Saturday, 21 September 2013 Day 5 Quebec

Our day in Quebec began when we were transferred to Pac de la Chute Montorency train station to begin our Le Massif de Charlevoix train day tour to the little town of Baie Saint Paul. we travelled in style with breakfast being served on the journey and iPads available with relevant information as we passed through the countryside.We travelled northeast into the spectacular countryside of Charlevoix. Hugging the shoreline of St Lawrence River, The root took in some of eastern Canada’s most breathtaking landscapes, with romantic mountains to one side of you and serene riverside vistas on the other . 

Baie-Saint-Paul (2011 Population 7,332; UA population 4,535) is a city in the Province of Quebec, Canada, on the northern shore of the Saint Lawrence River. Baie-Saint-Paul is the seat of Charlevoix Regional County Municipality. The city is situated at the mouth of the Gouffre River. It is known for its art galleries, shops and restaurants. The city centre is about a seven minute walk from the station.

The place gained some prominence in the 1770s when Doctor Philippe-Louis-François Badelard named a disease he was researching the "Baie-Saint-Paul maladie". This illness was the subject of one of the first medical publications done in Lower Canada. It is also where Cirque du Soleil originated back in the early 1980s and the location of the first show using the name Cirque du Soleil during "La Fete Foraine de Baie-Saint-Paul" in 1984.

A visitor in the early 1800s noticed mineral springs and mineral resources in the area.

It was Harvest Festival time so many of the shops and galleries were beautifully decorated. We enjoyed our time browsing the shops and galleries and enjoying a drink at one of the local bars. 

Our return journey was enjoyable and we were served some delicious tapas on the way.

We took the time when we returned to really take in the grandeur of  the Montmorency Falls.

Montmorency Falls

The Montmorency Falls (French: Chute Montmorency) is a large waterfall on the Montmorency River in Quebec, Canada. The falls are located on the boundary between the borough of Beauport, Quebec City, and Boischatel, about 12 km 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, at 84 meters (275 ft) high and 46 meters (150 ft) wide, are the highest in the province of Quebec and 30 meters (98 ft) higher than Niagara Falls. The basin at the foot of the falls is 17 meters (56 ft) deep. 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 Ile d'Orleans. The falls were given this name in 1613 by Samuel de Champlain He named them in honour of Henri II, duc de Montmorency, who served as viceroy of New France from 1620 until 1625.
  

There are staircases that allow visitors to view the falls from several different perspectives. A suspension bridge over the crest of the falls provides access to both sides of the park as well as a spectacular view. There is also an aerial tram (Funitel) that carries passengers between the base and the top of the falls. In the summer the park hosts an international fireworks competition with the falls as a backdrop.

The remnants of earthen forts built by General Wolfe are located in the eastern portion of the park. They were constructed in 1759. The landings below Quebec City were repulsed by General Montcalm at Montmorency Falls, costing the British 440 soldiers. Ultimately a successful assault was launched when Wolfe made a surprise attack by climbing the cliffs below the Plains of Abraham.

The Falls were the site of a key scene between the lead actors in the 1947 film Whispering City, which was filmed on location. The Ice Hotel was located at Montmorency Falls for its first year.

In his poem "Sleep and Poetry" (1816), John Keats says that human life is "a poor Indian's sleep / While his boat hastens to the monstrous steep / Of Montmorenci."

In the evening we went to one of the many restaurants in the new town and then took the funicular down to explore the old town by night. We also took the opportunity to explore the wonderful Chateau Frontenac.

The Château Frontenac is a grand hotel in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, which is operated as Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980. Prior to the building of the hotel, the site was occupied by the Chateau Haldimand, residence of the British colonial governors of Lower Canada and Quebec. The hotel is generally recognized as the most photographed hotel in the world, in large part because of how it dominates the skyline of Quebec City. 

The Château Frontenac was designed by American architect Bruce Price, as one of a series of "château" style hotels built for the Canadian Pacific Railway company (aka CPR) during the late 19th and early 20th centuries; the newer portions of the hotel—including the central tower—were designed by William Sutherland Maxwell. CPR's policy was to promote luxury tourism by appealing to wealthy travellers. The Château Frontenac opened in 1893, six years after the Banff Springs Hotel, which was owned by the same company and similar in style. Another reason for the construction of the Chateau Frontenac was to accommodate tourists for the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, however, the hotel was never finished in time.

The Château Frontenac was named after Louis de Buade, Count of Frontenac, who was governor of the colony of New France from 1672 to 1682 and 1689 to 1698. The Château was built near the historic Citadelle, the construction of which Frontenac had begun at the end of the 17th century. The Quebec Conference of 1943, at which Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Mackenzie King discussed strategy for World War II, was held at the Château Frontenac while much of the staff stayed nearby at the Citadel.

Although several of Quebec City's buildings are taller, the landmark hotel is perched atop a tall cape overlooking the Saint Lawrence River, affording a spectacular view for several kilometres. The building is the most prominent feature of the Quebec City skyline as seen from across the St. Lawrence.

In 1944, Château became the action centre of the Quebec Conferences of World War II. In 1953, this hotel was used as the filming location for Alfred Hitchcock's film,  Confess, featuring Montgomery Clift and Anne Baxter.

In 2001, the hotel was sold to Legacy REIT, which is partially owned by Fairmont, for $185 million. When Canadian Pacific Hotels was renamed Fairmont Hotels and Resorts in 2001, the hotel became Fairmont Le Château Frontenac.

In 2011, the hotel was sold to Ivanhoé Cambridge, and work began on replacement of the main tower's copper roof, at the cost of $7.5 million. An image of the roof was printed on polypropylene safety netting and hung from scaffolding to hide the refurbishing project from view.