Belém goes to Montreal
by Mike K-H
Belém left Quebec at 02:00 on Monday 7 July, so there probably weren’t many people around to see her off. 14 hours later she anchored off the town of Trois Rivières, halfway to Montreal, and remained lit up for the benefit of the ‘Trifluviens’ until she weighed anchor at 04:00. A keen photographer took a photo of her at dawn and sent it to the crew.
She docked at the Old Harbour in Montreal at 17:00, and stayed for four days. After the grand welcome by the Mayor of Montreal and the Consul General of France, Belem started allowing the public aboard. Saturday broke all records with 2025 visitors, many sporting ‘Belém Quebec’ souvenir caps. So far, I have not been able to find a source for these - I’d love to have one for myself.
On Sunday 13 July, Belem left Montreal with a new captain, Jean Alain Morzac, replacing Joel Guena for the trip back to Quebec city. Several of the transatlantic crew also took a break.
Montreal showed her sorrow at their departure by providing a day of pouring rain.
[...] Belem goes to Montreal [...]