Red Deer River is a river in the Canadian provinces of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in 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 the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...

and

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

. It has its source at Nut Lake in east central Saskatchewan and from there, it flows east towards Manitoba where it empties into Dawson Bay of

Lake Winnipegosis Lake Winnipegosis is a large (5,370 km2) lake in central North America, in Manitoba, Canada, some 300 km northwest of Winnipeg. It is Canada's eleventh-largest lake. An alternate spelling, once common but now rare, is Lake Winipigoos or ...

. To the north of Red Deer's basin is the

Saskatchewan River The Saskatchewan River (Cree: ''kisiskāciwani-sīpiy'', "swift flowing river") is a major river in Canada. It stretches about from where it is formed by the joining together of the North Saskatchewan and South Saskatchewan Rivers to Lake Winn ...

, to the south-west is the upper

Assiniboine River The Assiniboine River (''; french: Rivière Assiniboine'') is a river that runs through the prairies of Western Canada in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. It is a tributary of the Red River. The Assiniboine is a typical meandering river with a sing ...

, and to the south-east is Swan River.

Course

The Red Deer River begins at the north end of Nut Lake near Highway 349 and west of

Porcupine Hills The Porcupine Hills refer to various groups of hills and uplands located in the prairie provinces of Canada, specifically the provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. They are part of the Manitoba Escarpment, which was the shoreline of the anci ...

in east central Saskatchewan. From Nut Lake, it heads north past Greenwater Lake Provincial Park towards Pré-Ste-Marié. From there, near the junctions of Highways 679 and 773, it turns east towards the town of Hudson Bay and the

Hudson Bay Regional Park Hudson Bay Regional Park is a regional park in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is located on the south side of the town of Hudson Bay in the RM of Hudson Bay No. 394 along the shores of the Red Deer River. The park is the site of a ...

, which is the site of a former North West Company fort named Fort Red Deer River. From Hudson Bay, it continues eastward and is the divide between the Pasquia Hills to the north and the

to the south. It also passes through provincial forests such as Porcupine and Pasquia. From the forests and hills, it continues eastward into Manitoba where past the border, it opens up into Red Deer Lake. The river continues from the east side of Red Deer Lake for about until it empties into Dawson Bay of

. Near the point where it empties into Dawson Bay, it crosses Highway 10, which is part of the

Northern Woods and Water Route The Northern Woods and Water Route is a route through northern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba in Western Canada. As early as the 1950s, community groups came together to establish a northern travel route; this was propos ...

. That is also the location of Red Deer River Provincial Park. In 1757, a

Hudson 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 ...

fur trading post was established alongside the Red Deer River near the village of

Erwood Erwood ( cy, Erwyd) is a village and community lying beside the River Wye, on the A470 road some 6 miles south-east of Builth Wells in Powys, Wales. The population of the community taken at the 2011 census was 429. It is in the historic county o ...

. In 1790, the

North West Trading Company The North West Trading Company was organized in Portland, Oregon, United States in 1879 by Paul Schulze and Henry Villard in order to do business in Alaska. It established a trading post at Killisnoo in 1878; this soon grew to include a fish pr ...

set up a trading post at the mouth of the

Etomami River Etomami River is a river in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The river originates in the Porcupine Hills and flows northward towards the town of Hudson Bay and into the Red Deer River. "Etomami" is a First Nations word that means "a pl ...

called Fort Red Deer River. On the river bank opposite the mouth of the Etomami River, there are the remains of another fort that is believed to be that of the American Fur Company.

Tributaries

The source of the Red Deer River is Nut Lake, of which several creeks and rivers flow into, including Pipestone Creek and Prairie Butte Creek. As the river flows eastward, it is joined by several rivers and creeks. Much of the Pasquia and Procupine Hills fall within the river's watershed. Red Deer River tributaries from upstream to downstream, not counting ones flowing into either Nut or Red Deer Lakes: * Barrier River **Slough Creek * Greenwater Creek *Horsehide Creek *Bannock Creek *Prairie River **Valley Creek *Salas Creek *Greenbush River **Jumper Creek *

Fir River Fir River is a river in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The river's source is in the east central part of the province in the heart of the Pasquia Hills, which is one of four landforms that make up the Manitoba Escarpment. It flows in ...

**Nonsuch Creek *

** Piwei River **Shand Creek **

Pepaw River Pepaw River, also spelt ''Peepaw'', is a river in the east-central part of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan in the boreal forest ecozone of Canada. It begins in the Porcupine Hills and flows northward and meets up with the Etomami River ...

**Boundary Creek ***Bubbling Creek *Willow Creek *Smoking Tent Creek *Lost River *Rice River **Little Rice River **Baden Creek *Sucker Creek

Fish species

Several types of fish live in the river, including

freshwater drum The freshwater drum, ''Aplodinotus grunniens'', is a fish endemic to North and Central America. It is the only species in the genus ''Aplodinotus'', and is a member of the family Sciaenidae. It is the only North American member of the group that ...

brown bullhead The brown bullhead (''Ameiurus nebulosus'') is a fish of the family Ictaluridae that is widely distributed in North America. It is a species of bullhead catfish and is similar to the black bullhead (''Ameiurus melas'') and yellow bullhead (''Am ...

, common carp, goldeye,

northern pike The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus ''Esox'' (the pikes). They are typical of brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). They are known simply as a p ...

, and brown trout.

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Manitoba Rivers of Saskatchewan Tributaries of Hudson Bay

Course

Tributaries

Fish species

See also

References