Live from Silver Whisper Quebec to Boston

[pf778c]

In my opinion, if leaf peeping is your goal, I'd recommend driving.  Start up north in early-ish October, and wind your way down through Vermont and New Hampshire.  Stop at some orchards for apples, cider, and doughnuts, buy some Vermont amber maple syrup, cross some covered bridges, and eat cheese!  Central Vermont usually peaks right around the second week of October, give or take a few days for weather.  The biggest issue, as @CruiserFromMaine mentioned, is weird weather causing the leaves to start falling before they change or storms blowing them off.  Finish up by winding your way down through Massachusetts and Connecticut.  Give yourself enough flexibility to be in the right (peaking) spot at the right time (dry, sunny day with deep blue skies), and the mountains will look like they're on fire.

[crusinbanjo]

7 minutes ago, pf778c said:

In my opinion, if leaf peeping is your goal, I'd recommend driving.  Start up north in early-ish October, and wind your way down through Vermont and New Hampshire.  Stop at some orchards for apples, cider, and doughnuts, buy some Vermont amber maple syrup, cross some covered bridges, and eat cheese!  Central Vermont usually peaks right around the second week of October, give or take a few days for weather.  The biggest issue, as @CruiserFromMaine mentioned, is weird weather causing the leaves to start falling before they change or storms blowing them off.  Finish up by winding your way down through Massachusetts and Connecticut.  Give yourself enough flexibility to be in the right (peaking) spot at the right time (dry, sunny day with deep blue skies), and the mountains will look like they're on fire.

That is very good advice.  Mrs Banjo and I spent the week prior to this cruise winding our way around New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts before driving to Quebec to catch the cruise.  The color along Rt 302 in New Hampshire was just spectacular with brilliant reds and yellows.  

[pf778c]

Thanks @crusinbanjo.  I was born and raised in New England, fled after high school graduation swearing I'd never return, and am now counting the days until I retire so I can move back!

 

Foliage is a fleeting thing.  You cannot schedule it; you just have catch it at the right moment for it to take your breath away and the only way to do that is to meander about until you find that moment.  I've never understood the reasoning behind foliage cruises because the timing seems all off to me, and the bus tours just don't have the flexibility that's needed.

[crusinbanjo]

Ok, so Mrs Banjo and I are home now, but I wanted to finish my posting, as I have not commented abut Bar Harbor, or as we say in New England Baaahhh Habbbaahh.  

 

Rewind the tape for the weather, it was repeat of the spectacular weather from the previous few days.  The sun was bright and the seas were calm.  the Captain brought the ship to anchor at about 8am, right on schedule.  All passengers were required to present themselves to the Border Patrol personnel that had boarded the ship for an "in person" passport check.  So, when notified, Mrs Banjo and I were off to the Bar to pick up our passports, go through the line and then return our passports to the ships crew.  All was pretty easy, just a formality really. We were able to go ashore by tender after the tours departed at about 10 am.  

 

The first thing I noticed when we reached the docks was that the town was almost a ghost town.  Pretty much everything and everybody, except a very few, were gone for the season.  Mrs Banjo remarked that we had never seen the town so empty!  Good and Bad for us!  Good that there were no crowds, but bad because most of the shops and restaurants were closed for the season.  So what to do? We were determined to just enjoy another fantastic Autumn day.  The fall colors were almost gone, but if you looked around a bit, there was still some beautiful flowers and tree color left.  We walked the Main Street and most all of the side streets, then strolled along the shore path, (always a nice walk), chatting with other ship mates and local folks raking leaves and doing yard work.  It all made for a fun day.  

 

We ate Lunch at Getty's, one of the two restaurants we found open.  Clam Chowder and Fish & Chips.  Yum, the last of the season for us.  The rest of the afternoon we spent just sitting in the park and soaking up the Autumn sun.  Tomorrow, in Boston we depart and it is back to our diets and enough of this life of luxury........Although we are both loving it!  We hope Lois and all the other passengers enjoy the remainder of the cruise.

 

Our last dinner on board in the Restaurant.  I can't say enough about the Waiters and staff, we just enjoy them so much and are always humbled by what they do to keep the Passengers happy.  So, Hats off to the  Restaurant crew aboard the Silver Whisper, thanks for a great cruise!

[crusinbanjo]

11 minutes ago, pf778c said:

Thanks @crusinbanjo.  I was born and raised in New England, fled after high school graduation swearing I'd never return, and am now counting the days until I retire so I can move back!

 

Foliage is a fleeting thing.  You cannot schedule it; you just have catch it at the right moment for it to take your breath away and the only way to do that is to meander about until you find that moment.  I've never understood the reasoning behind foliage cruises because the timing seems all off to me, and the bus tours just don't have the flexibility that's needed.

Very true, but we enjoy the cruise as well, not so much for the foliage, although sometimes it is good even from the ship, but for the "Just getting away" factor.  This Itinerary is particularly good for us because, like you, we were born and raised here and although we have traveled all over the world, this is still our home and to jump on requires no interaction with the airports!  Hope you make it back soon!

[pf778c]

Agree 100%  It's the billing of these cruises as "foliage" cruises that gets my eyes to roll.  It's all about the ship and the ports or lack thereof.  If you happen to catch a glimpse of the leaves changing that's a plus, but I wouldn't advise anyone to book a cruise FOR foliage.  You've got to fart around on the back roads for that!

 

Can't believe I'm looking forward to abandoning the Met and Michelin stars for the privacy of a compound along the Connecticut River, but I'm ready for some solitude and quiet, and the past year has made it clear I need to be closer to my aging parents.  That's what is REALLY tearing at me.  I suppose I can always plan regular trips to "the City" for cuisine and culture (and judging by what's been going on with Dad, it looks like decent medical care as well!)

[Lois R]

19 hours ago, bobolz said:

Hi Lois 

 

im so glad you are enjoying your cruise. Would you recommend taking this cruise later in October vs earlier? I thought our itinerary dating  would have been better in last 2 weeks of September and although we had mild weather in NYC, Newport, Boston and Halifax, and Quebec, we unfortunately were derailed by hurricane Fiona and ended up missing a lot of ports. And the foliage was really only peaking in Quebec, it was beautiful when we flew out on October 2.
 

although we were on the outer rings of the storm , the ride was not too bad. Was curious how the whisper sailed in these waters in late October. 
 

I may consider this trip again since we missed so much, but was curious how your timing was compared to mine in regards to foliage, weather/temperatures , and wave activity.

 

thanks in advance for any feedback! Continue to enjoy!

 

liz

 

 

Hi Liz, I had issues logging in here or would have responded sooner. For me, I would sail this itinerary earlier as I really felt quite cold much of the time. I packed in layers but a couple of days I was uncomfortably cold. I am guessing Sept would probably be warmer.

Overall I had a very good time though. A few glitches did occur and I brought them to management's attention.

I am sailing on The Dawn in January and really looking forward to it😀

[Host Jazzbeau]

Our first trip to New England led to the realization that Maine is called the 'Pine Tree State' for a reason!  Acadia has fall color from the blueberry bushes, but not so much from the trees...  New Hampshire is the fall foliage champion – but up in the interior, not the (tiny) part along the coast.  [Acadia did call out to us, and after that first non-foliage experience we have spent 2-3 weeks there every summer!]

[bobolz]

Thanks Lois, Mr banjo, Pf and others for your responses. This was exactly what I was looking for especially the temperature, we had some damp cool days in late Sept, but mostly it was sunny and comfortable in the stops that I was most concerned about, especially Quebec. I didn’t need to bring too many layers, but the threat  of a hurricane even that far up north , seems to be greater in Sept. also I agree with others that taking a fall foliage cruise is too difficult to estimate exactly what you will experience especially with the different regions you visit, each one has different timing and you really can’t experience the beauty near the waters edge, usually the foliage is much further inland. However, I took this cruise because it was more convenient  for my parents who were just not ready to fly overseas and wanted to see Bar harbor, Peggy’s cove, PEI (unfortunately missed due to storm) , and Quebec . So we did get to Quebec and it was lovely. I think going early October is probably the best option if we decide to go again,

 

thanks again! 

[65Mommy]

On 10/23/2022 at 4:54 AM, crusinbanjo said:

Hi all.  Hopefully the internet service remains good and I will post as we go along.

 

on Friday October 21, Mrs Banjo and I did a one way rental car and drove from Boston through New Hampshire and Vermont and into Canada.  It was an easy and beautiful 7 hour drive.  Leaving Boston at 7:30 am we arrived in Quebec City and found our Boutique hotel right next to the Château Frontenac and with plenty of daylight left, went out to enjoy a perfect sunny day in old town Quebec.

 

Saturday morning was a repeat of perfect weather to be outside and continue our visit to one of our favorite Canadian cities.  Out we went wandering the streets and stairs of the lower and upper city.  After lunch at an outdoor cafe it was time to make our way to the Whisper, so we collected our luggage and a short Uber ride to the terminal and quai 21.

 

The reception and boarding process is, as expected, kind of a PIA, but the good news is that this is not like the mega ship that was docked in front of our vacation home for the next 9 days.  (As we looked at both ships on Friday, Mrs Banjo commented that Whisper looks like a toy next to the mega ship berth in front).  Anyway, the pre board process went along smoothly with temp checks, etc. and did not take very long.  
 

Boarding was smooth, but not like it used to be.  In the lobby we were greeted by a masked crew and told that suites were not ready, so we should wait on deck 8 or 7 in La Terraza until an announcement was made.  It was 3pm when we boarded, 4pm when suites were ready.  Still the ship was a great place to be, but the reception was not what SS was in the past.  Rather than the Lux line feel, the feeling at boarding was more like a Mass Market ship.  Any we are happy to be aboard and I will report on more as we progress. 
 

today is Saguenay and weather is fabulous 

We are curious on what is the average age on this cruise itinerary?

[Lois R]

15 minutes ago, 65Mommy said:

We are curious on what is the average age on this cruise itinerary?

The average age? Probably 70. But that is just a guess. I am 64 and I know there were people older than me and there were others younger than me.....but I would guess the average was on the higher side. But older does not mean less active.  

What are you looking for?

[crusinbanjo]

5 hours ago, 65Mommy said:

We are curious on what is the average age on this cruise itinerary?

I would agree with Lois on a guess of the average age.  Almost all were very active, and they needed to be, because getting on or off the ship required climbing or descending the 36 step gangway.

[65Mommy]

6 hours ago, Lois R said:

The average age? Probably 70. But that is just a guess. I am 64 and I know there were people older than me and there were others younger than me.....but I would guess the average was on the higher side. But older does not mean less active.  

What are you looking for?

We like an active crowd as they are more fun versus everyone that goes to sleep at 7! 😉

[Lois R]

17 minutes ago, 65Mommy said:

We like an active crowd as they are more fun versus everyone that goes to sleep at 7! 😉

The restaurants don't open till 7 for dinner so need to worry about going to sleep at that time😀

[RetiredandTravel]

16 minutes ago, Lois R said:

The restaurants don't open till 7 for dinner so need to worry about going to sleep at that time😀

 

Right on vacation we'll stay up to 8 maybe even 9.🥳

[Lois R]

15 minutes ago, RetiredandTravel said:

 

Right on vacation we'll stay up to 8 maybe even 9.🥳

And some of us even stay up till 11 or so😀

[Host Jazzbeau]

16 minutes ago, Lois R said:

And some of us even stay up till 11 or so😀

I have to stay up till 11 – because that's how I set my Amp.  🤣

[RetiredandTravel]

11? That's when I get up to go to the bathroom.  🙄