Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park, National marine conservation area at St. Lawrence River and Saguenay River confluence, Canada
The Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park is a protected conservation area where the Saguenay River meets the St. Lawrence, mixing fresh water with ocean tides. The roughly 1,245 square kilometer (480 sq mi) area spans multiple regions and connects deep fjord waters to the broader river estuary.
Indigenous peoples used these waters for over 8,000 years, building hunting and trade networks based on river movement and seasonal patterns. European maritime history arrived later but did not fundamentally change the long-established connections between people and these river landscapes.
The area has long shaped how people fish and navigate, with the mixing of fresh and salt water requiring adapted techniques passed down through generations. Local communities continue to center their livelihoods on understanding these waters and their rhythms.
Visitors can watch whales from three interpretation centers offering guided naturalist tours and boat trips from May through October. The best viewing happens when weather is warm and water movement is most active from tidal and river currents.
The area contains three separate marine ecosystems that shift from top to bottom, each with distinct water conditions and animal life that differ greatly. This variety in a relatively contained space offers rare insight into how river systems support multiple worlds.
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