The magnificent village of Tadoussac is located on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River, at the edge of the Côte-Nord region of Quebec and at a short ferry ride from the Charlevoix region to the west.

It’s a small primarily tourist-oriented village and is nestled between the majestic Saguenay Fjord, the immense St. Lawrence River, and the boreal forest. The surrounding waters are home to a wide variety of marine mammals. Several whale species including the popular belugas reside there for many months of the year and sea excursions to observe them are a delight for visitors.

 The Saguenay Fjord National Park is another attraction that attracts many hiking enthusiasts, with its network of forest trails that wind through lakes and cliffs and lead to breathtaking viewpoints.

It’s no surprise that so many tourists from Europe and around the world flock here for an extraordinary experience. It was unfortunately in this site of exceptional beauty that the Tadoussac boy lost his life one October in the early 2000s.

Embedded in the sidewalk of Tadoussac, next to the small church with the red roof, is this plaque with a verse from Claude Gauthier’s beautiful song « Le plus beau voyage. » Listening to the lyrics of this song and removing it from its political context, we surprisingly find a poem that could have been written for the Tadoussac boy, especially if it turns out he was of French origin. Time will tell…

It is all the more surprising to find this granite plaque in the village of Tadoussac itself, as if it had been placed there in his memory. We will remember that he died in October, in the early 2000s, and no luggage has been found…

We can also hear sentences saying: Without a goodbye, without a luggage; I am planned for the year 2000 as well as a reference to the profound connection of French-Canadian culture with this rich nature of Quebec that he encountered in his last days and from where he left this world.

Lien pour la chanson originale : https://youtu.be/krNCqBJ_pmc?list=RDkrNCqBJ_pmc

A poem is not written to be translated, so here is the original French poem and what it means in English 

J′ai refait le plus beau voyage
De mon enfance à aujourd'hui
Sans un adieu, sans un bagage
Sans un regret ou nostalgie

J′ai revu mes appartenances
Mes 33 ans et la vie
Et c'est de toutes mes partances
Le plus heureux flash de ma vie

Je suis de lacs et de rivières
Je suis de gibier, de poissons
Je suis de roches et de poussières
Je ne suis pas des grandes moissons
Je suis de sucre et d'eau d′érable
De Pater Noster, de Credo
Je suis de dix enfants à table
Je suis de janvier sous zéro

Je suis d′Amérique et de France
Je suis de chômage et d'exil
Je suis d′octobre et d'espérance
Je suis une race en péril

Je suis prévu pour l′an 2000
Je suis notre libération
Comme des millions de gens fragiles
À des promesses d'élection

Je suis l′énergie qui s'empile
D'Ungava à Manicouagan
Je suis Québec mort ou vivant
Je suis Québec mort ou vivant

I have retaken the most beautiful journey
From my childhood to today
Without a goodbye, without a baggage
Without a regret or nostalgia

I have reviewed my belongings
My 33 years and life
And it is of all my departures
The happiest flash of my life

I am of lakes and rivers
I am of game, of fish
I am of rocks and dust
I am not of the great harvests
I am of sugar and maple sap
Of the Pater Noster, of the Creed
I am of ten children at the table
I am of January below zero

I am of America and of France
I am of unemployment and of exile
I am of October and of hope
I am a race in peril

I am planned for the year 2000
I am our liberation
Like millions of fragile people
To election promises

I am The energy that piles up
From Ungava to Manicouagan
I am Quebec, dead or alive
I am Quebec, dead or alive

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