Quebecers are surprised when I tell them about it.
Its also because, while the Gaspe is famous for a punch in of food, it isnt flowers.
There are 22 salmon rivers on the peninsula, their clear water fringed with trees.
The cliffs at Cap-Bon-Ami, in Forillon National Park.Credit:William Craig Moyes
Fantastic fresh seafood is served everywhere, from small island shacks to stylish waterside restaurants.
But the fish have always been more than just dinner.
The history of the peninsula could be written in fins and scales.
Géodômes Desjardins, an accommodation on Mont St.-Joseph.William Craig Moyes
Gaspesie, the French name for the peninsula, comes from the Mikmaq name Gespeg, meaning lands end.
We began at Pointe-au-Pere with a reminder that wild water is far more than just a beautiful backdrop.
More than two-thirds of its 1,477 passengers were lost.
Seagulls over Bonaventure Island.William Craig Moyes
Gaspesie, the French name for the peninsula, comes from the Mikmaq name Gespeg, meaning lands end.
The answer may have been under our wheels.
The road was built in 1929.
From left: The author at an Ôasis campsite in Forillon National Park, on Canada’s Gaspé Peninsula; the view from inside one of the five Ôasis cabins.William Craig Moyes
Before that you had to be pretty determined to venture out this far.
Elsie Reford certainly was.
After she had an operation, her doctor recommended gardening as an alternative to her hobby of fishing.
Fresh oysters from Carleton-sur-Mer.William Craig Moyes
It was easy, in the balmy early fall, to forget how fierce the Quebec winters are.
That night, though, I wasnt spotting herbivores but rather imitating their eating habits.
Still, even more frequently than flowers, I was served fish.
From left: Le Mange-Grenouille, an inn in Le Bic; Pointe-au-Père lighthouse, on Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula.William Craig Moyes
Bonaventure wasnt our first venture off the mainland.
The bartender, like almost everyone I met, was bilingual, but the word forargousierhad defeated her.
The huge holed rock loomed at close quarters as we passed by on our hour-long boat ride to Bonaventure.
The dining room at the Estevan Lodge restaurant at Reford Gardens.William Craig Moyes
We were all, it seems, there for the fish.
That was because at the time I was drinking Grosse Fleur, which actually is infused with petals.
Fish wasnt just a foodstuff, or even an income: It was our money.
Kayaking in Forillon National Park.William Craig Moyes
It tugged at our clothes in the open spaces where racks of cod were once laid out.
Still more temperate than Spain?
So we knocked, and he sold us fresh oysters and a shucking knife.
Percé Rock, a limestone formation off the coast beyond Percé.William Craig Moyes
The views were stupendous, and so were the oysters.
These days, the former battleground is a historic site.
In nearby Miguasha National Park, we walked a scenic two-mile hiking trail along the water.
From left: Gîte du Mont-Albert, a hotel in Gaspésie National Park; a fern fossil at Miguasha National Park’s natural history museum.William Craig Moyes
certainly looked like progress from where I stood.
Then the mist cleared a little, and a familiar red-and-white column appeared: the Pointe-au-Pere lighthouse.
We had come back to our starting point.
A fawn in Bic National Park.William Craig Moyes
His months were complicated, controversial, and world-changing, but our week had been pure pleasure.
Each has hammocks, a kitchen, and a wraparound terrace with a barbecue.
Gite du Mont-Albert:A 60-room hotel that opened in 1950 in Gaspesie National Park.
A mid-19th-century house on Bonaventure Island.William Craig Moyes
The cocktail list, packed with exciting inventions, keeps the ambience festive.
Le Mange-Grenouille:This charming building in Le Bic was once a general store.
Pit Caribou:An old-fashioned pub on Perces main street and one of the peninsulas biggest microbrewing success stories.
There are charcuterie, cheese, and smoked-fish boards, and the live music is excellent.
Resto des Margaulx:Bonaventure Island may be uninhabited, but it does have one thriving business.
Summertime is also peak whale-watching season.
A museum is nearly as packed with fossils as the cliff.
