The Attawapiskat River () is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...
in
Kenora District
Kenora District is a district and census division in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. The district seat is the City of Kenora.
It is geographically the largest division in Ontario: at , it covers 38 percent of the province's area, making it larger ...
in
northwestern Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Canada, that flows east from
Attawapiskat Lake to
James Bay
James Bay (french: Baie James; cr, ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, Wînipekw, dirty water) is a large body of water located on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean, of which James Bay is the southernmost pa ...
. It is the third largest river entirely in Ontario.
Course
The Attawapiskat River travels a distance of ,
and has a
drainage area
A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...
of .
It is the third largest river entirely in Ontario.
The source of the river is Attawapiskat Lake at an elevation of . The main rivers flowing into the lake that are thus part of the Attawapiskat River drainage basin are the Marten-Drinking River, the Otoskwin River and the Pineimuta River.
There are two outflows from the Attawapiskat Lake into the Attawapiskat River: a southern and a northern channel. The southern channel is named by the
Atlas of Canada
The Atlas of Canada (french: L'Atlas du Canada) is an online atlas published by Natural Resources Canada that has information on every city, town, village, and hamlet in Canada. It was originally a print atlas, with its first edition being publishe ...
as the Attawapiskat River, and is the source location listed in the Infobox at right. The northern channel is named by the Atlas of Canada as the North Channel, and is the more easily navigated route for canoeing. The North Channel outflow from Attawapiskat Lake is at and consists of two short streams that lead into Windsor Lake. The elevation of the river drops significantly along these two outflow channels, descending from the higher ground of the
Canadian Shield to the flatter and more boggy
Hudson Bay Lowlands
The Hudson Bay Lowlands is a vast wetland located between the Canadian Shield and southern shores of Hudson Bay and James Bay. Most of the area lies within the province of Ontario, with smaller portions reaching into Manitoba and Quebec. Many wid ...
. After a series of rapids, the North Channel rejoins the Attawapiskat River (the southern channel) at at an elevation of .
The river continues east, and makes a bend to the north at Pym Island at at an elevation of . The
Streatfeild River joins from the right at an elevation of , and the outlet river from
McFaulds Lake, centre of the
Northern Ontario Ring of Fire geological area, joins from the left further downstream at
[Atlas of Canada Toporama Map Sheet 43C] at an elevation of . Further downstream, the river then heads east once again. The
Muketei River joins the Attawapiskat from the left at
[Atlas of Canada Toporama Map Sheet 43F] at an elevation of , and the
Missisa River joins from the right further downstream at
at an elevation of .
At
[Atlas of Canada Toporama Map Sheet 43B] at an elevation of the
Lawashi Channel begins and takes part of the Attawapiskat's flow into the
Lawashi River at a point upstream of that river's mouth at James Bay.
The mouth of the Lawashi River is approximately southeast of the mouth of the Attawapiskat.
After the Lawashi Channel branching, the main river continues east, past the community of
Attawapiskat upstream from the mouth,
and exits into the James Bay at the Akimiski Strait, across from
Akimiski Island
Akimiski Island is the largest island in James Bay (a southeasterly extension of Hudson Bay), Canada, which is part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region of the territory of Nunavut. It has an area of , making it the 163rd largest island in the world, and ...
.
Geology
Less than from its mouth, the Attawapiskat has carved out several clusters of spectacular high
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
islands
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
, nicknamed by
canoeists
A canoe is a lightweight narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle.
In British Englis ...
the "Birthday Cakes". The formations are unique to the region, the
Swampy Cree (Omushkegowuk) word for which, ''tawâpiskâ'' (as "''kâh-tawâpiskâk''" in its
Conjunct
{{For, the linguistic and logical operation of conjunction, Logical conjunction
In linguistics, the term conjunct has three distinct uses:
*A conjunct is an adverbial that adds information to the sentence that is not considered part of the propos ...
form and as "''êh-tawâpiskât''" in its
Participle
In linguistics, a participle () (from Latin ' a "sharing, partaking") is a nonfinite verb form that has some of the characteristics and functions of both verbs and adjectives. More narrowly, ''participle'' has been defined as "a word derived from ...
form), gives name to the river.
[ Also ]
The
Attawapiskat kimberlite field The Attawapiskat kimberlite field is a field of kimberlite pipes located astride the Attawapiskat River in the Hudson Bay Lowlands, in Northern Ontario, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 180 million years ago in the Jurassic period when th ...
lies astride the river.
Economy
Otoskwin/Attawapiskat River Provincial Park includes parts of the river from Attawapiskat Lake to a point just upstream of the confluence with the Muketei River.
Since June 26, 2008, the
De Beers Victor Diamond Mine
The Victor Mine was the first Canadian diamond mine located in Ontario, and De Beers' second diamond mine in Canada (after the Snap Lake Diamond Mine). It is located in the Northern Ontario Ring of Fire, in the James Bay Lowlands west of Atta ...
, in the Attawapiskat kimberlite field, has operated near the river about west of the community of Attawapiskat.
The mine was expected to produce of diamonds a year.
Tributaries
*Missisa River (right)
*Muketei River (left)
*Streatfeild River (right)
*North Channel (left)
*Attawapiskat Lake (source)
**Otoskwin River
**Marten-Drinking River
**Pineimuta River
See also
*
List of longest rivers of Canada
Among the longest rivers of Canada are 47 streams of at least . In the case of some rivers such as the Columbia, the length listed in the table below is solely that of the main stem. In the case of others such as the Mackenzie, it is the combin ...
*
List of rivers of Ontario
References
Sources
*
*
{{refend
External links
River islands formed of ancient reefs, Attawapiskat River, OntarioCliff-bound islands, Attawapiskat River, Ontario("Birthday Cakes" limestone islands), an
Mouth of Attawapiskat River, James Bay coast, Ontario Photos from the Ontario - Hudson Bay Lowlands section of th
Canadian Landscapes Photo Collection Geological Survey of Canada
The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC; french: Commission géologique du Canada (CGC)) is a Canadian federal government agency responsible for performing geological surveys of the country, developing Canada's natural resources and protecting the e ...
, Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
"Attawapiskat River" ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''.
Rivers of Kenora District
Tributaries of James Bay