By Corey Sandler
Our bags are packed, we’re ready to go.
Leaving on a jet plane to meet a handsome ship in Montreal, headed out to sea on the Saint Lawrence River and eventually out to sea to Greenland, Iceland, and up to the northernmost significant settlement at Svalbard just short of the North Pole.
My bags, of course, carry more than sweaters and hiking boots. I’m also traveling with my camera equipment and a laptop stuffed with a few dozen lectures ready for presentation aboard ship.
In the weeks heading up to each of my speaking engagements I spend a great deal of time visualizing the entire cruise itinerary. Like an Olympic Grand Slalom skier (in an alternate universe, my other career path) I think through each of our ports of call and the wondrous sights that lie ahead.
As I think about May and June, I see falling water.
Here are some remembrances from earlier visits in this part of the world, plus one handsome ringer.
Over the Canadian Shield
The great nation of Canada has something like 20 percent of the world’s freshwater supplies, about two million lakes. Most–but not all–of that water flows south across the Canadian Shield and much of it plunges over spectacular waterfalls where the rock ends.
There’s Niagara Falls, of course, but on our itinerary we pass abeam of Montmorency just east of Quebec City. Not quite as wide as Niagara, Montmorency at 272 feet tall is about 99 feet higher than its more famous cousin.
The water carries a lot of iron, giving it a yellowish tint as it plunges into the Saint Lawrence River.


Quebec Canyon
A bit further east is another grande cascade, at Quebec Canyon. Here the Sainte-Anne-du-Nord River works its way through a beautiful narrow canyon, plunging 243 feet–again taller than Niagara.
Even better, in winter there’s a challenging, mid-sized ski area at Mont-Sainte-Anne, worthy of another try at Grand Slalom.

At the Top of the Shield
I’ve been to many places in Canada that most Canadians have not visited. In researching my book about Henry Hudson (Henry Hudson: Dreams and Obsession) I sailed through Hudson Strait, Ungava Bay, and James Bay on an icebreaker.
We visited tiny Inuit and Cree settlements, observing at a safe distance polar bears and dodged icebergs in the middle of summer.

If you’d like to order a copy of my book, “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” you can obtain a Kindle or PDF version by clicking here: HENRY HUDSON DREAMS AND OBSESSION
Decorative Falling Water
Before we cross the Atlantic to visit Greenland, Iceland, and Norway we will make a call in New York City.
New York is almost directly due south of Montreal, about 370 miles by road. We’ll take the longer, aqueous route with calls in Saguenay, Gaspé, Halifax, and Boston before passing through the Cape Cod Canal to arrive in The Big Apple.
The state of New York has its share of waterfalls, including the American side of Niagara Falls. There are even a few small ones near the big city. But the one I’m thinking of is artificial, within the Chelsea Market in lower Manhattan.

Not on This Itinerary, but…
I’ll return to chasing waterfalls in Part 2. But I did want to include one transcendently beautiful little cataract that is not at all near our upcoming trip.
Krka National Park in central Dalmatia in Croatia is a lovely place in a handsome country. It includes three sets of waterfalls–17 cataracts in all–on the Krka River.

All text and photos are by Corey Sandler, all rights reserved. Copyright 2025. If you want to obtain a copy of one of my photographs for personal or commercial use, please contact me using the link on this page.
If you’d like to order a copy of my book, “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” you can obtain a Kindle or PDF version by clicking here: HENRY HUDSON DREAMS AND OBSESSION
Or if you would prefer to purchase a printed book in hardcover or paperback (personally autographed if you’d like) please send me an email for details. Click here to contact me.