The Métascouac River is a tributary of the east bank of the
Métabetchouane River (via the
Petit lac Métascouac), flowing in the central west part of the
Laurentides Wildlife Reserve
Réserve faunique des Laurentides (), also known by its former name of parc des Laurentides, is a List of protected areas of Quebec, wildlife reserve in Quebec, Canada, located between Quebec City and the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region. This r ...
, in the administrative region of
Capitale-Nationale
Capitale-Nationale (; ) is one of the 17 administrative regions of Quebec. It is anchored by the provincial capital, Quebec City, and is largely coextensive with that city's metropolitan area. It has a land area of 18,684.78 km2. It reported ...
, in the
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
, in Canada. The course of the river crosses the
regional county municipalities of:
*
La Côte-de-Beaupré Regional County Municipality
La Côte-de-Beaupré () is a regional county municipality in the Capitale-Nationale region of Quebec, Canada. The seat is Château-Richer. Its most populous community is the municipality of Boischatel.
Subdivisions
There are 11 subdivisions withi ...
: unorganized territory of
Lac-Jacques-Cartier;
*
La Jacques-Cartier Regional County Municipality: unorganized territory of
Lac-Croche.
Forestry is the main economic activity in this valley; recreational tourism, second.
The surface of the Métascouac River (except the rapids zones) is usually frozen from the end of November to the beginning of April, however the safe circulation on the ice is generally done from mid-December to the end of March.
Geography
The main watersheds neighboring the Métascouac River are:
* north side:
Métascouac Lake,
Berthiaume Lake,
Lac aux Écorces,
Rivière aux Écorces;
* east side: Canuck stream,
rivière aux Écorces North-East
The rivière aux Écorces North-East is a tributary of the rivière aux Écorces (Pikauba River), rivière aux Écorces, flowing in the unorganized territories of Lac-Jacques-Cartier, Quebec, Lac-Jacques-Cartier, the La Côte-de-Beaupré Regional ...
,
Métascouac South River;
* south side:
Petit lac Métascouac,
Métabetchouane River,
Métabetchouane East River and
Rivière de la Place;
* west side:
Métabetchouane River,
Saint-Henri Lake.
The Métascouac river has its source at the mouth of Lac Goulet (length: in the shape of a Y whose mouth (south side) is at the base of the letter; altitude: ). This landlocked lake is fed by: the outlet (coming from the southwest) from the Ocre and Linaigrettes lakes; the outlet (coming from the west) of Lac Chaillot; the outlet (coming from the northwest) from Lac de la Marge; the outlet (coming from the north-east) from Affatt Lake.
From its source (mouth of Lac Goulet), the course of the Métascouac river flows over , with a drop of according to the following segments:
* south-east, to the outlet (coming from the west) of Lac Blanchette;
* towards the south in a deep valley, until the discharge (coming from the west) of the lakes of Néréides, Thétis, Goizel,
Berthiaume and
Métascouac;
* towards the south-east, in particular by crossing Lake Montreuil (altitude: ) on , up to Canuck brook (coming from the north);
* towards the south-east, meandering at the end of the segment crossing a marsh zone, until the confluence of the
Métascouac South River (coming from the east);
* to the south by crossing small areas of marshland and forming some serpentines, then crossing Lake Ouellette (altitude: ) on , and continuing to the mouth of the river.
[Atlas of Canada from the Department of natural resources of Canada - Characteristics extracted from the geographic map, the database and the instrumentation of the site - consulted on January 4, 2020.](_blank)
/ref>
From the confluence of the Métascouac river, the current flows over:
* southwards crossing Petit lac Métascouac;
* north along the course of the Métabetchouane River to the south shore of lac Saint-Jean
Lac Saint-Jean (, ) is a large, relatively shallow lake in south-central Quebec, Canada, in the Laurentian Highlands. It is situated north of the Saint Lawrence River, into which it drains via the Saguenay River. It covers an area of , and is ...
;
* towards the northeast by crossing lac Saint-Jean
Lac Saint-Jean (, ) is a large, relatively shallow lake in south-central Quebec, Canada, in the Laurentian Highlands. It is situated north of the Saint Lawrence River, into which it drains via the Saguenay River. It covers an area of , and is ...
;
* towards the east by taking the course of the Saguenay River
__NOTOC__
The Saguenay River (, ) is a major river of Quebec, Canada.
It drains Lac Saint-Jean in the Laurentian Highlands, leaving at Alma and running east; the city of Saguenay is located on the river. It drains into the Saint Lawrence River. ...
via la Petite Décharge, until Tadoussac
Tadoussac () is a village municipality in La Haute-Côte-Nord RCM (Regional County Municipality), on the north shore of the maritime section of the estuary of St. Lawrence river, in Côte-Nord region, Quebec, Canada.
Geography
Tadoussac is ...
where it merges with the Saint Lawrence estuary.
Toponymy
The toponym "rivière Métascouac" was formalized on December 5, 1968, at the Place Names Bank of the Commission de toponymie du Québec
The Commission de toponymie du Québec (, ''Toponymy Commission of Québec'') is the Government of Québec's public body responsible for cataloging, preserving, making official and publicizing Québec's place names and their origins according to th ...
.[Commission de toponymie du Québec - Métascouac River]
/ref>
See also
* St. Lawrence River
The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...
* List of rivers of Quebec
This is a list of rivers of Quebec. Quebec has about:
*One million lakes, of which 62279 have a toponymic designation (a name), plus 218 artificial lakes;
*15228 watercourses with an official toponymic designation, including 12094 streams and 313 ...
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Metascouac, river
Rivers of Capitale-Nationale
La Jacques-Cartier Regional County Municipality
La Côte-de-Beaupré Regional County Municipality
Laurentides Wildlife Reserve