
The casque for Image 9 and Verse 5 is thought to be buried somewhere in or near Montreal in Canada. The City of Montreal maintains a huge archive of over 7,300 low-altitude aerial photos taken between 1960 and 1992. The key thing about these photos is that they are oblique. Rather than the standard aerials that are taken from more-or-less directly overhead, these photos were taken at an angle from the side. This allows us to see tree bases under the tree canopies and it allows us to see thin things, like chainlink fences, that would be invisible in a standard aerial.
There appear to be 8 sets of photos that are relevant to Saint Helen's Island. The photos that were taken in 1969, 1974, and 1976 capture the island shortly after Expo 67 and a few years before Byron Preiss visited. The photos taken at the Floralies in 1980 are closest to the time of the visit. The photos taken in 1986, 1988, and 1989 capture the island falling into disrepair after the end of Man and his World. Changes that are not shown in these photos, such as the compass disk embedded in the ground at the southern tip of the island, must have been made after 1989 and are therefore irrelevant to the puzzle.
Searchers who are interested in Montreal locations other than Saint Helen's Island can download a database of all the photos from the link above and go through the different location descriptions. (If you find any that are relevant to The Secret, please create a page or send us a note!)
The links below go directly to the archives of the City of Montreal. (We are not hosting the photos on the wiki.) Each set of photos is identified by the number, location, photographer, and date. If you use any of these photos elsewhere, please credit the individual photographer and the Archives of the City of Montreal.
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Important: To view these images directly, you will need to be using Safari or some other web browser that can handle TIF files.
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1969 - 1974 - 1976 (Jun.) - 1976 (Aug.) - 1980 - 1986 - 1988 - 1989
Photos that may be particularly relevant to this puzzle are highlighted in yellow.
For help identifying the features in the photos, see the Official Souvenir Map for Expo 67.
(For ground-level photos of the different pavilions, see the Expo '67 Slide Collection, maintained by the McGill School of Architecture.)
VM94-B061
Île Sainte-Hélène - piscine et terrain de sports / Louis-Philippe Meunier / 31 juillet 1969 (31st of July, 1969)
These photos were taken two years after Expo 67. It was summertime and the space was being used for the Man and his World exposition.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
VM94-B143
Île Sainte-Hélène / Rh√©al Benny - 24 septembre 1974 (24th of September, 1974)
These photos were taken seven years after Expo 67. The seven photos that make up the series show a flyby of the southern tip of Île Sainte-Hélène as the plane is traveling from east to west.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
VM94-B198
Place des Nations à Terre des Hommes / Vincent Massaro / 9 juin 1976 (9th of June, 1976)
The single photo in this set was taken one week before the summer opening of the Man and his World exposition.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
Southern tip of Saint Helen's Island, looking south. Shows a chainlink surrounding the Place des Nations and following the interior curve of the road. (Workers may be opening gates in the fence in preparation for the summer events.) |
VM94-B198-001.tif |
VM94-B208
Vue d'ensemble de la Terre des Hommes, de l'Île Sainte-Hélène, de l'Île Notre-Dame et de La Ronde
/ Rh√©al Benny / 2 août 1976 (2nd of August, 1976)
These photos were taken during the 1976 Man and his World summer exposition, just two months after a fire severely damaged the geodesic dome in the Biosphere.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
Northern end of Saint Helen's Island, with lake and marina. |
VM94-B208-001.tif |
VM94-B208-002.tif |
VM94-B208-003.tif |
Saint Helen's Island, looking south.
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VM94-B208-004.tif |
Northern end of Saint Helen's Island, with Dolphin Lake and marina. |
VM94-B208-005.tif |
VM94-B208-006.tif |
Notre Dame Island, looking west. |
VM94-B208-007.tif |
Both islands, looking north. |
VM94-B208-011.tif |
VM94-B208-012.tif |
Saint Helen's Island, looking north. This is the clearest proof we have that the white stone is in place in 1976.
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VM94-B208-013.tif |
Southern half of Saint Helen's Island, looking northeast. |
VM94-B208-014.tif |
Northern half of Saint Helen's Island, looking northeast.
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VM94-B208-015.tif |
Northern end of Saint Helen's Island, with lake and marina.
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VM94-B208-016.tif |
Lac des Cygnes (Swan Lake) with fountains going. |
VM94-B208-017.tif |
VM94-B208-018.tif |
Middle section of Saint Helen's Island, looking northeast. What was originally the Air Canada pavilion was being used in 1976 for the Pakistan pavilion. The name is visible in the photo and the domes outside have been repainted to be green.
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VM94-B208-019.tif |
Closer views of the central pavilions on Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B208-020.tif |
VM94-B208-021.tif |
View of the Biosphere, showing the damage from the fire.
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VM94-B208-022.tif |
Closer views of the central pavilions on Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B208-023.tif |
VM94-B208-024.tif |
VM94-B208-025.tif |
VM94-B208-026.tif |
VM94-B208-027.tif |
VM94-B208-028.tif |
Views from several different angles of Dolphin Lake, the marina, and La Ronde, the amusement park at the north end of Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B208-029.tif |
VM94-B208-030.tif |
VM94-B208-031.tif |
VM94-B208-032.tif |
VM94-B208-033.tif |
VM94-B208-034.tif |
VM94-B208-035.tif |
VM94-B208-036.tif |
VM94-B208-037.tif |
VM94-B208-038.tif |
VM94-B208-039.tif |
VM94-B208-040.tif |
Close up of what was originally the British pavilion for Expo 67 on Notre Dame Island. The pavilion was repurposed between 1968 and 1971, but it was not in use in 1976. At some point after Expo 67, the top of the pavilion, which was originally painted with a British flag, was repainted with the four symbols that made up the flag of Montreal at that time: a fleur-de-lis, a rose, a shamrock, and a thistle. (A white pine was added to the middle of the flag in 2017.)
Because of that repainting, many places at the southern ends of the two islands would have had a large fleur-de-lis in sight in 1980.
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VM94-B208-041.tif |
Southern end of Notre Dame Island. |
VM94-B208-042.tif |
VM94-B208-043.tif |
Northern end of Notre Dame Island, showing the Passerelle du Cosmos leading to the Biosphere on Saint Helen's Island. (This photo also gives a side view of the former British pavilion, showing that the south-facing side wall at the top repeats the fleur-de-lis and the thistle symbol.)
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VM94-B208-044.tif |
Northern end of Notre Dame Island.
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VM94-B208-045.tif |
Central pavilions on Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B208-046.tif |
VM94-B208-047.tif |
VM94-B208-048.tif |
VM94-B208-049.tif |
Southern tip of Notre Dame Island. |
VM94-B208-050.tif |
Pavilions on Notre Dame Island.
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VM94-B208-051.tif |
VM94-B208-052.tif |
Hélène de Champlain pavilion and rose garden on Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B208-053.tif |
VM94-B208-054.tif |
VM94-B208-055.tif |
Aerial views of the two islands taken from higher altitude and with less detail.
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VM94-B208-057.tif |
VM94-B208-059.tif |
VM94-B208-060.tif |
VM94-B208-061.tif |
VM94-B208-062.tif |
VM94-B208-063.tif |
VM94-B208-064.tif |
VM94-B208-065.tif |
VM94-B253
Floralies / R√©al Benny / 21 août 1980 (21st of August, 1980)
These photos were taken during the 1980 Floralies and they are probably the closest photos we have to the time when Byron Preiss buried the casque. Unfortunately, the Floralies was largely staged on Notre Dame Island, so we only have a few views of Saint Helen's Island. The date of these photos is also just over a month before the staging of the 1980 Canadian Grand Prix on September 28, 1980, and some of the pictures show preparations for the race.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
Looking west across Notre Dame Island and the Bridge of the Isles to the southern tip of Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B253-001.tif |
VM94-B253-002.tif |
Southern end of Notre Dame Island, looking west.
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VM94-B253-003.tif |
Northern end of Notre Dame Island, looking north.
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VM94-B253-005.tif |
Southern end of Notre Dame Island, from more directly overhead. |
VM94-B253-006.tif |
VM94-B253-007.tif |
Midsection of Notre Dame Island, looking northeast.
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VM94-B253-011.tif |
Looking west across Notre Dame and the Bridge of the Isles to the southern tip of Saint Helen's. The chainlink fence around Place des Nations is visible, but the area appears to be in use.
Photo 12 is the best shot we have to show that there was a clear line of sight in 1980 from the southern tip of Saint Helen's Island to the top of the former British pavilion.
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VM94-B253-012.tif |
VM94-B253-013.tif |
Midsection of Notre Dame Island, looking down and southeast to focus on two buildings. Photo 14 shows the former French pavilion for Expo67 and photo 15 shows the former pavilion for Quebec. Both of those pavilions were later connected to form the Casino de Montréal.
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VM94-B253-014.tif |
VM94-B253-015.tif |
Northern end of Notre Dame Island, looking northeast.
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VM94-B253-016.tif |
Midsection of Notre Dame Island, looking east.
Photo 18 shows the former British pavilion for Expo 67 with the four symbols that made up the flag of Montreal at that time: a fleur-de-lis, a rose, a shamrock, and a thistle.
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VM94-B253-017.tif |
VM94-B253-018.tif |
VM94-B253-019.tif |
VM94-B253-020.tif |
Southern half of Notre Dame Island, looking south.
Photo 21 captures the Victoria bridge, with its numerous spans, to the south of the islands. Photo 22 is important because it shows that the north-facing panel at the top of the former British pavilion shows the rose and shamrock symbols, rather than the fleur-de-lis. (Compare this to VM94-B208-041.tif and VM94-B208-044.tif taken four years earlier by the same photographer.)
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VM94-B253-021.tif |
VM94-B253-022.tif |
VM94-B253-023.tif |
Looking west across both islands to Habitat 67 on Cite du Havre.
In the foreground of the photo, on Notre Dame Island, one can see the start/finish line for the 1980 Canadian Grand Prix. The pit lane for the race is visible as a large, white rectangle. Across the track, grandstands are under construction on the spot that would have been the Egyptian pavilion during Expo 67.
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VM94-B253-024.tif |
View across Notre Dame Island looking southwest toward Griffintown.
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VM94-B253-025.tif |
VM94-B261
Îles Sainte-Hélène et Notre-Dame; Centre-ville vu du Sud-Ouest / Martel / 23 avril 1986 (23rd of April, 1986)
These photos were taken just as the long northern winter was ending. The snow is all gone, but the trees have not yet started to leaf out, so we get a good view of the ground.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
VM94-B268
La Ronde, Îles Sainte-Hélène et Notre-Dame / R. Martel / 21 juin 1988 (21st of June, 1988)
These photos were taken during several airplane loops above the two islands. To make this page a little more manageable, we've omitted the first 21 photos that just show La Ronde, the amusement park at the north end of Saint Helen's Island, taken from a number of different angles.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
VM94-B274
Vues a√©riennes des Iles / R√©jean Martel / 26 août 1989 (26th of August, 1989)
Note that some of these images (such as #41) have the negative flipped, so they show the mirror image of the real layout.
Citation: Cote. Nom du photographe. Archives de la Ville de Montréal
A series of views from a distance looking west. Both islands are visible, along with the river and downtown Montreal. In picture #7 the roof of the former gasworks appears to be recognizable by the letters "LOVE ME" on the roof.
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VM94-B274-001.tif |
VM94-B274-002.tif |
VM94-B274-003.tif |
VM94-B274-004.tif |
VM94-B274-005.tif |
VM94-B274-006.tif |
VM94-B274-007.tif |
Various shots of the islands that are slightly closer but still too far away to show details. |
VM94-B274-008.tif |
VM94-B274-009.tif |
VM94-B274-010.tif |
VM94-B274-011.tif |
VM94-B274-012.tif |
Long-distance shots looking south, showing both islands and the Victoria Bridge in the distance. |
VM94-B274-013.tif |
VM94-B274-014.tif |
VM94-B274-015.tif |
High-altitude shots looking down on Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B274-016.tif |
VM94-B274-017.tif |
VM94-B274-018.tif |
VM94-B274-019.tif |
VM94-B274-020.tif |
Victoria Bridge and the southern end of Notre Dame Island. |
VM94-B274-021.tif |
VM94-B274-022.tif |
High-altitude shots looking north at Victoria Bridge and the two islands. |
VM94-B274-023.tif |
VM94-B274-024.tif |
VM94-B274-025.tif |
Shots taken directly overhead the southern end of Notre Dame Island. |
VM94-B274-026.tif |
VM94-B274-027.tif |
VM94-B274-028.tif |
VM94-B274-029.tif |
La Ronde
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VM94-B274-030.tif |
Various features in the center of Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B274-031.tif |
VM94-B274-032.tif |
Northern tip of Notre Dame Island
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VM94-B274-033.tif |
La Ronde
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VM94-B274-034.tif |
Both islands, looking south. |
VM94-B274-035.tif |
VM94-B274-036.tif |
Both islands, looking north. |
VM94-B274-037.tif |
VM94-B274-038.tif |
VM94-B274-039.tif |
!! Flipped negative of both islands. |
VM94-B274-040.tif |
VM94-B274-041.tif |
VM94-B274-042.tif |
Port and downtown Montreal |
VM94-B274-043.tif |
VM94-B274-044.tif |
VM94-B274-045.tif |
VM94-B274-046.tif |
Northern tip of Notre Dame Island |
VM94-B274-047.tif |
VM94-B274-048.tif |
Parking lot and La Ronde at the northern end of Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B274-049.tif |
VM94-B274-050.tif |
VM94-B274-051.tif |
VM94-B274-052.tif |
VM94-B274-053.tif |
VM94-B274-054.tif |
VM94-B274-055.tif |
VM94-B274-056.tif |
VM94-B274-057.tif |
VM94-B274-058.tif |
Jacques Cartier Bridge where it crosses Saint Helen's Island. |
VM94-B274-059.tif |
VM94-B274-060.tif |
La Poudriere Theatre and the small lake.
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VM94-B274-061.tif |
Parking lot by the sports field.
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VM94-B274-062.tif |
Fort Saint Helen
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VM94-B274-063.tif |
La Poudriere Theatre and the small lake.
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VM94-B274-064.tif |
Maintenance shed by Fort Saint Helen.
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VM94-B274-065.tif |
Fort Saint Helen |
VM94-B274-066.tif |
VM94-B274-067.tif |
Levis Tower |
VM94-B274-068.tif |
VM94-B274-069.tif |
playing field on the west side of Saint Helen's Island |
VM94-B274-070.tif |
VM94-B274-071.tif |
Levis Tower
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VM94-B274-072.tif |
west side of Saint Helen's Island
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VM94-B274-073.tif |
swimming pools and Biosphere
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VM94-B274-074.tif |
Hélène de Champlain pavilion and rose garden |
VM94-B274-075.tif |
VM94-B274-076.tif |
Biosphere
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VM94-B274-077.tif |
swimming pool area |
VM94-B274-078.tif |
VM94-B274-079.tif |
VM94-B274-080.tif |
VM94-B274-081.tif |
Biosphere and Hélène de Champlain pavilion and rose garden
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VM94-B274-082.tif |
swimming pool area
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VM94-B274-083.tif |
Calder sculpture and Lac des Cygnes (Swan Lake) |
VM94-B274-084.tif |
Place des Nations looking southeast. Trees block any view of stone or parking area.
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VM94-B274-085.tif |
Place des Nations looking northeast. Parking area has no stripes. Trees hide stone area.
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VM94-B274-086.tif |
Place des Nations looking northwest. Is there a stone? Tree shadows hide area.
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VM94-B274-087.tif |
Place des Nations, Swan Lake, and Calder sculpture looking west.
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VM94-B274-088.tif |
Northern end of St. Helen's Island, looking north.
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VM94-B274-089.tif |
Levis Tower and the surrounding woods. |
VM94-B274-090.tif |
VM94-B274-091.tif |
Northern end of Notre Dame Island, looking south.
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VM94-B274-092.tif |
Southern end of Saint Helen's Island, looking west to downtown Montreal. |
VM94-B274-093.tif |
VM94-B274-094.tif |
VM94-B274-095.tif |
Spit at the far northern tip of Notre Dame Island. (Compare to photos 47 & 48.) |
VM94-B274-096.tif |
VM94-B274-097.tif |
VM94-B274-098.tif |
VM94-B274-099.tif |
Looking south along the full length of Notre Dame Island, Victoria Bridge in the distance.
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VM94-B274-100.tif |
Olympic rowing basin on Notre Dame Island. |
VM94-B274-101.tif |
VM94-B274-102.tif |
VM94-B274-103.tif |
VM94-B274-104.tif |
Looking across Notre Dame Island to the southern end of St. Helen's Island.
Photo 106 shows that there was a large sign at the start of the Cosmos Bridge displaying the logo of the City of Montreal. Given that the logo design was only adopted in 1981, it's unlikely that the sign was there when the casque was buried.
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VM94-B274-105.tif |
VM94-B274-106.tif |
VM94-B274-107.tif |
VM94-B274-108.tif |
VM94-B274-109.tif |
A long series of shots looking down on the gardens, parking lots, and individual buildings on Notre Dame Island.
Several shots feature the former pavilions for France and Quebec, which were later connected to form the Casino de Montréal. This aerial survey may have been in preparation for that construction.
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VM94-B274-110.tif |
VM94-B274-111.tif |
VM94-B274-112.tif |
VM94-B274-113.tif |
VM94-B274-114.tif |
VM94-B274-115.tif |
VM94-B274-116.tif |
VM94-B274-117.tif |
VM94-B274-118.tif |
VM94-B274-119.tif |
VM94-B274-120.tif |
VM94-B274-121.tif |
VM94-B274-122.tif |
VM94-B274-123.tif |
VM94-B274-124.tif |
VM94-B274-125.tif |
VM94-B274-126.tif |
VM94-B274-127.tif |
Olympic rowing basin on Notre Dame Island.
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VM94-B274-128.tif |
Close-ups of several small features along Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve on Notre Dame Island. |
VM94-B274-129.tif |
VM94-B274-130.tif |
VM94-B274-131.tif |
VM94-B274-132.tif |
VM94-B274-133.tif |
VM94-B274-134.tif |
View of both islands looking north from the southern tip of Notre Dame.
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VM94-B274-135.tif |
Close-ups of several features at the southern tip of Notre Dame. |
VM94-B274-136.tif |
VM94-B274-137.tif |
VM94-B274-138.tif |
VM94-B274-139.tif |
VM94-B274-140.tif |
VM94-B274-141.tif |
View of both islands looking north from the southern tip of Notre Dame.
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VM94-B274-142.tif |
VM94-B274-143.tif |
Several photos of the eastern end of the Victoria Bridge, where the train and auto routes can be directed over either of two bridges, so ship traffic doesn't stop land vehicle traffic. |
VM94-B274-144.tif |
VM94-B274-145.tif |
VM94-B274-146.tif |
VM94-B274-147.tif |
VM94-B274-148.tif |
Southern end of Notre Dame Island, looking northeast.
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VM94-B274-149.tif |
Two views that include the southern tip of Saint Helen's Island. There's something where the white stone should be, but it isn't clearly a stone.
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VM94-B274-150.tif |
VM94-B274-151.tif |
Regatta of boats heading for the eastern end of the Victoria Bridge. |
VM94-B274-152.tif |
VM94-B274-153.tif |
VM94-B274-154.tif |
One last shot looking west across both islands to downtown Montreal.
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VM94-B274-155.tif |
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