Day 7: The Plains of Abraham and Montmorency Falls

A sunny morning! Walked out to the Plains of Abraham, so named not for biblical reasons but for Abraham Martin (1589–1664), a fisherman and river pilot known as The Scot who moved to Quebec City in 1635 with his wife Marguerite Langlois and received 32 acres of land from the Company of New France. On 13 September 1759, the area was the scene of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, a decisive battle in the Seven Years' War which led to Québec and, later, all of Canada being taken by the British from the French. Both the French and British generals, Montcalm and Wolfe, died in the battle. 

The Plains of Abraham

In the afternoon I joined a group from the hostel and took the bus to Montmorency Falls. At 84 metres, they are 30 metres higher than Niagara Falls. The falls were given their name in 1613 by Samuel de Champlain, in honour of Henri II, Duc de Montmorency, who served as viceroy of New France from 1620 until 1625. The falls are accessed via a suspension bridge and then, if one cares to go to the bottom and get splashed, a wooden staircase. Local people run up and down this staircase for exercise, thereby saving on gym membership fees!