Archange Lake (Mékinac) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Archange Lake |
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 Archange Lake
Location in Quebec
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| Location | Sainte-Thècle and Grandes-Piles, Quebec, Canada |
| Coordinates | 46°47′58″N 72°37′37″W / 46.79944°N 72.62694°W |
| Lake type | Natural |
| Basin countries | Canada |
| Max. length | 2.45 km (1.52 mi) |
| Max. width | 1.3 km (0.81 mi) |
| Max. depth | 90 m (300 ft) |
| Surface elevation | 333 m (1,093 ft) |
Lake Archange is a beautiful natural lake in Quebec, Canada. It sits right on the border between two towns: Sainte-Thècle and Grandes-Piles. This lake is part of the Mekinac Regional County Municipality in the Mauricie region.
History of Lake Archange
The first road to Lake Archange was built in 1889. It was made by the "Trois-Rivières Hunting Club". Later, some land around the lake, called "Domaines du Lac Archange", was set up on a peninsula.
Lake Archange is famous for its old fire lookout tower. This tower was built on top of a mountain near the lake. It has been used since the early 1900s to spot forest fires. Historian Gaétan Veillette wrote in 1974 about the people who worked in these towers. They were called "towermen".
Some towermen who worked in the Sainte-Thècle area included Émile Bacon, who worked for 17 years. Others were Elzéar Plamondon, Oscar Plamondon, Georges Darveault, Alfred Darveault, and Rosidé Brière. Georges Vallée was in charge of supervising them. The mountain at Lake Archange is very tall. This gave the towermen an amazing view to look for fires.
These fire watchers worked with pilots who flew planes to spot fires from the air. These planes were based at Lac-à-la-Tortue. This is the oldest civil seaplane base in Canada. Air patrols for forest fires started in the Mauricie region in 1919.
From 1931 to 1947, towermen and loggers used a special phone system. These were private phones with wires running through the forest. Each phone had a crank and batteries. You could call directly without needing an operator. This system helped connect observation posts like Hervey-Jonction, Rivière-à-Pierre, Lac-des-Iles, and Archange Lake. Companies used this network to get updates on fires and weather. This helped them plan when to cut trees or transport logs. Marie-Ange Bacon from Sainte-Thècle said that the fireguards even fixed their own phones.
Geography of Lake Archange
Lake Archange is located in a forest area. It looks like a big "U" shape that opens towards the southeast. In the middle of the "U" is a mountainous piece of land (a peninsula). The lake is about 2.45 kilometers long from one end of the "U" to the other. At its widest point in the north, the lake is about 1.3 kilometers across.
The surface of the lake is 333 meters above sea level. The deepest part of the lake is about 90 meters.
This area, in the middle of Mauricie and Batiscanie, Quebec, has many tall mountains. East of the lake, towards Lake Veillette, and south, before Lake Veilleux, the mountains are very high. The mountain with the fire watchtower is about 460 meters tall.
You can reach the fire tower by a road that starts at Lake Fountain Road in Grandes-Piles. This road is about 7.6 kilometers long and can be a bit bumpy. It goes east and leads to the top of the highest mountain in the area. Along the way, you pass south of Fontaine Lake and "Lac à la truite" (Trout Lake).
The water flowing out of Archange Lake goes east through a narrow passage. This outflow travels about 4.5 kilometers, all within Sainte-Thècle. It collects water from Lake Veillette (0.54 km long, flowing south) and "Lac des hauteurs" (Lake of the Heights, 0.54 km long, flowing north).
Several smaller lakes surround Lake Archange. These include "Lac du Caribou" (Reindeer Lake), Marie Lake, and Marguerite Lake. The outlet of Archange Lake is about 13 kilometers north of the Catholic Church in Saint-Tite. You get there by using the "Chemin des Pointes" (Road of Tips). It's also about 12.9 kilometers from the Church of Sainte-Thècle using St. Joseph Road South. The mountain road between the lake's outlet and St. Joseph-South path is about 4.3 kilometers long.
In the Sainte-Thècle part of the lake, Lake Archange is in North Row C and Row VI Southwest of Lejeune Township. One path to the lake leads to the tip of the large peninsula. Another path goes along the south side of the lake. The northern and eastern parts of the area are very mountainous.
What's in a Name?
The name "Lac Archange" (Archange Lake) has a Christian origin. The official name was decided on December 5, 1968. This was done by the Commission de toponymie du Québec, which is like the Geographical Names Board of Québec. They are in charge of naming places.
