Your cart is currently empty!
Kayaking with Whales in the St. Lawrence River
I have dreamed of kayaking with whales in the St. Lawrence River for years. The Saint Lawrence River in particular is an incredible place to see a huge diversity of whales – with the beluga whale being just one of 10 whale species plus three species of porpoises and dolphin that inhabit these waters.
When you go kayaking with whales in the St. Lawrence River, you have the chance of seeing an unbelievable cross-section in both categories of whales – toothed and baleen – and my bet is that most people haven’t seen anywhere near this number of whale species before.
In the toothed whales category the ones you might see include killer whales, sperm whales, the northern bottlenose whale, long-finned pilot whales, beluga whales, the white-beaked dolphin or white-sided dolphin, and harbour porpoises.
In the baleen whale category the species to look for include the blue whale – the largest animal on the planet, fin whales, minke whales, humpback whales, and the North Atlantic right whale.
Guess which whale I saw?

Who has seen a blue whale?
It was a baby blue whale that I saw – though it was off in the distance and so there were no worries about it flipping kayaks – not that that’s a normal occurrence or something I ever even worry about. Still, pretty cool in my books.
A kayaking tour with whales with Mer et Monde
I had signed up for an evening tour with out of Les Bergeronnes, a small dot on the map north of Tadoussac on the St. Lawrence River.
I showed up just in time to get the safety lecture and get properly attired in a wet suit, booties, paddling jacket, and a life jacket. I was a little taken aback at the sheer number of people there to go kayaking with whales – though granted it was summer time and a perfect evening for it.
People were divided into groups – depending on what language you spoke.
After a full hour’s orientation we were ready to hit the water – which entailed helping to lift and move kayaks down to the shore – really the hardest part of the evening.

Over the next three hours we paddled up and down the coast – pausing for long stretches when we heard a blow or if we saw whales off in the distance.
Some kayakers – out of sheer luck – were marvelously situated to take advantage of whales surfacing just feet away. Unfortunately, I wasn’t in that group.

It was such a pleasant night to be out – with truly outstanding lighting – that I was happy enough to just enjoy the paddling and hoping that I would be kayaking with whales.
Even though we started off as one large group it wasn’t long before we were spread up and down the coast – each group with their own guide – so you never felt like you were on top of each other.



I’d spoken to someone earlier in the day who had done an all day trip with Mer et Monde. She came away raving about the experience because they’d seen so many whales – and many had come very close to her kayak.
If I were to do it again, I’d allow for a full day and I’d bring a waterproof dry bag so I wouldn’t have to fret about destroying my camera.
That’s one thing Mer et Monde didn’t offer – a drybag – which is unfortunate because kayaking near whales for many people is a once in a lifetime experience. I think many people would like to capture that experience.
It was quite wavey on the night we were out and so I only pulled my camera out on a couple of occasions – hence the reason for a lack of even a fin shot of a whale.
I still haven’t seen a beluga whale in the wild. Perhaps one day I’ll make it to Churchill, Manitoba and there not only do you see beluga whales but you can snorkel with them too.

Camping at Mer & Monde – and looking for whales
Mer & Monde has a superb set up if you’re into camping. Prime tent sites sit on the rock with expansive views of the St. Lawrence River.
Needless to say you have an excellent chance of seeing whales swim by your campsite from the comfort of your sleeping bag.
You can book one of 28 campsites at Mer & Monde. Campsites are on either a sand or wooden platform. They also offer eight rustic shelters and four ready to camp set-ups.


Further reading on things to do in Quebec in summer
- The Charlevoix Train – Beauport to La Malbaie, Quebec
- Hut to Hut Hiking on the Charlevoix Traverse
- Cycling the Blueberry Route Over 3 Days
- A Trip to Mingan Archipelago National Park
- Quebec Road Trip: Quebec City to Havre-Saint-Pierre
Click on the photo to bookmark to your Pinterest boards.

Hi there! Awesome article, that sounds like so much fun!
I’m near Lake Ontario and am thinking of doing a multi-day trip along the St. Lawrence, is the water placid enough for just a recreational kayak? Or do you think I should get sea kayak level 1 and a sea kayak for such a trip? Any tips or whale watching hotspots you know of would be much appreciated!
Just found your blog – I love it, thanks for sharing!
@Jakob,
The water can change in a heartbeat so it can be placid but turn ugly. The kayaking trip in the Saguenay Fjord also offers the opportunity to see belugas. I don’t have any certification – just dozens of sea-kayaking trips under my belt.
I’m not sure I’d have the courage for that kind of adventure, but I love reading about your experiences.
@Mette I think you might be surprised at how easy it is to kayak on a calm night.
Wow! I’d love to get that close to whales thought I’d be more afraid of the kayak than the whales! I, too was surprised to see the size of the crowd. We were in Tadoussac a long time ago- it was pretty quiet. We also did a boat trip down the Saguenay from Chicoutimi. It was wonderful!
@Billie Good for yo for exploring so much of Canada – and you’re one of the few I know of that has been to the Saguenay area. The kayaking was very easy. It’s tough going in big winds and waves but especially in a 2 person kayak it’s very stable.
It’s amazing to think of coming close to a whale in an open kayak! It seems so much less removed then being in a large boat. I haven’t gotten to see live whales up close in the wild – but I am hoping to go to Churchill sometime, for the whales and bears!
@Jess I’d also love to visit Churchill for exactly those reasons.
I’ve been kayaking, but not with whales. I think it’s cool that you can whale watch from the comfort of your sleeping bag although it would be very cool to have the chance to see them up close!
Kayaking with whales sounds incredible, I’m sorry you didn’t get to be right in with a pod – a reason to do this again.
We got to watch the belugas come up the Turnagain Arm near Anchorage – it was amazing to see them, wave after wave including lots of little ones. They like to surf the tide, so it wouldn’t be a good time to be in the water, but the view from shore is great.
Note that the new website is sort of up. I have a lot of clean-up to do, but don’t see any reason to post to two blogs, so am making the switch this week.
@Cindy Wouldn’t that have been a sight to see in Alaska. I’ve seen a beluga whale in an aquarium and just felt sorry for them. I hadn’t appreciated they were up near Anchorage as well. I’ll be checking out your new website when I’m back from my backpacking trip on Lake Superior.