The Fiddle River is a medium-sized

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

Athabasca River The Athabasca River (French: ''Rivière Athabasca'') is a river in Alberta, Canada, which originates at the Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park and flows more than before emptying into Lake Athabasca. Much of the land along its banks is pro ...

, flowing into the river near the east gate of

Jasper National Park Jasper National Park is a national park in Alberta, Canada. It is the largest national park within Alberta's Rocky Mountains spanning . It was established as a national park in 1930 and declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984. Its locatio ...

in Alberta, Canada. The Fiddle River forms at the base of Fiddle Pass, with meltwater from

Mount Bryant Mount Bryant is a mountain in the Fisher Range in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta. Named for Alfred Harold Bryant, a homesteader from the surrounding area who later became a forest ranger. See also *Mountains of Alberta Most of Alberta's ...

Mount Gregg Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

Mount Sir Harold Mitchel Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

, and

Mount Barry Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

. The river flows in a general northeast direction before its

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

with the Athabasca. The Fiddle River parallels the road to the popular Miette Hotsprings for a portion of its course. There are two competing stories for the naming of the Fiddle River (as well as Fiddle Peak, Fiddle Pass, and the

Fiddle Range The Fiddle Range is a mountain range of the Canadian Rockies located south of Highway 16 on the east border of Jasper National Park, Canada. The range was so named on account of noises produced by blowing wind. This range includes the following ...

). The first contends that wind flowing over the Fiddle Range with a certain speed and direction mimicks the sound of a #4

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

string. The second story argues that the outline of the range resembles that of a

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

. The name Fiddle River first appeared in 1846.Karamitsanis, Aphrodite (1991). ''Place Names of Alberta, Volume 1''. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, pg. 87

Tributaries

*Poachers Creek *Slide Creek *Sulphur Creek *O'Hagan Creek *Mystery Creek *Villeneuve Creek *Morris Creek *Ashlar Creek

References

Rivers of Alberta {{Alberta-river-stub