the mountaintop shrine

by Linda Hopkins

I am feeling a wee bit melancholy, for today shall be my final post about Deer Lake. Even though we drove away from Deer Lake six days ago, I’ve enjoyed reliving it through these posts and photos.

Once again, I will leave it up to Kim and Paul to correct or embellish any of the details I share about the shrine atop the mountain on their property in Canada.

As I understand it, the shrine was erected early in the twentieth century. It was placed atop the mountain after a father and son were lost there one freezing winter night. They survived the night and were rescued the next day. Soon after, the shrine was built and a large cross was raised next to it.

The Howard family first noticed it decades ago, from the road far below as they were driving to the lake when someone looked up at the mountain and spotted a cross on top. It was then that they learned the story of the father and son.

When they hike up to the shrine, they like to take a little offering to place at the feet of the Madonna. This time we brought a candle and some playing cards… including the queen of hearts. I noticed that others have left rosaries, religious medals, pine cones, a heart-shaped rock, a hairpin, and a little wooden angel.

The view from the top is outstanding! The trees have grown and filled in, so the cross is no longer visible from the road far below.

There was an order of priests known as Pères Blancs (White Fathers) who would hike up the mountain every year on August 15th, the Feast of the Assumption, and say Mass. The order is no longer in the area, but the Howard family likes to make the hike up each time they visit. The ashes of Paul’s parents are scattered there now, so this is hallowed ground.

A couple of years ago, the cross rotted and fell. Paul and his three sons made a new cross and hauled it up the mountain. As you can see, they used the fallen wood to support the new cross.