First pick
Centre des loisirs Éric Bédard
Park or garden
2.9 ha
Centralin the middle of Sainte-Thècle
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Veillg1 · CC06.2%protected within 10 km
Outdoors in Sainte-Thècle · parks, protected land & trails
A national park 4.6 km from Sainte-Thècle: La Mauricie National Park
The protected share within 10 km is 6.2%, where a typical Canadian town has 2.3%. Within 5 km lie 5 beaches, unnamed on the map. 13 areas within 10 km are protected for nature.
Protected land
6.2%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
13
within 10 km, 12 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest national park
4.6 km
La Mauricie National Park
Nearest provincial park
86 km
Jacques-Cartier National Park (Québec)
Beaches
5
within 5 km (OpenStreetMap)
Character
What sets Sainte-Thècle apart outdoors
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
A national park nearbyLa Mauricie National Park, 4.6 km awayProtected land all round6.2% of the land within 10 km, more than 75% of Canadian townsBeaches5 beaches within 5 km
What Sainte-Thècle has most to offer outdoors is La Mauricie National Park within easy reach, with protected land around it close behind.
Against other towns
Sainte-Thècle against other Canadian towns
Each figure against the 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+ (not city hubs or reserves), with the town marked and the typical one’s line. This page carries no grade, because Canada’s grading doesn’t cover the outdoors; the comparisons are the point.
Protected within 10 km6.2%Share of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s edge in a protected or conserved area
Protected in town0.2%Share of the town’s own area in a protected or conserved area
Public protected areas12Areas within 10 km held by a government or an Indigenous nation
Walking routes0Named OpenStreetMap walking and hiking routes with 300 m+ within 2 km
Beaches5Beaches mapped on OpenStreetMap within 5 km
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
Towns its size
Among 40 towns its size, Sainte-Thècle ranks 6th for protected land within 10 km
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (2,422 to 2,587 residents), by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected. Hover for each one’s figures; click for its page.
Protected within 10 km
Sainte-Thècle6.2%
Towns its size1.6%
Towns in Quebec4.9%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Sainte-Thècle12
Towns its size4
Towns in Quebec10
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Sainte-Thècle0
Towns its size0
Towns in Quebec0
Typical Canadian town0
Sainte-Thècle beats most towns its size for protected land nearby; 5 of 39 do better.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anmore BC | 22% | 47% | 16 | 5 | 98 |
| 2 | Saint-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska QC | 19% | 0% | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Gracefield QC | 19% | 19% | 34 | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | East Preston NS | 16% | 6.3% | 20 | 1 | 5 |
| 5 | Clearwater BC | 7.7% | 4.1% | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | Sainte-Thècle QC | 6.2% | 0.2% | 13 | 0 | 5 |
| 7 | Roberval QC | 6.1% | 1.2% | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague QC | 5.8% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | North Frontenac ON | 5.7% | 5.2% | 13 | 6 | 4 |
| 10 | Cap-Chat QC | 5.3% | 0.4% | 13 | 0 | 10 |
| 11 | Killaloe, Hagarty and Richards ON | 4.4% | 1.5% | 9 | 0 | 4 |
| 12 | Saint-Polycarpe QC | 4.2% | 0% | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| 13 | Macassa ON | 4.1% | 0% | 18 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | Saint-Damien QC | 4% | 3.2% | 22 | 1 | 9 |
| 15 | Unity SK | 3.4% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Sherwood ON | 3.4% | 0% | 19 | 2 | 0 |
| 17 | McNab SK | 2.6% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 18 | Mandeville QC | 2.5% | 1.8% | 19 | 4 | 7 |
| 19 | Esterhazy SK | 1.8% | 0% | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | City Commercial Core ON | 1.8% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Caswell Hill SK | 1.4% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 3 |
| 22 | Fossambault-sur-le-Lac QC | 1.3% | 7.8% | 15 | 0 | 14 |
| 23 | Pembina MB | 1.1% | 1.8% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Burrows-Keewatin MB | 1% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Elmwood AB | 0.8% | 0% | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 26 | Hatley QC | 0.7% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 5 |
| 27 | Munroe West MB | 0.4% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Brooke-Alvinston ON | 0.3% | 0.2% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Rosedale AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 30 | Minchau AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 31 | Lunenburg NS | 0.1% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 5 |
| 32 | Salisbury NB | 0.1% | 2.1% | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Dufferin MB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Ekota AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 35 | Satoo AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 36 | Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce QC | 0% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 37 | Magrath AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | Nanton AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | Rimbey AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Sexsmith AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The map
The green map of Sainte-Thècle
Green space, woods, protected areas and footpaths in and around the town; tap a number for its park or wood.
Green: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, playing fields and woods. Hatched: CPCAD protected areas.© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); CPCAD (OGL-Canada)
Places to walk
2 named parks and woods to walk in near Sainte-Thècle
The biggest is Centre des loisirs Éric Bédard, 2.9 ha. Biggest first, numbered as on the map.
Parc Saint-Jean Optimiste
Park or garden
1.9 ha
0.7 km north-westfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Source: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, commons and woods with a name, in the town or within 400 m, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Sizes are the mapped outline’s.
Close to home
About 2 in 10 of Sainte-Thècle’s residents are a short walk from a park
Residents of each 2021 dissemination area, at a point inside it, within 400 m (about a 5-minute walk) of a park or playing field mapped on OpenStreetMap.
Within 400 m (17%)Further (83%)
Sainte-Thècle17%
Towns in Quebec52%
Typical Canadian town83%
Around 2,000 residents are further than 400 m from a park. For comparison, the typical Canadian town has 83%.
Protected areas
6.2% of the land around Sainte-Thècle is protected
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Inside Sainte-Thècle0.2%
Within 10 km6.2%
Towns in Quebec4.9%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
12 of the 13 are on public land. La Mauricie National Park covers 53,610 ha, the most of any named area. One more area within 10 km is private land, held by a landowner or a conservation group: counted here, not named.
Proposed Grandes-Piles Biodiversity ReserveNature reserve · 3,629 ha · reaches Sainte-Thècle
Embryon, lac HeronryProtected area · 49 ha · reaches Sainte-Thècle
04151R903 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 162 ha · reaches Sainte-Thècle
04151R069 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 67 ha · 0.2 km from the edge of town
04151R902 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 118 ha · 0.7 km from the edge of town
04151R072 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 130 ha · 2.1 km from the edge of town
04151R084 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 102 ha · 2.2 km from the edge of town
La Mauricie National ParkNational park · 53,610 ha · 4.6 km from the edge of town
04151R076 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 212 ha · 4.9 km from the edge of town
lac Mékinac (Anse à la Vache) Habitat of A Threatened Or Vulnerable Wildlife SpeciesWildlife area · 231 ha · 7.3 km from the edge of town
2 more named areas within 10 km are in the figures.
Source: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD) 2.9.0, Environment and Climate Change Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada.
National & provincial parks
Parks around Sainte-Thècle
National parks (Parks Canada) and provincial or territorial parks by direction and distance from the town’s edge: every one within 10 km, and the nearest of each within 100 km.
National parkProvincial park
National park
La Mauricie National Park
4.6 km west536 km²since 1970
Québec national park (provincial)
Jacques-Cartier National Park (Québec)
86 km north-east671 km²since 1981
Québec’s parcs nationaux are provincial parks, run by Sépaq; Parks Canada’s national parks are separate.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
Sainte-Thècle has 23 km of footpaths in and around it
OpenStreetMap footpaths, paths, bridleways and steps, and tracks open on foot, in the town and 1 km around it; woods as mapped (landuse=forest, natural=wood).
Footpaths
23 km
in and around the town (293 km²)
Woodland
76%
about 222.2 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
Sainte-ThècleTowns in QuebecTypical Canadian town
Footpaths0.1
012 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
Sainte-ThècleTowns in QuebecTypical Canadian town
Woodland76%
0%50%100%
It is more wooded than 94% of Canadian towns. 89% of Canadian towns have more footpath per km².
Source: OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Mapping varies by place: a dense figure can mean keen local mappers as much as many paths.
Walking routes
No named walking route passes Sainte-Thècle on the map
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
No named route shows within 2 km of the town; volunteers map trails unevenly from one region to the next.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
When to get out
Walking season in Sainte-Thècle: May, June, August and September
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from Fortierville (51 km), and daylight at the town’s latitude. Good months: 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15–30 °C, little rain.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.9 | 10.2 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 15.8 | 15.5 | 14.2 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| High (°C) | -7 | -5 | 1 | 10 | 18 | 23 | 26 | 25 | 20 | 12 | 5 | -3 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 81 | 69 | 79 | 94 | 92 | 108 | 133 | 103 | 95 | 105 | 82 | 100 |
July brings both the warmest days and the most rain (133 mm); February is driest (69 mm). Daytime highs run from -7 °C in January up to 26 °C in July. The climate in Sainte-Thècle →
Beaches
5 unnamed beaches near Sainte-Thècle
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
This page can’t show water quality: no open, Canada-wide record of beach testing exists. Check local advisories first.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Things to do
5 waterfalls near Sainte-Thècle
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
Montagne à Groleau, 240 m, is the high point nearby. 5 waterfalls top the list.
Every named place, with directions
Hills and peaks 1
Montagne à Groleau240 m · in town
DirectionsPicnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 2
Plus 2 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 2
Camping Lac et Forêtin town
DirectionsCamping La Gervaisie0.8 km from town
DirectionsSlipways 1
Plus 1 slipway without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next door
Next to Sainte-Thècle
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
Lac-aux-SablesSaint-TiteSainte-Thècle
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sainte-Thècle | 6.2% | 13 | 0 | 5 |
| Lac-aux-Sables 10 km | 1.6% | 12 | 1 | 8 |
| Saint-Tite 11 km | 5.8% | 12 | 0 | 0 |
Sainte-Thècle is not outdone two to one on protected land by any neighbour.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Private land. CPCAD includes conservation land held privately; the page counts it and leaves the names out.
- Beaches. A beach counts when its centre point lies within 5 km of the town’s outline. Names come from the map.
- National and provincial parks. National parks are Parks Canada’s; provincial parks are the province’s or territory’s, Québec’s parcs nationaux among them.
- Walking routes. Only named route relations count; a park’s own path network may not show unless it is mapped as a route.
- Protected land. Measured on CPCAD’s outlines: the part of a 10 km band around the town that lies in a protected or conserved area, water included.
Questions about the outdoors in Sainte-Thècle
Are there protected areas near Sainte-Thècle?
Protected areas cover 6.2% of the land within 10 km.
How far is the nearest provincial park from Sainte-Thècle?
The closest is Jacques-Cartier National Park (Québec), at 86 km.
Which is the biggest protected area near Sainte-Thècle?
It is La Mauricie National Park, a national park covering 53,610 ha.
What is the nearest beach to Sainte-Thècle?
The beaches mapped within 5 km have no names on the map.
How far is Sainte-Thècle from a national park?
The nearest is La Mauricie National Park, 4.6 km away.
When is the best time for walking in Sainte-Thècle?
May, June, August and September, on the 1991–2020 normals and the daylight: long days, highs of 15 °C or more, light rain for the place.
Sources
Sources for this page on Sainte-Thècle
Protected areas: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD) 2.9.0, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2026: every area within 10 km and the nearest national and provincial parks, measured outline to outline.
Walking routes and beaches: OpenStreetMap, November 2026: named hiking, foot and walking route relations within 2 km and beaches within 5 km.
Towns: Statistics Canada 2021 Census boundaries and populations; the comparison is the Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+, not city hubs or reserves.
When to go: Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020, from the nearest station that publishes them.
Green space, paths, woods, things to do: OpenStreetMap (Geofabrik’s Canada extract), November 2026: parks, gardens, playing fields, woods, footpaths, the coastline and things to do in and around each town.
Residents: Statistics Canada 2021 Census dissemination areas (population, boundaries), each at a point inside it.
Walking routes and beaches © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database Licence (ODbL).
Not on this page: trailheads and trail grades, and beach water quality. No open Canadian dataset gives these for every town yet.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).