The Picanoc River (''pikanak'' or ''pakânâk'') is a

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

Gatineau River The Gatineau River (french: Rivière Gatineau, ) is a river in western Quebec, Canada, which rises in lakes north of the Baskatong Reservoir and flows south to join the Ottawa River at the city of Gatineau, Quebec. The river is long and drains ...

in the administrative region of

Outaouais Outaouais (, ; also commonly called The Outaouais) is a region of western Quebec, Canada. It includes the city of Gatineau, the municipality of Val-des-Monts and the Papineau region. Geographically, it is located on the north side of the Ottawa ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada. The Picanoc River begins in the unorganized territory of

Lac-Nilgaut, Quebec Lac-Nilgaut is a large unorganized territory in the Outaouais region, Quebec, Canada. With a surface area of , it makes up over 70% of the northern portion of Pontiac Regional County Municipality. The eponymous Lake Nilgaut is located roughly i ...

Pontiac Regional County Municipality Pontiac (french: municipalité régionale de comté de Pontiac) is a regional county municipality in the Outaouais region of Quebec, Canada. Campbell's Bay is the county seat. It should not be confused with the municipality of Pontiac, which is ...

and ends in Gracefield in

La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau Regional County Municipality La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau ''(The Valley of the Gatineau)'' is a regional county municipality in the Outaouais region of western Quebec, Canada. The seat is in Gracefield, Quebec, Gracefield. It was incorporated on January 1, 1983 and was named for ...

Geography

Its headwaters originate southeast of Lake Usborne and north of Lac Dumont in

Pontiac County Pontiac may refer to: *Pontiac (automobile), a car brand *Pontiac (Ottawa leader) ( – 1769), a Native American war chief Places and jurisdictions Canada * Pontiac, Quebec, a municipality **Apostolic Vicariate of Pontiac, now the Roman Catholic D ...

. It generally flows eastward by making a large loop to the south for a distance of . The Picanoc then widens forming Lac à la Loutre ( Otter Lake) and discharges into

at Wright (South of Gracefield municipality), in the MRC of

. It is part of

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connectin ...

Gulf of Saint Lawrence , image = Baie de la Tour.jpg , alt = , caption = Gulf of St. Lawrence from Anticosti National Park, Quebec , image_bathymetry = Golfe Saint-Laurent Depths fr.svg , alt_bathymetry = Bathymetry ...

watershed. Narrow and tumultuous, it is highly regarded by outdoor enthusiasts. It is long, a class/grade II river with sections reaching class/grade III difficulty (based upon the International Scale of River Difficulty).

Historical and topographical landmarks

According to Eugène Rouillard (1906) quoting Father Georges Lemoine, "Pikanook" or "Picanock" is a variant of "pakanak", "walnut", of "Pakan", nuts, probably so named because of the nuts found there. Probably around this river were populated walnut, a wood prized by Native Americans for making their bows. The spelling and pronunciation of the Native American name underwent several consecutive changes to language contact. Thus do we find the form on a map Pikanook 1906 Wright Township, Pickanok on that of the Ministry of Mines and Fisheries of 1925 and on the Pickinock County Hull, also from 1925. The current form "Picanoc" appears on a map of the Department of Lands and Forests in 1927. Picanoc also means a bridge, three lanes of communication and a small stream; the term was also used in the old name of the municipality of Gracefield. The place name "River Picanoc" was formalized December 5, 1968, by the

Commission de toponymie du Québec The Commission de toponymie du Québec (English: ''Toponymy Commission of Québec'') is the Government of Québec's public body responsible for cataloging, preserving, making official and publicize Québec's place names and their origins according ...

(Quebec Names Board).Commission de toponymie du Québec (Names Board of Quebec) - Bank of place names - Toponym: "River Picanoc"
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Geography

Historical and topographical landmarks

Notes and references

See also