The Northern Woods and Water Route is a route through northern
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
,
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
,
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...
and
Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
in
Western Canada
Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada†...
. As early as the 1950s, community groups came together to establish a northern travel route; this was proposed as the Northern Yellowhead Transportation Route. The Northern Woods and Water Route Association was established in 1974, and encouraged promotion of the route with the promise of an increase in tourist travel.
[
] The route was designated in 1974 and is well signed throughout its component highways. The route starts at
Dawson Creek
Dawson Creek is a city in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. The municipality of had a population of 12,978 in 2016. Dawson Creek derives its name from the creek of the same name that runs through the community. The creek was named after ...
as the
Spirit River Highway and ends at the
Perimeter
A perimeter is a closed path that encompasses, surrounds, or outlines either a two dimensional shape or a one-dimensional length. The perimeter of a circle or an ellipse is called its circumference.
Calculating the perimeter has several pr ...
of
Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
,
Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
, after running through the northern regions of the western provinces. From west to east, the Northern Woods and Water Route (NWWR) incorporates portions of
British Columbia Highway 49; Alberta Highways
49,
2A,
2, &
55; Saskatchewan Highways
55 &
9; Manitoba
Provincial Road 283 and Trunk Highways
10,
5,
68 &
6. The halfway point of the NWWR is approximately at
Goodsoil, Saskatchewan.
Fur traders and early settlers utilised the rivers and
Red River cart
The Red River cart is a large two-wheeled cart made entirely of non-metallic materials. Often drawn by oxen, though also by horses or mules, these carts were used throughout most of the 19th century in the fur trade and in westward expansion i ...
roads such as ''Long Trail'' until the early 20th century when the railroad and bush planes supplemented travel to this northern boreal transition area. Corduroy roads provided a means for early land vehicles to cross over muskeg and swamp. Horse drawn ploughs filled low areas, settlers hauled gravel and cleared bush for the road ways surveyed along high elevations following lake and river shore lines. Municipalities would grade and gravel roads providing transportation between trading centres. The all-weather road arrived alongside of the NWWR association's impetus for a travel and tourism corridor along the northern area of the western provinces. Traffic volume along the route is a major factor to determine highway classification, surface type, and construction upgrades.
Route description
British Columbia
![Dawson Creek Art Gallery](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Dawson_Creek_Art_Gallery.jpg)
In British Columbia (BC), the NWWR starts in
Dawson Creek
Dawson Creek is a city in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. The municipality of had a population of 12,978 in 2016. Dawson Creek derives its name from the creek of the same name that runs through the community. The creek was named after ...
at the intersection of
BC Hwy 2 and
BC Hwy 49. west of the intersection is
BC Hwy 97, where BC Hwy 97 north is the start of the