Chasse-Galerie

Article by

Nancy Schmitz

Published Online	February 6, 2006
Last Edited	March 4, 2015

Painting by Henri Julien. One of the favourite tales of the voyageurs was about the pact with the devil in which he promises to transport them back home in 6 hours. They were not allowed to utter the name of God or the devil would claim their souls (courtesy Musée du Québec).

Chasse-Galerie

French Canadian variant of the Wild Hunt, a legend which interprets strange noises in the air as relating to a hunter condemned to hunt throughout eternity. In Chasse-Galerie, one or several persons together are able, with the help of the devil, to travel in a canoe through the air at tremendous speed. They must take care not to have any blessed object on their person or to pronounce the name of God, lest the canoe crash. The name appears to be derived from the French chasse, "hunt," and Galerie from Sire de Gallery, a condemned hunter.