Ermitage Saint-Antoine de Galamus

Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet

North of Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet, the Agly has cut a corridor of about five kilometres through the limestone, only two of which are followed by the road. This departmental road — the D7 on the Pyrénées-Orientales side, the D10 on the Aude side — was cut into the cliff face in the 1890s, with a mining bar, by men suspended from ropes; the tunnel was opened in 1892. Clinging to the rock face at 376 metres altitude, the Saint-Antoine hermitage occupies a natural grotto. Local tradition holds that hermits lived there from as early as the 7th century, but the first written mention dates from the 15th, when Franciscans fitted out the cavity as a chapel. The sanctuary is dedicated to Saint Anthony the Great, the hermit of Egypt and patriarch of monasticism — not to Saint Anthony of Padua, with whom he is often confused. In 1782, the end of a sweating-sickness epidemic in Saint-Paul was attributed to his protection; the plane tree in the courtyard was planted that year. Sold as national property in 1791, the site was restored from 1843 by Father Marie-Joseph Chiron, and a hermit lived there until the 1920s or 1930s, depending on the source. One detail will catch the eye of those fond of symbols: a slab in the hermitage bears a SATOR square, the five-word Latin palindrome — SATOR AREPO TENET OPERA ROTAS — carved throughout the Middle Ages as a protective charm, whose exact meaning has been debated for eighteen centuries. Two pilgrimages are traditionally held there, on Easter Monday and Whit Monday.

Ermitage de Galamus — Wikipédia ↗

Getting there : From Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet, follow the D7 towards Cubières-sur-Cinoble, about 5 km. The road narrows in places to 2.50 m wide: height limited to 2.70 m, vehicle width to 2 m, coaches, motorhomes and heavy goods vehicles forbidden, and once you have started there is no turning back. In July-August, alternating traffic over 1.5 km and a summer shuttle. Car parks at both entrances to the gorges. The hermitage is reached on foot, ten to fifteen minutes depending on the path, or by a stairway of less than five minutes near the tunnel; the path is cut into the rock and the climb back up must be earned. Free, unguided visits from 15 March to 15 November. Swimming and climbing forbidden.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

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