Campground Review: Pointe-du-Moulin Offers Spectacular Whalewatching Opportunities
Location: Baie-Sainte-Marguerite, Parc National du Fjord-du-Saguenay, Quebec
# of Campgrounds: Around 50 vehicle-accessible semi-serviced sites and 15 sites accessible by foot or bike
Cost per night: Starting at $39.60
Facilities: Drinking water near the semi-serviced sites (but not near Pointe-du-Moulin), campfire rings, picnic tables and washrooms
Activities: Hiking, biking, swimming, whale-watching and kayak-camping
# of Hiking Trails: 4
Website for Booking: sepaq.com/pq/sag/
Getting to the Campground
To get to the Baie-Sainte-Marguerite Sector of the Park, drive through the Réserve faunique des Laurentides to Chicoutimi and cross the Dubuc bridge to reach the northern sector towards Tadoussac to the park. The road trip is around 500 kilometres from Montreal and should take around five hours to complete.
Alternatively, you can take Route 138 to Gare fluviale de Baie-Sainte-Catherine, ride the ferry to Tadoussac and drive to the park from there. Although this could add a few more hours to the trip, the year-round ferry is free of charge and may increase your chances of seeing beluga or even blue whales!
Pointe-du-Moulin Campsites
Once you arrive at the park, the Pointe-du-Moulin campsites are only 2.5 kilometres away. Drop off your car in the parking, grab your packs and fill up your water bottles at the station by the Information Centre. You can also find wheelbarrows there to use for the hike if you’re not riding a bike up the trail or your backpacks and gear are too heavy.
The 15 Pointe-Du-Moulin sites are scattered near the main rustic community hall cabin that houses bathroom facilities, an indoor communal eating area with a sink and where you can store your food at night to keep critters away.
Campsites are divided into groups of three, with each trio getting access to a drywood-filled chest to build fires. You will have plenty of space to pitch a small to medium-sized tent, a hammock and a kitchen shelter if you’re feeling fancy. Each site is equipped with a picnic table and a fire ring, but they offer varying privacy levels depending on their location. As for the views, six sites are located near the water with some having access to a staircase to the beach, while the rest are hidden away in the dense forest, which might even shield you from the sun.
While each site welcomes up to a maximum of six people, it has to turn away all furry friends for their safety so make sure you find a pet sitter before your adventure.
My Experience
For our first night, we stayed at site #3, which is tucked away in the forest, next to two others. While one of the three is more secluded, ours bordered our neighbours’ site and there wasn’t much privacy with our hammock set up coincidentally a few branches away from their fire pit. However, sites #1 to #3 are the closest to the outhouse and only a short walk away from the beach.
After spending some time attempting handstands on the sand, my camping buddy Lily got started on the most delicious caramelized bell pepper tacos while I tried to build a fire on a misty night—even with the dry wood stored away in the site’s chest, it took me an hour to get the fire going with damp twigs and leaves. We played a few card games, unwound in the hammock and read in our cozy sleeping bags before falling into a deep, quiet slumber.
In the morning, we brewed coffee and boiled water for our oatmeal before packing up. We had planned to return on Sunday but remembered last-minute that September 30 is a holiday, so as soon as we discovered the staircase to the beach from site #6, Lily and I traced every inch of the beach to catch a bar of signal in hopes of securing a reservation with views of the bay. After almost twenty minutes and our arms going sore from holding our phones up towards the sky, we snatched a booking and ran to set up camp once more.
The weather was much warmer on Sunday so we went for a cold plunge and dried on our picnic blanket under the sun. We tried going on a hike but once we discovered that the Halte du Béluga Trail was shut down for construction, we decided to drive down to Tadoussac in an attempt to catch the sight of whales there, unfortunately also to no avail. Instead, we watched the Tadoussac–Baie-Sainte-Catherine Ferry cross to and fro the fjord many times as the sun rolled down west.
Back at the campground, we were amazed by a sparkling cruise ship passing through Baie-Sainte-Marguerite. Rocking on our hammock, Lily and I tuned into the cadence of the waves and soaked up the chill air and the faint smell of the salt before wrapping up the final night of our camping trip.
Overall Rating: 8/10
Why did we rate it this way? Pointe-du-Moulin is gorgeous, especially if you nab any of the waterfront sites. The park also offers a perfect getaway for those seeking to disconnect from technology due to its limited cell service. The Halte du Béluga Trail, however, was closed for repairs at the time of my visit and since I did not see any marine life, I have bitterly snatched two points away from the park’s overall score.
If You Go:
- There are only three sites—Pointe-du-Moulin sites #4 to #6—that have direct access to the beach and amazing waterfront views. Book well in advance to secure one of these popular spots!
- There is no drinking water near the sites, with the closest station located at the Information centre by the parking lot so a 2.5-kilometre hike away. Make sure you are prepared to filter water or stock up with large jugs.
- All domestic animals are prohibited on Pointe-du-Moulin sites.
- There is no cell signal at the site and very patchy service by the base where the parking lot is. Make sure you share your travel itinerary with loved ones and invest in a satellite communicator for additional ease of mind and safety.
