clmbing

Sept 2, 2026

Pub-Hotel Saint Alexis, Saint Raymond

Moose sightings: 0

Number of plaques describing the high moose population: 1

Our camp site was strangely and wonderfully free of mosquitos. The RV park was quiet when we packed up. It seems like the season is over, and most residents gone except for weekends. We pedaled away on a rolling paved road that slowly climbed. The shoulder was minimal but traffic was light.

After about 17 miles we detoured to a gas station / market for a coffee break. They had a small seating area which we took advantage of. Heading out, we were prepared to share the pavement with large trucks and other traffic. To our surprise and delight, we turned immediately off onto the Jaques Cartier Rail Trail, one of the “routes vertes” cycling paths in Quebec province.  It had a solid gravel surface and rolled through the woods away from roads. Every couple of miles there was a stop with some combination of informational plaques, Adirondack chairs, toilets, garbage receptacles, covered sitting shelters, and camping platforms.  One plaque described the very dense moose population in Quebec. We scanned the wetlands and lake shores, but we saw no moose.

The rail trail took us right to the small town of Saint Raymond where we stayed in a hotel attached to a pub and pizzeria, the only hotel in the small town. It was a bit like a hostel or backpackers lodge. We walked around and had an ice cream in the misting rain before retreating to our hotel. The pizza was good and the people friendly. We appreciated the excellent shower since the hot water at the campground last night hadn’t worked. 

GNBR Day 10 - Mattawin to Lac aux Sables

 44.7 miles, 2881’ climbing

Sept 1, 2026

Lac aux Sables Campground

Moose sightings: 0

It was nice not to need to pack up a sopping camp first thing in the morning. Instead we had a restaurant breakfast, and we headed out on the smooth paved shoulder of the highway alongside the wide and calm Rivière Saint Maurice. Mist was rising off the water. There were some big trucks on the highway, but the shoulder was wide enough that it wasn’t disturbing. The river was beautiful. The amount of water here is mind boggling to a southern Arizonan.

After 10 miles, we turned away from the Saint Maurice onto a smaller paved road and started climbing, you guessed it, next to a creek. There were some farms and homes, few cars and no huge trucks. In 6 miles we came to Mekinac (Trois Rives), where we stopped at a friendly market to pick up sandwiches and drink a Coke. From there we turned off onto dirt roads, all of it a little loose, but the scenery made up for it: lakes and creeks with enough of an open forest to see them, a few houses here and there. 

We climbed and then descended on a road with quite a loose surface. When we caught up to the road grader, we knew why, though the road beyond it was very good. Why grade it? Some lakes had large docks and more homes with amazing views. 

Heading down a hill, we were suddenly met with a road closure. Below us we could see a giant backhoe and other large equipment, apparently replacing a bridge over a creek, and way too busy to stop work for a couple of cyclists. We consulted maps and saw no roads whatsoever to get past the closure, and we were 30 miles into our ride. We looked around but it was too steep to bushwhack. Finally we knocked on the door of an adjacent house to ask if they knew how to bypass it. The darling lady of the house immediately understood our predicament and showed us a small path on her property leading down to a small bridge across the creek, upstream from the closure, and getting us back on our way. Most of the people of Quebec with whom we’ve interacted have been similarly wonderful. We’ve spent a lot of time in the woods with just the two of us, but when meeting people they’ve been great: warm, friendly, more than willing to work with our fractured French.

Almost right away the feel of the countryside changed. Instead of dense forests, we were riding thru large farms. We saw corn and soy beans, some apple trees next to homes. In the distance in our next town we saw a striking pair of towers from the town church. We pedaled into the beautiful town of Saint Thècle and stopped in front of the church of the same name. We ate our sandwiches and read placards describing the history. A lady stopped to offer more history, and another passer by patted Sarah warmly on her shoulder.  A man on an e-bike stopped to chat with Ed.

Leaving Saint Thècle, there were a lot of historic homes. Farms were integrated right into the edge of town. A few more miles took us into Lac aux Sables, our destination for the night. We shopped at the market, then rode to our campground which mainly caters to people who have a year round RV spot. Many have elaborate decks and outdoor spaces. We have a shady picnic table wand fire ring tucked in next to a creek, an outlet of the lake with its sandy beachfront just a minute away. We bought fire wood, made camp, did laundry, lit a fire, made dinner… a great evening with a peculiar absence of mosquitos (much appreciated).

GNBR East Day 9 - Riverside Camp to Mattawin

37.5 miles, 2388’ climbing

August 31, 2026

Moose Sightings: 0

It was cool, damp, and foggy this morning as we broke camp before the mosquitos woke up. Whoever parked a truck and trailer at the other end of the camp site didn’t make an appearance last night, so we had the camp site to ourselves. A squirrel came out and started chittering at us as we brushed off our drive trains. Maybe we woke it up? A few minutes later we saw it next to a tree with a long green pinecone looking deliriously happy, so we were forgotten. During our ride we saw several more squirrels with green pinecones, all looking pretty pleased with themselves, including one that ran right in front of us, requiring an emergency stop.

It was cold as we headed out. We were damp and gritty and a bit sluggish starting. We are almost over our colds, so hoping to feel a little more energetic soon. Around 9:30am the fog lifted and the sun came out. We road along the beautiful Rivière Mattawin which we camped next to. At one point we heard a roar and made our way out to the riverside where there were some dramatic rapids. 

After some rolling climbs, we found ourselves at the exit from the Reserve Faunique du Saint Maurice where there was a gated entrance and a visitor center. It was right by the confluence where the Rivière Mattawin flows into the even larger Rivière Saint Maurice. After a short pedal on pavement we arrived early at our hotel. The entire “town” is our hotel & restaurant and a gas station / quick mart across the highway. There was a sunny balcony facing the Rivière Saint Maurice where we were able to hang out soggy clothes and camping gear. 

GNBR East Day 8 - Saint Michel des Saints to Riverside Camp

45.3 miles, 3815’ climbing 

August 30, 2026

Camped by Riviere Matawin

Moose sightings: 0

Mosquito sightings: 1,000,000

Our hotel turned out to be just what we needed. We were right across the street from the large supermarket, so last night we picked up supplies for the next two days as well as breakfast. We had coffee while packing up and heating breakfast in our kitchenette. There was a hose out back so we could clean our bikes using a squirt of the provided dish soap from our kitchenette.

We rode out of town on quiet streets. We turned a corner and crossed a bridge and found ourselves in a more upscale area with beautiful houses with large lawns and boat docks facing Lake Toreau. 

After a few miles we transitioned to a gravel road. After ~10 miles we stopped at the small visitor center at the Lac Bouteille entrance to the Reserve Faunique de Mastigauche, right beside the lake. This our 4th or 5th Reserve Faunique, and the desk lady told us that they are preserves with no private land within, intended for hunting or passage (we think this means recreation). We told her we wanted to see a moose, and she said it’s impossible but that a hunt starts next week. There’s a little lost in translation in these conversations as she spoke only French, but at the reserve yesterday we were told that hunting starts in 2 weeks and that moose were everywhere. So there’s still some mystery about how to see a moose. But she was friendly and patient with our French. We had a Pepsi and peeked at the lake. The desk lady wished us a good trip.

The road was wide with a layer of loose sand and a little gravel on top. The soft surface made us climb hills a bit slowly. After several miles we turned off onto a smaller forest road which had a firmer surface (mostly), and we pedaled thru beautiful forests with a fair amount of climbing. We’ve had a lot of wildflowers every day, and today was gorgeous. Some clearings from old wood cutting areas gave us good views. It felt a little mountainous at times though the elevation doesn’t really say “mountain” to us.

Eventually we descended on a soft road to a dam, crossed, and a rain storm hit. It rained hard for a while, and we put on both rain pants and jackets. The dirt has seemed sandy for this entire trip, and thankfully it doesn’t get slippery in the rain. Nor do we accumulate mud. We pedaled on as the rain continued. Finally we found a small, primitive campsite that was marked on our route. A truck and trailer are parked there, but no occupants. We took a space on the opposite side from them, set up camp, battled mosquitos, filtered water, and retreated to our tent soon after dinner for purposes of mosquito avoidance. We are right on the bank of a beautiful, wide, slow moving river.

 

GNBR East Day 7 - Lake Monroe to Saint Michel des Saints

 57.5 miles, 3677’ climbing

August 29, 2026

Hotel St. Michel

Moose sightings: 0

It was a slightly noisy night with people arriving to the campground for the weekend, but good noise, a lot of laughter. It’s the coldest night of our trip so far. We woke up early and headed out into some fog with temperature in the forties. Our fingers were cold. We saw deer as we wound around national park trails past amenities we didn’t partake of: beaches, playgrounds, kayak and paddle board rentals, an ice creamery. There must be nearly 30 campsites around Lake Monroe. 

After leaving the series of campgrounds on the north east side of the lake, we turned off onto a gravel road. We had a bit of climbing past forests and lakes. We finally came to a point where there was a barricade and a “Road Closed” sign. The exit part of the road was open. There was no indication of for how long or why. Since we were out of cell phone service all day, we opened our map apps to find an alternative route to our destination, but there was none. Finally we pedaled past the sign.

It was a wide gravel road. There were signs of a little recent road work, a lot of gravel in places, but nothing obvious for why it would be closed. With a lot of uphill pedaling, we proceeded for 18 miles. We were passed by two motorcyclists, but saw nobody else. Unlike many areas, there were no homes or cottages in this area, possible due to being in Mont Tremblant National Park part of the time. 

Finally we came to an exit gate where we would make a turn near the Reseve Faunique Rouge Mayawin. A couple from Montreal were on bikes there. They greeted us and asked about road conditions. Part of their conversation was hard to follow, but it seemed to be a seasonal road closure (in August??) which was inconvenient for local travel. The couple said their good byes, and we crossed the street to a Reserve headquarters where we had cokes and ice creams. The ranger told us that moose are everywhere and that hunting season starts in 2 weeks. We planned our trip to finish by mid September for that reason.

It looked like it would rain. Luckily we had an easy ride on smooth pavement to Saint Michel des Saints. We checked into our hotel, grabbed dinner, and picked up groceries for the next two days. It looks like we may be off the grid.

GNBR East Day 6 - La Concepcion to Lake Monroe

47.2 miles, 2230’ climbing

August 28, 2026

L’Ours Campground, Mont Tremblant National Park

After coffee in our room, we packed up quickly. That was by necessity since the mosquitos were voracious outside our Auberge. We headed out of town on a paved road. After several quiet miles, we had to cross a divided freeway with high speed traffic twice — no underpass or overpass. It was a little stressful since we couldn’t see very far down the road to judge how long a break in traffic was. Afterwards we road briefly on the freeway shoulder and on the access road as we came to the beautiful town(city?) of Mont Tremblant. The downtown area had cute shops, hanging baskets of flowers, all very attractive. We had a delicious breakfast at L’Arôme, a cafe on the Main Street. Then we shopped for supplies at the Metro supermarket. Since we are camping tonight, we needed food for today and tomorrow.

We left Mont Tremblant on separated bike paths and quickly found ourselves on Le P’tit Train du Nord, a paved multi-use trail that runs for a couple hundred kilometers. There were quite a few cyclists and e-bikers on the rail trail. We passed beautiful lakes with floating five platforms, docks with aiderondeck chairs, paddle boards and canoes laid out, motor boats. There were beautiful homes, too. It looked like a resort area with some interspersed farms. 

We glided along the rail trail for about 15 miles until we turned off onto a good gravel road. After another half dozen miles, we turned off onto a forest track in the Secteur Caché of Mont Tremblant National Park. We wound thru the woods around a lake, then took a small detour to a refuge on the edge of the lake that visitors can use. It had firewood, outdoor picnic tables and a fire ring, tables,a wood stove, and bunks inside. Perfect for a cross country ski trip or London hike. We had a snack, then continued along the forest track, cruising next to the stream that came from the lake, passing a small waterfall with a fish ladder, after a few miles we had a long, sometimes steep climb along another stream. The temperature was perfect with intermittent clouds and sun thru the trees. We were amazed that we didn’t see a single other person for the ten or so miles we followed the dirt track. 

After a short ride on pavement, we arrived at the Lake Monroe area which has at least a dozen campsites. We had booked a site in advance since it’s Friday night, but the sites seem half empty. We put up our tent, took showers, walked down to the lake shore. We think there are more amenities across the lake which we will ride past in the morning. We saw a turkey and some deer today, but still no moose. It was pretty easy cycling which we are glad of since we both have colds and yesterday was long and rainy.