Montreal, Quebec, Chicoutimi
Ermitage Saint-Antoine, 250 Route de l’Ermitage, Lac-Bouchette, Quebec G0W 1V0
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Distance
Variable
Route duration
One day / Half a day
Difficulty level
N/A
Elevation gain
N/A
By car: Highway 40 toward Trois-Rivières; Highway 55 and Route 155 toward La Tuque and Lac-Bouchette (403 km).
Train: Via Rail on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, departing from Central Station (403 km) + taxi to the Ermitage Saint-Antoine (3 km).
Flight: Air Canada to Chicoutimi (continued below)
By car: Highway 175 (L’Étape – 87 km) + (Route 169 junction – 32 km) Route 169 toward Hébertville to the junction for Lac-à-la-Croix/Métabetchouan (80 km; toward Chambord – Route 155 junction (18 km); Route 155 from Chambord toward Lac-Bouchette (23 km); toward Ermitage Saint-Antoine (3 km).
By car: Take the Autoroute de l’Aluminium (Route 70), then Boulevard du Royaume (Route 170) toward Métabetchouan (84 km), Route 169 toward Chambord (18 km), Route 155 toward Lac-Bouchette (23 km); toward Ermitage Saint-Antoine (3 km).
Plan for today's drive
If traveling by train from Montreal, be sure to plan for lunch and dinner.
Planning for the Road Ahead
Plan your lunch.
When making a reservation...
Please notify the reception desk at the Ermitage of your Kapoah pilgrimage so they can arrange appropriate accommodations.
Phone (418) 348-6344 / 1-800-868-6344.
Blessing of the Pilgrims
A blessing for pilgrims and walkers is given after each Mass at the Marian Chapel, or upon request at the Capuchin Monastery.
In 1828, a team commissioned by the government of the time arrived in the region, led by Joseph Bouchette, a land surveyor, to assess the territory’s potential. Mr. Bouchette left his name there. It wasn’t until 1882 that the first settler family—that of Pascal Dumais and Sophie Beaupré—settled on an island in Lac-Bouchette. Dumais had begun clearing the land in 1878 with the help of his 14-year-old son. With the arrival of the railroad in 1886, the population grew; Dumais built his small house on the mainland. The parish was officially established in 1891, and the post office opened in 1901.
The arrival of the parish’s second priest in 1907, Elzéar Delamarre, who had a small chapel built on private land, marked the founding ofthe Saint-Antoine Hermitage. The discovery of a natural grotto added a devotion to the Virgin Mary. Together, these two devotions—to the Virgin Mary and Saint Anthony of Padua—transformed the Hermitage into a popular place of pilgrimage and retreat. The Capuchins lead its spiritual life.
This location serves as the starting point for the KAPOAH-Québec (Canada) Camino de Santiago, which stretches 505 km. Along the trail, several stages are offered through fields and woods, as well as villages and towns in the region and beyond, allowing travelers to discover places of spirituality, nature, and culture.
Photos: Pascal Bernardon on Unsplash; Guy Thibeault on Unsplash.