Six Star Magazine Six Star Magazine Fall 2018 | Page 14

The coastal drive along Route 132 east of Matane is dotted
with pretty little Gaspé villages. We stop at the Valmont Plein
Air Bistro in Cap-Chat for a tasty Chaudrée de Palourdes
(clam chowder) and a lobster club sandwich followed by a
long walk along the town’s rocky beach. Beyond this quaint
spot, we have a choice to make: turn inland through the
mountains (the peninsula is part of the Appalachian region
in Canada) or continue hugging the coast on Route 132. As
we’re making good time — and with both kids entrenched in
a post-lunch slumber — we decide to remain on the coastal
road. It’s a beautiful drive, with sheer rock face on one side
and views over the Gulf toward Anticosti Island on the other.
The island was a hunting ground used by Indigenous peoples
for thousands of years until the French incorporated it into
their empire in the 17th century.
Said to be one of Québec’s longest and most picturesque
drives, Route 132 stretches from the border with New York
State to the Gaspésie. Town names along the way, such as
L’Anse-Pleureuse (Mourner’s Cove) and Pointe-à-la-Frégate
(Frigate Point), speak to some of the region’s romance and
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history. The peninsula has been a rich fishing ground for
millennia, attracting first Mi’kmaq and Iroquois peoples and,
later, the Basque and French.
After several quiet hours along the road, and just outside
the entrance to Forillon National Park, I hit the brakes —
hard. The kids wake from their sleep, just in time to see a bear
completing a run across the road in front of us. This wasn’t
just a near miss with a bear, it was foreshadowing of events
to come.
We’ve never been disappointed with any of Canada’s
national parks and Forillon was no different. Our “tent” was
huge with a sleeping platform for four. It had a fridge, BBQ,
dining table and space heater for the cool Gaspé nights. The
park is family friendly, too, with beaches, hiking trails, a
play area and a pool for those who find swimming in the St.
Lawrence too daunting.
One afternoon, the children set out for a walk, just the two
of them, my six-year-old daughter and her younger brother,
following along the trails near our tent. The kids carry a two-
way radio with them so that they can communicate with us