ariellesparks

I am travelling with a party of 8 people and would love to see Montmorency Falls. I am arriving by Cruise and will not have a vehicle. Also, do you know if there are people/guides when you get off the boat who drive to the Falls? Any help would be much appreciated.

Bette

We used this company when we were in QC last Fall. We enjoyed the tour very much. It seems there is a full day which includes the Falls and a half-day which includes the Falls. We left from the Frontenac but it looks like one of the pick-up spots is the Museum of Civilization which is next to the cruise ship pier.
http://www.partner.viator.com/en/176.../QUEBEC%20CITY
I booked online before arrival in QC (our bus was full).

April

I imagine most bus tours are the same. We took this 4½ hour one with Old Quebec Tours:
http://www.toursvieuxquebec.com/inde...rfait2&lang=en
It can be booked in the small office at the top of the funicular or at the tourist office a few steps away (across from the Chateau Frontenac). As mentioned above, we were picked up in front of the Museum of Civilization. Now that I've seen how close the falls are to town - only about 15 minutes away - I would rent a car next time. The bridge to Ile d'Orleans is just across from the falls.

I hope you have enough time to wander around the city. It's a great place.

bob_brown

The falls are indeed spectacular. Although the volume of water is not as great as Niagra, the height of the falls is greater.

There is a pedestrian bridge that crosses the river and allows you to look down on the falls from up above. If you do not fear heights, it is a beautiful view. Looking straight down on the falls from directly above the sheer drop was for me fascinating.

People who have a problem with heights should stay away from the bridge and enjoy the falls from other vantage points of which there are several.

April

I don't have a fear of heights but found being over the falls somewhat creepy, mainly for the oh-so-smooth water flow before it goes crashing over the edge. Quite an interesting vantage point!

I'm curious about something that has nothing to do with the falls, Bob. On Ile d'Orleans is a sign that describes the Laurentians as massive mountains. All I could see from Quebec City were low hills. Do they become massive somewhere else, or do they mean massive in terms of area?

bob_brown

Hi April. The Laurentians are massive in relative terms.
For that region of the world, they are big. I think the term embraces more the area covered than it does any Alp like grandeur. These are some of the most ancient mountains around and have been ground down by erosion for millions of years.

The highest elevations reached by the Laurentians are, according to a couple of sources, are less than 4,000 feet above sea level. The listed highest point is Mont Blanchard at 3825 feet. (I had to peek to recover that figure.)

The terrain is rugged in places and the leaves present a colorful show in late September.

Geologically I have read where the Laurentians are the same as the Adirondacks in New York.

April

Thanks, Bob. I was looking around for something that resembled the Rockies.

laverendrye

Regarding the description of the Laurentians as "massive" I think that there could be an inexact translation from French. The Laurentians are often described as the Laurentian Massif (Massif des Laurentides), which means a compact group of mountain heights. "Massif" in French also means "massive" in the English sense of the word.

I'm not sure that I would described the Laurentians as compact, as they stretch from the Ottawa River in the west to the Charlevoix area in the east. Although they are not high (highest peak is less than 4,000 ft), they are among the oldest in the world, and were once much higher. They are part of the same formation as the Adirondacks.

laverendrye

For some reason, I missed Bob Brown's useful comments and repeated some of the information he had already given.