Ken Whiting: My name's Ken Whiting.
I'm a world champion white water paddler, and I've led trips and taught kayaking around
the world.
As an athlete and explorer, my lifelong passion has been to challenge myself, meet interesting
new people, discover beautiful places and share these experiences with others.
This is the story of these adventures.
This is Paddle Tales.
Ken Whiting: Hey, everyone.
I'm Ken Whiting and this is the first episode of Paddle Tales.
In this series, we're gonna be going to some of the most amazing places in the world.
Now, we're gonna be going on cool paddling adventures while we're there.
Because, for me, paddling is one of the best ways to meet cool people and to see a place
from a unique perspective.
Now, before we get started please subscribe to Paddle TV so you get notified when new
episodes are uploaded.
Ken Whiting: We're gonna kickstart the series by exploring Canada's largest province.
Québec is one of my favorite places in the world, and not just because they have amazing
bakeries and they invented poutine.
What I love about Québec is how big and rugged the landscape is, which means there's endless
opportunities for outdoor adventure.
The French culture is also very unique to North America, and the people are extremely
friendly and filled with 'joie de vivre' or a love of life.
Ken Whiting: To kick things off, we're flying to the eastern edge of Québec to a place where
the mountains and rivers meet the sea, forming a unique and exceptional setting for travelers
to explore.
In this episode of Paddle Tales we're visiting Gaspésie.
Ken Whiting: The Gaspésie region is the cradle of Canada where the first European explorers
landed on Canadian shores more than 300 years ago.
Located in East Central Québec, a massive peninsula is surrounded by the waters of the
Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the Saint Lawrence River.
My trip begins in the charming village of Percé.
Now, having just sat down with my triple-triple, extra sweet, no-foam latte, I'm already falling
in love with this place.
Ken Whiting: Percé bustles with summer activity.
The village features boutique shops, ice cream parlors, restaurants and pubs, including a
wicked micro brewery, and a newly installed boardwalk which is particularly nice for those
that just can't leave Mitsy back at home.
Those searching for adventure don't need to look far either, as the mountains and ocean
that surround Percé provide lots of opportunities for play.
Ken Whiting: Although I am excited to hit the water and explore the coast by kayak,
one of my favorite things to do in a new place is get a bird's eye view of the area, so that
I have a better understanding of what I'm seeing from water level.
And so, I've met up with Renaud Camirand from the Percé Géoparc, which recently received
the prestigious designation as the first UNESCO Global Geopark in Québec.
Renaud explains what this means to ... That it's a unified geographical area where sites
and landscapes are managed with the wholistic concept of protection, education and sustainable
development.
Now, that's enough to make your head spin.
Bottom line, it's a cool place with awesome rocks that you need to check out.
Ken Whiting: Before long, we approach our ultimate destination, one that isn't for the
faint of heart: a vertigo-inducing glass platform that's suspended more than 200 meters above
the ground.
Ken Whiting: Oh, cool.
Renaud: Nice, kind scary.
Ken Whiting: Really? You scared?
Renaud: Haha, no.
Ken Whiting: But I'll tell you what, those brave enough to conquer their fear of heights
are richly rewarded with a dramatic view of the village of Percé, and of course the icon
of the region, Percé Rock.
Ken Whiting: Wow, what a view.
Renaud: Yeah, it's pretty nice.
The Géoparc, it's community project.
It started first in 2012.
And here, on this suspended glass platform, was finished building in 2017, last year.
And in 2018, this year in April, we add the Global Geopark UNESCO label.
So, yeah. It's pretty nice.
Ken Whiting: What's so cool, for me, is how many different looks you can get at this area.
We're getting this incredible bird's eye view, but the village itself gives an incredible
view of the rock and the surrounding countryside.
But, apparently, one of the best views of the rock is by kayak.
Renaud: Yes, it was my first job in Percé, sea kayaking guide.
So, you'll see, it's pretty nice.
Ken Whiting: Awesome.
I'm looking forward to getting out there.
Renaud: Yeah.
Ken Whiting: I'm excited to see this monumental rock up close, so I quickly assembled my TRAK
kayak and meet up with Jeffery Bond of Avolo Plein Air, who knows the waters around Percé
as well as anyone.
Jeffery Bond: My name is Bond, Jeffery Bond, and I'm a sea kayak instructor.
I'm a sea kayaking guide, and also a whitewater and lake water canoe instructor.
Ken Whiting: Okay, so what is our plan for this afternoon?
Jeffery Bond: So, our plan is going to the nicest place in the world.
Ken Whiting: I like the sounds of that.
Jeffery Bond: It's Perce Rock.
They have, really, lots of wildlife around and the scenery's really beautiful.
So it's a big, big rock with big cliffs, 100 meters high.
Ken Whiting: Wow.
Jeffery Bond: And 400 meters long with a big hole in the middle.
It's really a neat rock because a lot of history and the formation is always moving.
Rocks are falling, so-
Ken Whiting: And a lot of birds.
Jeffery Bond: Lots and lots of birds.
Ken Whiting: Paddling Percé Rock is a special experience that I would highly recommend to
anyone who plans on visiting Gaspésie.
Not only is it a fun adventure that provides an unrivaled look at one of the coolest natural
phenomena you'll ever see, but it really solidifies the importance of Canada's National Parks.
Not only because they protect the natural beauty of these places, but also because they
provide a safe home for the plants and animals that reside here.
When one is confronted by such an unbelievably imposing geological feature, it's easy to
lose sight of the fact that Percé Rock is also a refuge for a gannet colony and hosts
more than 120,000 of these birds from April to October each year, making it one
of the most important gannet habitats in the world.
Ken Whiting: I have the best job in the world.
I get to paddle in places like this.
Ken Whiting: Knowing that I've only touched the surface of what there is to see and experience
around Percé, it's hard to leave so soon.
But I'm excited to move further down the coast and meet up with Kamille from Cime Aventures
who has offered to show me down the pristine Bonaventure River.
Ken Whiting: Cool, so, the Bonaventure River.
Kamille Brideau: Exactly.
Ken Whiting: Tell me a bit about the section.
Kamille Brideau: So, today we're gonna do the first portion of what we call the Famous
Store, to be able to see the beautiful rapids.
Nothing too big, just really fun.
And mostly, also, flat water.
So, it's gonna be just a mix of the two, just fun enough for our paddle board.
Ken Whiting: Looks pretty much as clear and clean as water gets.
So, I'm looking forward to this.
Kamille Brideau: Yes, I'm looking forward too.
Ken Whiting: Shall we hit it?
Kamille Brideau: Yeah.
Ken Whiting: All right.
This is definitely Cime Aventure's primary-
Kamille Brideau: Activities.
Ken Whiting: Activities.
Kamille Brideau: Definitely.
So, basically Cime Adventure is a resort.
Our primary activity is the river, you know, river for a day.
We have the Famous tour, which we are doing today, and we have also a shorter run, which
is called a family trip.
On top of that, Cime Adventure also has shelter.
We have little camp chalet in the trees.
Kamille Brideau: Oh, are you okay?
Kamille Brideau: And we have Teepees.
We have camping, camp sites.
We have yurts.
So, yeah.
And also, we have snorkeling.
We have paddleboard.
We have SUP yoga, yoga on a paddleboard.
Ken Whiting: Oh, cool.
Kamille Brideau: Yeah.
Ken Whiting: I think the coolest thing about standup paddling is the high vantage point
you get.
Kamille Brideau: Yeah.
Ken Whiting: And it's so different from kayaking and canoeing, being able to look down on things.
Kamille Brideau: Yeah, the gravity center is much higher.
I mean, it's totally different.
You see the river.
You have a better view of the river.
It's amazing.
We're very fortunate, especially with this beautiful river.
Ken Whiting: Yeah, this is something else.
I mean, it is crystal clear water.
Kamille Brideau: Yeah, it's got this green, blue, turquoise, it's just fabulous.
As soon as you step on ... Me, I step on my paddleboard, and I'm just like, "Ah."
I'm completely relaxed.
It feels good.
Ken Whiting: Although I love the ocean, there's something about paddling downriver that has
always captured my imagination.
For one thing, even though countless people might have passed this way before you, every
bend in the river feels like a new discovery.
You just never know what you'll find on the other side.
Ken Whiting: What do we got up here.
Kamille Brideau: So, we ... It's called a Cheval Blanc.
So, it's basically rapids level two, nothing too intense, just fun.
It's basically waves.
There's no rocks or anything to hit but ... And if you fall on the water, there's no big deal.
There's just fun.
The water is amazing.
Ken Whiting: All right.
Kamille Brideau: Yeah.
Ken Whiting: Well, after you.
Kamille Brideau: Oh, right.
I'll go first.
Ken Whiting: As a lifelong whitewater paddler, I've challenged my skills and nerve in countless
class five rapids.
But one of the things that I really appreciate about the Bonaventure River is that it features
gorgeous and friendly class one and class two rapids that most beginner paddlers can
enjoy.
I can say this with complete sincerity, because if my six-foot-three butt can weeble-wobble
its way down the rapids on a standup paddleboard, then anyone can get down via canoe or kayak.
Ken Whiting: Well, that was far from graceful.
I felt like a newborn giraffe taking its first steps.
Ken Whiting: The Bonaventure was definitely the highlight of the Gaspésie experience for
me, and when you consider we only paddled a mere four mile length of the river, that's
saying a lot.
Ken Whiting: For another 60 miles this river snakes smoothly over it's pebbled bed with a watery grace
that is nothing short of magical.
The glassy clarity of the water makes your imagination run wild above the other sights,
sounds and wonders one might experience along the Bonaventure's entire length.
I look forward to returning here one day and exploring this wonderful river from end to end.
Ken Whiting: Well, that does it.
That brings the first episode of Paddle Tales to an end.
Thanks for watching, and I'm hoping we were able to show you that Gaspésie really is a
remarkable combination of mountains, rivers and ocean.
It's definitely one of the coolest places that you'll ever visit.
Ken Whiting: Before you go, please give this video a thumbs up.
Subscribe to Paddle TV, if you haven't already, so you get notified about the next episode
of Paddle Tales.
And last but not least, stay tuned for a quick sneak peek at next week's Paddle Tales adventure.
Ken Whiting: Next time on Paddle Tales, we'll be visiting Abitibi-Témiscamingue, a region
of Québec that features thousands of beautiful lakes connected by winding and, at times,
thundering rivers.
We'll hike the trails of Canada's newest national park, paddle around magnificent island landscapes
and challenge ourselves in the epic whitewater of the Kipawa River.
Abitibi-Témiscamingue region is truly a vast playground for the outdoor adventurer to explore.
You won't wanna miss it.