The Rivière du Premier Rang is a tributary of the west bank of the Jean-Noël River flowing on the north bank of the Saint Lawrence River, in the municipalities of Saint-Hilarion and Les Éboulements, in the MRC of Charlevoix Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Capitale-Nationale, in the province of Quebec, in Canada. The southern part of this small valley is accessible by the chemin du 1er Rang de Saint-Hilarion and the chemin du rang Saint-Nicolas of Les Éboulements. The upper part is served by Chemin Principal de Saint-Hilarion and chemin des Pins. Forestry is the main economic activity in this valley; recreational tourism, second. The surface of the Premier Rang river is generally frozen from the beginning of December until the end of March; however, safe traffic on the ice is generally from mid-December to mid-March. The water level of the river varies with the seasons and the precipitation; the spring flood occurs in March or April.
Geography
The Premier Rang river originates from Lac aux Bois Verts, located on the south side of route 138, in a forest area. This lake has two large islands which divides it in two, forming almost a large U open to the west. This small lake is located at:
northeast of the village center of Saint-Hilarion;
north-west of the mouth of the Premier Rang river.
From this source, the course of the Premier Rang river descends on on an agricultural and forestry plateau, with a drop of, according to the following segments :
to the south by forming a hook towards the west, to a stream ;
to the east by crossing the Principal road, collecting a stream forming a hook towards the north to a stream ;
south-east, up to Chemin du Premier Rang;
to the south, winding greatly at the start of the segment, collecting a stream, curving towards the south-east, then going up towards the north-east by winding in end of segment, to its mouth.
The Premier Rang river flows on the west bank of the Jean-Noël River into a forest area. This mouth is located at:
east of the village center of Saint-Hilarion;
south-west of La Malbaie town center;
north of downtown Baie-Saint-Paul.
Toponymy
The origin of this toponymy refers to the fact that this river flows largely in the territory of the Premier Rang of Saint-Hilarion. The toponym "Rivière du Premier Rang" was formalized on March 29, 1989 at the Place Names Bank of the Commission de toponymie du Québec.
