Day 6 - A Lighthouse, Submarine, & Hike

Today takes us to Site historique maritime de la Pointe-au-Pere in Rimouski. Our first stop is the Pointe-au-Pere Lighthouse which is a Parks Canada NHS however it is managed by the maritime museum. Along with the lighthouse, there is a submarine, and a pavilion with artifacts and stories of the Empress of Ireland. Since I was on a submarine during my active military days and have visited Halifax's maritime museum we opted for just the lighthouse today.

Even before Pointe-au-Pere's first lighthouse which was built in 1859, several pilots operated from this area offering their services to guide incoming ships. In 1867 the first lighthouse was destroyed by fire consequently a second was built on the same site at a cost of $1600 to $2000. The second was built identical to the first. In 1909, the construction of a more modern third lighthouse rendering the second one obsolete. The lighthouse is 33 meters(108 feet) tall and is built from concrete with eight reinforced concrete buttresses. There is a total of 128 steps which include 2 ladders to reach the top.

In 1975, a fully automated 115 foot fourth lighthouse was erected just east of the third light. In 1976 the jurisdiction over the third transferred from Transport Canada to Parks Canada thereby becoming a National Historic Site. With new GPS and radar systems the skeleton tower was decommissioned in 1988. The view from the top of the lighthouse. Susan opted for the Red Chair below.

We opted not to tour the HMCS Onondaga instead I took some pictures and walked out onto the pier. The Onondaga is a Oberon class submarine built in 1965 in the UK. It was owned by the Canadian Navy and in service for 33 years. During this span it travelled 500,000 nautical miles which is 23 times around the earth. Staff included 68 crew members of these 6 were officers.

After a full morning of sightseeing and a little bit of grocery shopping we headed back to Bic for lunch. After lunch and a little snooze I went for another hike. This trail is the Le Chemin-du-Nord considered an easy out and back 3 km hike. The trail is depicted in red on the map.

The Chemin-du-Nord starts at the Ferme Rioux discovery and visitors center. This is a wide trail composed of fine gravel that follows the coast. The trail is a very popular one due to it's low level of difficulty. Passing by Anse a Wilson people were swimming in the cove...to cold for me.

The shear beauty of this park amazes me. Around every bend and curve it's a wow moment. Wind swept trees from salt water and erosion causes them to die.

In the early 19th century several Englishmen built houses and/or cottages along the shores of Anse a l'Original. The Feindel cottage is one of these houses. The ownership has passed to the park.

The park has a plethora of wild rose bushes

In the 1920's Walter Lyman, a colonel in the Canadian Army acquired 350 acres of land along Cap a l'Original coast. Because of the peace and tranquility they had 5 structures built, a cottage, boat house, stable, sauna, and wood shed all with no electricity or running water.

The view to the east from the Lyman cottage deck...it is breath taking.

Continuing along the very flat trail with tall pines overhead. It's nice because when the sun broke through it was hot.

Reaching the end of this portion of the trail was breathtaking. Large rocky cliffs meet the water can't get any better than that. If you are an experienced hiker you can continue around the Cap-a-l'Original but it has to be started an hour before low tide. The trail is not marked, has steep dangerous cliffs, and rocks to climb over. Nope not for this girl besides it's not low tide. Yeah

Another hike in the books, what a great day. Last day tomorrow at Parc National du Bic, I will have to see what is in store, a bike ride, hike who knows...I will decide in the morning.