# Bagotville and English [Merged]



## hollywood13 (11 Nov 2006)

Hey I just got my OJT posting to Bagotville, 3rd Wing, 425sqd.

Im moving from BC, just wondering if anybody has any tips or living conditions, etc. ... also any advice in general would be nice.

thanks


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## SupersonicMax (11 Nov 2006)

Learn French.  People outside the base won't talk to you in English.

Good Luck at 425, you'll have fun there!

Max


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## Brad (11 Nov 2006)

Hollywood,

I am posted from SLT to 425 on Dec 1st.  I just spent last week up there on a house hunting trip and am very excited to get up there.  My plan is to take single quarters until the new year then go from there.  PMQ's can be available but as the base is a ways out of town, there may be some problems if you don't own a car (like me) and want to hit the grocery store etc.  As was mentioned, French is needed in town, but everyone was very friendly to me when I was speaking french to them - a little different then St Jean.   A number of the OJTs are leaving in the next few months for either Portage or Moose Jaw so it will pretty much just be you and me come april.  Feel free to drop me an email anytime and I can expand on these points.  It looks like it's going to be an awesome posting.


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## avro87 (14 Nov 2006)

How long is OJT usually?


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## SupersonicMax (14 Nov 2006)

Depends on the wait before Portage/Moose Jaw.

I'm 6 months in now...  Probably until April 07

Max


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## avro87 (14 Nov 2006)

SupersonicMax said:
			
		

> Depends on the wait before Portage/Moose Jaw.
> 
> I'm 6 months in now...  Probably until April 07
> 
> Max



Wow, thats a long time!  What do you do while OJT?  Do you have a lot of free time to do your own things?


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## SupersonicMax (14 Nov 2006)

Well I work. That's not that long. People have waited more than 2 years to get on course (in the 90's).  OJT is not meant to give you time for yourself but to learn about your future job (which is not only going to be flying planes).  I get to fly enough to satisfy my need to learn.

Max


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## avro87 (14 Nov 2006)

SupersonicMax said:
			
		

> Well I work. That's not that long. People have waited more than 2 years to get on course (in the 90's).  OJT is not meant to give you time for yourself but to learn about your future job (which is not only going to be flying planes).  I get to fly enough to satisfy my need to learn.
> 
> Max



I'm just curious what kind of duties you have?  What exactly do they have you do for work (do you have a choice?)?  Also you mentioned you get to fly, does that mean you are up in the aircraft tagging along or are you actually piloting an aircraft?


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## SupersonicMax (14 Nov 2006)

All this depends largely on where you go and who your superiors are.  For myself, I run with a Capt. the Ops Desk at the Squadron.  When I fly, I'm in the Jump Seat (it's not legal to let a non qualified personnel in the AC/FO seat for take off/landing.  I sometimes get to do the cruise of the long flights, so the pilots can strech their legs and still have someone in "control".

Max


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## 23007 (14 Nov 2006)

Well I spent about 14 months in Bagotville and it has its up and downs. I had BBB in SLT going up there and it did help as I would have been totally lost if I couldn't communicate. I ended up getting an apartment in Chicoutimi with 2 other friends of mine and it was amazing. I would definitely recommend getting an apartment or a PMQ cause you WILL go crazy in the shacks! 425 ETAC is an amazing squadron and I definitely miss all of the guys there. The pilots will take you in under their wing and you will party and have a good time with all of them. Make sure you make yourself known to the pilots there and they will do everything to get you up in the backseat of the hornet. They even took me to Miami with them for 3 weeks in February on full TD. It was amazing. I still know most of the OJT's there as I only left Bagotville in August. But if you have any questions about Bagtown or anything else for that matter, just send me a PM...

Mitch


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## alfie (15 Nov 2006)

Back in late 60's I recall doing some fantastic brook trout fishing there, check with the locals it may have been a tributary of the Saguenay River. Oh ya if your in the barracks get used to afterburners going off at all hours.


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## kolkim (2 Dec 2014)

I am an AWS Tech, currently in Borden thinking about my first posting. Cold Lake or Baggotville.

My one question is how easy would it be for my spouse to find a job in either Baggotville or Saguenay when she or I don't speak any french at all? Impossible-Very hard, or somewhat hard. 
People who have been to Baggotville please, and if you have been to both Cold Lake and Baggotville let me know how your thoughts


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## abejackson (23 Dec 2014)

I'm an AVS tech. I'm almost done with my QL3.
My first posting was changed from Montreal to Bagotville recently.
I'm somewhat familiar with Montreal but not Bagotville and Sagueny. I don't have a car for now and I was wondering if I should live on base in a shack (shared or doesn't matter) or off-base (more preferable but transportation could be an issue). If there's any one who has experience being posted in Bagotville, it would be very helpful. Thanks and happy holidays!


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## krimynal (23 Dec 2014)

Well I've never been posted to bagotville ( probably will later down the road ) but we have family that lives in this area , What you need to know is that , bagotville is a fairly small city , there might be public transportation , but its nowhere close to what Montreal offers.  Houses are a LOT cheaper tho ! so you might want to check for that too ! its a fairly quieter city also.  

But If I had to be posted there , I would probably live on base , just to know the area and get along with all the public transportation / sectors I would want to live in !


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## Tibbson (23 Dec 2014)

Live on base until you get your bearings and then make a decision from there.  No need to rush things.


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## SupersonicMax (23 Dec 2014)

krimynal said:
			
		

> Well I've never been posted to bagotville ( probably will later down the road ) but we have family that lives in this area , What you need to know is that , bagotville is a fairly small city , there might be public transportation , but its nowhere close to what Montreal offers.  Houses are a LOT cheaper tho ! so you might want to check for that too ! its a fairly quieter city also.
> 
> But If I had to be posted there , I would probably live on base , just to know the area and get along with all the public transportation / sectors I would want to live in !



Wrong on pretty much all counts... 

OP: I was born in Saguenay and I have been posted here for the last 5 years.  Saguenay is the 32nd most populous municipaliy in Canada.  As a point of reference, Barrie is 34th and Kingston, 40th.  

Public transportation is fairly good and consists of only busses. There is a stop right in front of the base and a bus stops every 30 minutes. The public transportation website can be found here: http://ville.saguenay.ca/fr/services-aux-citoyens/transport-sts

Most people live in either La Baie, Chicoutimi, Laterriere or Jonquiere (from East to West, the base is between La Baie and Chicoutimi).  The Drive to work is between 10 and 25 minutes from all areas.

A modest 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms house is about 200K which is comparable to what you'd find around the St-Hubert area (my wife is from Longueuil).

Although Quebec City is 2h away, there is everything you need in Saguenay.  Decent shopping, outdoors activities, including skiing, lots of good restaurants, great local breweries and great nightlife (in Chicoutimi) and a lot of good looking simgle girls (if you are single. A lot of anglos coming here end up marrying a local).

The area (and Base) is predominately French and you will need to speak French to get around.  

Here's MFRC's website: http://www.familyforce.ca/sites/Bagotville/EN/About%20the%20Community/Pages/default.aspx .

If you have any questions, let me know..  If you want, drop me your contact info by PM and I can help you out.

As far as where to live, take the House Hunting Trip and decide for yourself.  It'll give you a week in the area and you'll be able to make a better informed decision in the end.


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## trampbike (25 Dec 2014)

SupersonicMax said:
			
		

> a lot of good looking single girls (if you are single. A lot of anglos coming here end up marrying a local).


I don't know what it is about the whole Saguenay region, but this is so true.
Women are amazing and plentiful there.  :nod:


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## cryco (25 Dec 2014)

A lot of the men have traditionally left the region to move to the big city and there is also more girls born than men, so the ratio is very favorable for single men.
Plus Quebec chicks are just hot (I fell for one)


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## pratch (28 Dec 2014)

Hi, I'm also AVS almost done with QL3, looking into posting options. What is the job market like in Saguenay for special needs teachers? My wife is anglophone, but can speak a fair amount of French, and is completing her Master's in Child Studies. Any input on this would be much appreciated!


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## GINge! (24 Feb 2015)

I was asked about a posting to Bagotville as well, and considered the language issue. Looking at Wiki:

 French was mother tongue to 98.1% of residents. The next most common mother tongues were English at 0.9%, followed by Spanish at 0.3%, Arabic at 0.2%, and Chinese languages, Portuguese, Atikamekw (Abenaki), German and Niger–Congo languages at 0.1% each.


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## mkil (24 Feb 2015)

I live in Bagotville. I came here first as an English speaking spouse. The answer to your question is no. Outside of the military community there are absolutely no English speakers. Even on base, many people have spent their entire career in this one base bouncing around from unit to unit. I am sorry to be blunt, but you should choose Cold Lake if working is important to your wife, because there is nothing here for English people who are not military. 

That being said, your wife can go to the base's language school full time to learn French. But it will likely be two years of full time study before she is close to bilingual enough to get a job here.


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## SupersonicMax (24 Feb 2015)

Cold Lake kinda sucks when compared to Bagtown.  Having said that, I am French.  If you or your wife have a mental blok vs French it'll difficult (everything).  People speak very little (to no) English.  If you go out there with an open mind, ready to learn the language and your wife is willing to stay at home and learn French for a while before she can get a job, you're in for a nice surprise.  Bagotville (Saguenay) has everything a large city has to offer AND some of the best outdoors in Canada (hunting, fishing, hiking, skiing, dog sled, etc)

Very few people come here and hate it. Many people go to Cold Lake and are miserable.

My 2 (somewhat biased) cents.


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## TCM621 (12 Apr 2015)

kolkim said:
			
		

> I am an AWS Tech, currently in Borden thinking about my first posting. Cold Lake or Baggotville.
> 
> My one question is how easy would it be for my spouse to find a job in either Baggotville or Saguenay when she or I don't speak any french at all? Impossible-Very hard, or somewhat hard.
> People who have been to Baggotville please, and if you have been to both Cold Lake and Baggotville let me know how your thoughts



Don't fall into the trap that you have to choose Cold Lake or Bagotville. Your preferences are your preferences. They will post you where ever they want but if you really don't want to go to bagotville or Cold Lake, ask for something else. The worst they can say is no.


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