Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

's Route 389 connects Route 138 adjacent to

Baie-Comeau Baie-Comeau (; 2021 city population 20,687; CA population 26,643) is a city located approximately north-east of Quebec City in the Côte-Nord region of the province of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the shores of the Saint Lawrence River nea ...

with the

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

border, connecting with the

Trans-Labrador Highway The Trans-Labrador Highway (TLH) is a highway located in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It is the primary public road in Labrador. Its total length is . The complete paving of the highway was completed in July 2022. The ...

(Newfoundland and Labrador provincial route 500) to

Wabush Wabush is a small town in the western tip of Labrador, bordering Quebec, known for transportation and iron ore operations. Economy Wabush is the twin community of Labrador City. At its peak population in the late 1970s, the region had a population ...

and

Labrador City Labrador City is a town in western Labrador (part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador), near the Quebec border. With a population of 7,412 as of 2021, it is the second-largest population centre in Labrador, behind Happy Valley-Go ...

, and beyond to Goose Bay. On its way it skirts the eastern shore of

Manicouagan Reservoir Manicouagan Reservoir (also Lake Manicouagan) is an annular lake in central Quebec, Canada, covering an area of . The lake island in its centre is known as René-Levasseur Island, and its highest point is Mount Babel. The structure was created ...

Route description

The Québec North Shore Company and

Hydro-Québec Hydro-Québec is a public utility that manages the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in the Canadian province of Quebec, as well as the export of power to portions of the Northeast United States. It was established by the ...

completed portions from Route 389 to the Manic 5 hydroelectric project site (km 213), now known as the Daniel-Johnson Dam. From km 213, the highway follows a path traditionally used by

aboriginal people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

and explorers, with access to the Hart Jaune Hydroelectric Complex at km 390. The town of Gagnon, now torn down, was at km 394. From km 317 (gas station and restaurant), the highway is now paved all the way to km 495. Starting at km 495, the "Fire Lake Mine Road" section was built by unemployed workers during a labour dispute, influenced by the presence of the railway owned by the

Québec Cartier Mining Company Québec Cartier Mining Company was one of the leading producers of iron ore products in North America, now part of ArcelorMittal. The company was founded in the late 1950s by multiple Canadian and American investors, based in Quebec, Canada. The ...

. This section of unpaved road is notoriously known as "the trail." From km 495 to the provincial border at km 567 (352 miles from Baie-Comeau), the road is an accident-prone section notorious for its poor surface and sharp curves (the joke being one can see their own taillights). Local citizens in adjacent Labrador have been urging realignment of this road, a vital work if it were to be the routing of a fixed link to Newfoundland. On April 9, 2009, the Quebec government announced that $438 million would be spent for work to improve the highway from the south end as far as Fermont, with major upgrading and repair work. This will include a significant reroute in the Fire Lake- Mont-Wright section far to the southeast between approximately km 508 and km 564, rejoining the existing route by way of the Fermont access road and no longer routing through Mont-Wright. Work is expected to take fully 10 years, although planning of improvements to this northernmost section began almost immediately. The Comprehensive Study Report is now complete, and comments were accepted until Oct. 4, 2018. The bridge over the Pékans River (around km 550) is a popular starting point for canoe trips down the

Moisie River The Moisie River is a river in eastern Quebec. Known as the Nahanni of the East, it is a wild river of North America. It has been proposed to protect the river with the Moisie River Aquatic Reserve. Course The Moisie River basin lies betwee ...

. At km 564 is the town of

Fermont Fermont () is a town in northeastern Quebec, Canada, near the Quebec-Labrador border about from Labrador City on Route 389, which connects to the Trans-Labrador Highway (Newfoundland and Labrador Route 500). It is the seat of the Regional Cou ...

, a mining town with a population of 2,918, and last Quebec port-of-call before entering

. Labrador City is 21 km further along what is now Highway 500, Wabush is 6 km south east of that on Highway 503 (which ends in Wabush). The

Happy Valley-Goose Bay Happy Valley-Goose Bay (Inuit: ''Vâli'') is a town in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Located in the central part of Labrador on the coast of Lake Melville and the Churchill River, Happy Valley-Goose Bay is the largest popul ...

ferry terminal is located 526 km east of Wabush, along the shores of Lake Melville, with access to the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. The Labrador City/Fermont area border crossing is roughly the half-way point of the approximately 16-hour drive between the junction of Routes 138 and 389 in Baie-Comeau and the end of Route 500 (and adjunct Route 520) in

Happy Valley – Goose Bay Happy Valley-Goose Bay (Inuit: ''Vâli'') is a town in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Located in the central part of Labrador on the coast of Lake Melville and the Churchill River, Happy Valley-Goose Bay is the largest popul ...

Details

The road alternates between asphalt and gravel, as shown below:

Section 1:
Baie-Comeau Baie-Comeau (; 2021 city population 20,687; CA population 26,643) is a city located approximately north-east of Quebec City in the Côte-Nord region of the province of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the shores of the Saint Lawrence River nea ...
to Manic-5

Distance: 213 km
Type of surface: asphalt: narrow and twisty
Approx. Driving Time: 2 h 30 min
Speed Limit: 70 to 90 km/h No services until Manic-5, which has basic automotive services

Section 2: Manic-5 to Relais-Gabriel

Distance: 104 km
Type of surface: Gravel: bad condition, narrow and twisty
Approx. Driving Time: 1 h 30 min
Speed Limit: 70 km/h No services until Relais-Gabriel, which has basic automotive services and restaurant

Section 3: Relais-Gabriel to Gagnon*

Distance: 77 km
Type of surface: asphalt
Approx. Driving Time: 1 h 00 min
Speed Limit: 90 km/h No services until

*The town of Gagnon was closed in 1985.

Section 4: Gagnon to Fire Lake

Distance: 101 km
Type of surface: asphalt, bad condition
Approx. Driving Time: 1 h 15 min
Speed Limit: 90 km/h

Section 5: Fire Lake to Mont-Wright

Distance: 67 km
Type of surface: gravel: bad condition, very narrow and twisty
Approx. Driving Time: 1 h 00 min
Speed Limit: 70 km/h No services until

. Note that the railway crosses the road numerous times. Bids are being solicited for reconstruction over the next four years.

Section 6: Mont-Wright to
Fermont Fermont () is a town in northeastern Quebec, Canada, near the Quebec-Labrador border about from Labrador City on Route 389, which connects to the Trans-Labrador Highway (Newfoundland and Labrador Route 500). It is the seat of the Regional Cou ...

Distance: 17 km
Type of surface: asphalt, good condition
Approx. Driving Time: 0 h 10 min
Speed Limit: 90 km/h No services until

Section 7:
Fermont Fermont () is a town in northeastern Quebec, Canada, near the Quebec-Labrador border about from Labrador City on Route 389, which connects to the Trans-Labrador Highway (Newfoundland and Labrador Route 500). It is the seat of the Regional Cou ...
to Interprovincial Border

Distance: 3 km
Type of surface: asphalt, good condition
Approx. Driving Time: 0 h 5 min
Speed Limit: 90 km/h Fermont has full automotive, food and hospitality services; next services in

, 17 km from border, 20 km from Fermont

Municipalities along Route 389

The road passes through the following municipalities and unorganized territories from south to north: *

* Rivière-aux-Outardes * Rivière-Mouchalagane *

References

External links

Provincial Route Map (Courtesy of the Quebec Ministry of Transportation)

Route 389
on Google Maps

{{coord, 49.7594, N, 68.7095, W, display=title 389 Baie-Comeau