The Pipestone River is a river 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 Ca ...
, Canada.
It is a major tributary of
Winisk River
The Winisk River is a river in northern Ontario, Canada, that starts at Wunnummin Lake and flows east to Winisk Lake. From there it continues in a mostly northly direction to Hudson Bay. The Winisk River is long and has a drainage basin of . ...
via
Wunnummin Lake. This pristine river flows through the rugged wilderness of Ontario's northern boreal forest, and drains into Wunnummin Lake.
The river has extensive whitewater sections, including 37 sets of rapids ranging from Class 1 to 5+. The portion of the river from
Nord Road (formerly Highway 808) to its mouth is protected in the
Pipestone River Provincial Park.
Because of its remoteness and lack of facilities and services, canoeists require well-skilled wilderness and whitewater experience.
At Misamikwash Lake (formerly known as Big Beaver Lake), the
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...
operated a fur trading post and outpost called Big Beaver House, that operated from 1911 to 1965. It was established by William King Oman as an outpost in 1911 and became a full trading post in 1945. In 1948, a store and warehouse were built. It closed in 1965 and moved its business to Wunnummin Lake.
Geography
Significant tributaries of the Pipestone River are (in upstream order):
* Wachusk River
* Paseminon River
* Morris River
* North Pipestone River
Significant lakes along its course include (in upstream order):
* Hilyard Lake
* Misamikwash Lake
* Horseshoe Lake
* Kecheokagan Lake
The Frog Rapids (
) are just upstream of where the Pipestone River flows into
Horseshoe Lake.
The Frog Portage, whose upstream endpoint is located about by water above the rapids on
Kecheokagan Lake, allows
canoe
A canoe is a lightweight narrow 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 English, the term ...
ists to bypass the rapids. This segment of the Pipestone River is not part of Pipestone River Provincial Park.
References
Rivers of Kenora District
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