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A tour of maritime Canada on a small ship proves educational as well as enjoyable.

Boarding American Canadian Caribbean Lines' Grand Mariner at Rocky Harbor Dock, Newfoundland, Canada, was like coming home.

We have been on 11 ACCL cruises and now the accommodations of the small ship and the shipboard routines are familiar. The crew is like family.

Blount Shipyard in Warren, R.I., which owns the three ships in the line, cruises the shores of maritime Canada, the Erie Canal and the Chesapeake in the summer and in the winter dips through the waters of the Virgin Islands, Panama Canal and the Belize coast, catering to the snorkeling cravings of many repeat passengers.

Occasionally the ships do bow landings. The bow landing is an invention of Capt. Luther Blount, the builder of more than 300 ships. Because the shallow 6-foot draft of the ship allows it to hug the shoreline, the ship can be positioned with the bow right above the shore, a ramp in the lounge area of the ship is lowered and passengers walk right onto the beach. This is especially nice for snorkeling in the Virgin Islands and Belize.

A group from Lawrence has taken a ACCL cruise for the past 10 years. This time our 16-day cruise took us from Ottawa, Canada, to the Saguenay River for whale watching. We also had ports of call at Newfoundland/Labrador, quaint fishing villages, Belle Strait Islands and Quebec City. After some time on the St. Lawrence Seaway, the cruise ended in Ogdensburg, N.Y.

Chuck and Marsha McPheeters, first time ACCL cruisers, joined us on this cruise. Repeat cruisers were Marnie Argersinger, Lawrence, and her daughter, Annie; Chuck and Marion Warriner, Lawrence; Mabel Atkinson, Wichita; and Ed and Gladys Abbe, Martha's Vineyard. Upon boarding we found that only 10 of the 90 passengers had never cruised with ACCL. Passenger loyalty is very strong on ACCL ships in spite of the tiny cabins.

Ottawa and on

We all met in Ottawa, Canada. We spent a pleasant late afternoon in Ottawa. The Parliament buildings glimmered in the long dusk of the north, and most of us walked the streets that were studded with outdoor cafes. We marveled at the glorious flowerbeds and cleanliness of the capital city.

The fun began the next day with a 2 1/2-hour charter flight that took us to Deer Lake, Newfoundland. Although we played tag with the sun for the two days in Newfoundland, we saw a lot of the island. Gros Morne National Park covers 1,800 square kilometers and there are active small fishing villages within the park confines. On an extremely windy day we visited Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse and Broom Point Fishing Station. At the fishing station we learned about the early industry of fishing and drying and salting cod for personal use and trade.

Our local guide shared her life as a fisherman's wife with us. Bill Romey, the shipboard guest lecturer, made the geology and geography come alive at each port.

L'Anse Aux Meadows National Historic Site was a highlight of our trip. The site, considered the first authenticated European presence in North America, was stunning. The visitor center overlooks an archaeological excavation uncovered in the 1960s.

In this cold, windy spot explorer Leif Ericson located dwellings, workshops and an iron-working smithy. The docents in the reconstructed sod hut were dressed in Viking clothes and gave us glimpses of Viking life. Located at the tip of the Great Northern Peninsula, the setting and reconstruction of this world heritage site made a terrific impression on our group of seasoned travelers.

Seaside history

We had a short, but slightly rocky, ride across the Labrador Straits to Blanc Sablon. The ship sailed in brief hours of calm. We willingly endured the brief discomfort from the weather because this area is accessible only by boat. We enjoyed the rainbows and Northern Lights that appeared above the Fjord-like shoreline. Our tour bus to Red Bay, Labrador, was the local school bus and the tour leader was a recent local high school graduate. After a brief stop at scenic Point Amour Lighthouse, we drove on to Red Bay.

In the 1500s, Red Bay, Labrador, was the whaling capital of the world. Each year the Basques sailed from France and Spain to hunt whales in the Belle Isle Strait. Over 14 ships a year came to the bay for whale oil. A full ship of whale oil would make the returning captains and crew wealthy. The only known specimen of 16th-century seaman clothing, a preserved whaling vessel and other whaling artifacts are displayed in the excellent Government Interpretation Center. During the ride back to the ship we passed through small, well-kept fishing villages.

The cruise continued along the coast of Quebec, stopping in remote villages. At Harrington Harbor there are no roads. The houses are joined by a series of wooden boardwalks and ATVs or snowmobiles are used to transport goods from the fishing boat dock to the homes. A bow landing in the Grande Rigolet area allowed us to clamber over the rocks, among the bog plants and sample the baked apples, lingonberries and bunchberries.

In the province of Quebec, French is the official language. Although most people could speak some English, all of the signs at the interpretation center were in French.

A whale of a time

Many passengers were on this cruise for whale watching, and they were not disappointed.

Just out from the charming village of Tadoussac is a major whale-watching area. Here converging currents and strong tides provide plenty of krill, which attracts plenty of whales. Eric, a staff member of the Center for the Interpretation of Marine Mammals, came aboard at Tadoussac and for three hours provided identification of whale species. We saw large numbers of fin, minke and the endangered beluga whales. Eric explained the phenomenal growth of whale-watching ecotourism in this area and the center's attempts to protect the whales.

We also visited Sept Isles, Anacosti Island and Havre St. Pierre and were loath to leave the area, but the ship had to use the tides to hurry to Quebec City.

Quebec City, with its quaint buildings, has an interesting history. Our ship was docked at the Naval Museum. We had a view of the Frontenac Hotel from the deck of the ship. Several tours were offered to passengers but with the ship's central location many set off on their own.

After leaving Quebec City we began a 36-hour cruise through St. Lawrence Seaway. The towns we passed have a rich maritime history, which the captain narrated as we cruised near the shore. We also learned about shipping on the St. Lawrence Seaway. Once in Ogdensburg, N.Y., a chartered bus met the passengers and drove 1 1/2 hours to Ottawa, Canada, for the return flights home.

-- Judith Brzoska is a resident of Lawrence who travels whenever the opportunity arises.

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