Chibougamau
A Frontier Town In The Boreal Forest With A Large Lake, A Lakeside Beach, The Chibougamau Chapais Tourist Information Centre, Mining Heritage, A Long Lakeshore, A Gateway To The Otish Mountains And James Bay Road. A Northern Service Town With Hunting, Fishing And Canoe Trips · Chibougamau, Quebec
Chibougamau is a mining and forestry town of about 7,500 people in the boreal forest of northern Quebec, on the shore of a large lake and at the end of Route 167, roughly 200 km north of Saint-Felicien at Lac-Saint-Jean. The Cree word for the place is said to mean a gathering place, and Cree and Quebec families have lived and traded here for generations. Copper and gold mines opened the area after 1904, and the nearby town of Chapais grew with the forest industry. Today Chibougamau is the main service town of the region, with shops, hotels, restaurants, a hospital and a tourist information centre, and a base for fishing, canoeing, snowmobiling and hunting trips. The Cree community of Oujebougamau, with its distinctive architecture and cultural institute, lies about 25 km away, and Mistissini, the largest Cree village in Quebec, is farther along Route 167. The town is French-speaking, practical and friendly, and sits at the door of the James Bay country. Summer brings long light and lake days; winter brings snow, sleds and deep cold.
Chibougamau, a mining and forestry town of about 7,500 people in northern Quebec, about 700 km north of Montreal on the Route 167, with a large lake and the Cree community of Oujebougamau nearby; coordinates approximate, Chibougamau, Quebec, Canada
Chibougamau keeps normal town hours. Shops, restaurants and offices are generally open about 9 to 5 or later on weekdays, with shorter weekend hours, and the tourist information centre is staffed roughly mid-May to early September with reduced hours in winter - confirm by phone. Boat launches, beaches and lakeside paths are open in daylight in the warm months, and outfitters run fishing, canoe and hunting trips mainly June to September and in the snowmobile season from December to March. Cree cultural sites nearby keep their own seasons. Winter driving can be slow, so confirm road conditions on Route 167 and Route 113 before leaving.