This text is part of the special Pleasures notebook
The Blue Route is reborn from its ashes and that’s so much the better. Quebec’s bodies of water are exceptional playgrounds for practicing non-motorized water activities. Explanations.
Designing a paddling network across the St. Lawrence River: this is the ambitious idea that is germinating in the head — and the heart — of the Fédération québécoise du canot et du kayak. This network, accessible to non-motorized, shallow-draft boats, inaugurated a seventh Blue Route in 2012, totaling some 125 km on the St. Lawrence River. Then named the St. Lawrence Maritime Trail, this waterway aims to highlight the river and encourage responsible and safe water activities. From the Ontario border to Labrador, these blue roads are sections that allow adventurers to indulge in their pastime. And this, in some of the most beautiful sections of the river artery: the Outaouais, Chaudière-Appalaches, Charlevoix, the North Shore, the Gaspésie and the estuary. The Blue Route also includes markers pointing to marinas, launching sites, natural shelters and rest areas, emergency stops, campsites and accommodation along the different routes. In short, everything that marks the route strewn with pitfalls of those who use the St. Lawrence on small boats without engines. Due to a lack of financial resources and local support, the initiative is gradually fading away. In 2022, the Federation, now Canot Kayak Québec (CKQ), takes over the reins of the project, giving it a new lease of life. The St. Lawrence Maritime Trail is dead; Long live the Blue Route!
The Blue Route, version 2.0
After a deep reflection on what caused the decline of the project, the Blue Route is coming back to life with some major transformations, and not just a name change. All types of water bodies in Quebec — rivers, but also rivers and lakes — are now in CKQ’s sights. And this, so that a waterway is created not only for paddling experts, but also for a wider audience of boating enthusiasts. “If the project failed, it was not because of the enthusiasm it generated,” explains Marie-Claire Audet Gagnon, coordinator of the Blue Route for CKQ. This is because it was developed with the outdoor community and environmental groups, without municipal approval and without local initiative leaders. » The shift comes from the involvement of these actors in the idea, like the sustainable model of the Green Route: municipalities, regional or sectoral tourism associations, and regional leisure and sport units (URLS) . In doing so, these organizations also take ownership of these projects. In partnership with Eau vive Québec and Voile Québec, federations which represent two other nautical disciplines, CKQ instructors began to establish the characterization and georeferencing of navigable sites. And this in both directions: at the call of local institutions or by proposing it to them. “For example, the MRC La Haute-Côte-Nord contacted us to include the development of a section of the Route bleue in its subsidy request,” explains Marie-Claire Audet Gagnon. To do this, the organization benefits from outdoor funding sources that come from all institutional levels.
A network that extends
If the nomenclature of the Blue Route has become standardized, it now includes three other lexical levels to list its sections: the name of the body of water, the section – the name of one or two municipalities most often – and the detailed itinerary which determines its degree of difficulty. “The river is not for everyone,” explains Marie-Claire Audet Gagnon, “it is suitable for a narrow clientele. The courses in flat water, white water and marine environments are now aimed at enthusiasts of different levels. » One year after the resumption of the project, in 2023, the first route saw the light of day in the Portneuf region in several sectors, including the Sainte-Anne river, and in the Portneuf regional natural park. This year, no less than sixty routes will be accessible this summer in several tourist regions of Quebec. And many others are already being studied in collaboration with local stakeholders, such as in Trois-Pistoles, in Baie-des-Chaleurs, or on the Nicolet and Saint-François rivers. A project is also underway in partnership with the Fédération québécoise de kite. “It’s just the beginning,” enthuses M.me Audet Gagnon. Our ambition is to standardize all canoe and paddle routes in Quebec. But also to develop our ecotourism axis in the right way, with communication and lexicon adapted to all types of outdoor enthusiasts. The pandemic has brought about new nature lovers. Our goal is to help them go from neophytes to beginners and to allow them to advance their practice through training and through course offerings appropriate to their condition and their desires. » Inspiring.
This content was produced by the Special Publications team at Duty, relating to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part.