Now that the trip is over, just a few random thoughts.
Was it worth driving 3,706 km? Yes, absolutely, although the 401/20/40 parts of the Highway driving were just dull. We typically leave main highways whenever possible, and Hwy. 138 on the north shore of the St. Lawrence and Hwy. 132 around the Gaspe Pensinsula were perfect for us.
There is a choice to make when going around the Gaspe as to whether to go clockwise or counterclockwise. We did it clockwise but there would be some advantages to going the other way. Almost all the scenic stops along the road for viewpoints are on the river side so would be right turns if done counterclockwise. Not that there was much traffic anyway so turning left was never an issue. And given how well our timing worked out weather-wise it was the right choice for us.
We did the trip September 11 to 20 and this is the tail end of the tourist season in the Gaspe. We had checked that all the museums and parks we wanted to go to would be open, but several of the restaurants were already closed and although microbrasseries were still open they no longer served food. We were told that places started to close the previous week, so shortly after Labour Day. We also saw artisan shops that were closed already. Certainly by Thanksgiving (October) the season is done.
Tourism is a big deal in the Gaspe and there are lots of small motels, museums, parks and activities geared to tourists, and camping in particular. There are beautiful places to stay along the waterfront, many with small cabins. We booked accomodation through Expedia and Booking.com and found good places all along the route. There was plenty of accommodation available, in fact sometimes there were only one or two rooms occupied, but likely these places are full in the summer.
Quebec tourists are by far the majority of people travelling around the Gaspe. We encountered very few people from Ontario and saw almost no American license plates. It’s a shame as the scenery is quite spectacular and there are many unique museums and activities. French is certainly the primary language spoke in the Gaspe and not everyone we met was bilingual, but we managed between our limited French and their limited English. Signage on roads is only in French, as is the case in some museums, but the National Parks have bilingual signage and English subtitles for the videos. In stores sometimes the staff spoke a bit of English, or at least someone there did and would be called upon if needed. But the main tourist places and visitors centres do their best to accommodate English speaking tourists.
As with any long road trip it is tough to figure out how far to drive each day to avoid missing things but also to be somewhat efficient in the trip. With some research and advance planning it all worked out and we saw what we wanted and were not rushing from place to place. We had planned out an itinerary but were also flexible to stop and poke around in interesting looking places. The only really long driving days were at the beginning and end and even then we added in some stops to break up the trip. Plus we had an audio book to listen to on the longer part of the drive.
Wandering with Wendy 