Saint-Barnabé Island excursion

6 km long and barely 300 m wide, Île St-Barnabé is located 3 km from the shore, opposite downtown Rimouski. It offers kilometers of hiking trails, a rustic campground where you can contemplate the most beautiful sunsets in the world (no less!), and an interpretive program on the history of human occupation over the years.

Saint-Barnabé Island offers several hiking trails. Although you can walk around the island to your heart’s content and without the risk of getting lost, there are three loops to choose from. A 3 km loop, a 4.5 km loop, and for the more athletic, a complete 12 km tour of the island.

As you stroll along, you’ll come across themed stops where a wide variety of subjects are tackled. At Pointe Est, for example, we talk about the many shipwrecks that occurred on the island’s shores, and the smuggling of alcohol during the Prohibition era. Interpretation panels explain some aspects of the island’s flora and fauna. And there are picnic areas all over the island.

Samuel de Champlain named the island St-Barnabé on June 11, 1603, in honor of the feast of… St-Barnabé!