The Rivière à l'Ours is a tributary of the east bank of the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (, ) is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word "to trade", as it was the major trade route of Eastern Canada at the time. For most of its length, it defines the border betw ...

. The Bear River crosses the unorganized territory

Les Lacs-du-Témiscamingue Les Lacs-du-Témiscamingue (, ) is a large unorganized territory in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of Quebec, Canada. With a total area of , it takes up over 60% of the eastern portion of the Témiscamingue Regional County Municipality T ...

, in the

Témiscamingue Regional County Municipality Témiscamingue () is a regional county municipality in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of western Quebec, Canada. The county seat is Ville-Marie. Though Témiscamingue borders Pontiac Regional County Municipality to the south, it is not prac ...

, in the administrative region of

Abitibi-Témiscamingue Abitibi-Témiscamingue () is an administrative region located in western Québec, Canada, along the border with Ontario. It became part of the province in 1898. It has a land area of and its population was 147,082 people as of the 2021 cens ...

, 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 ...

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 Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. From the second half of 19th century, forestry was the predominant economic activity in the sector.

Geography

The watersheds neighbors of the Bear River are: * north side: Montégron lake, Fildegrand River; * east side: Buchoitz River, Petite rivière à l'Ours, Fildegrand River, Buchoitz Lake, Sunday Lake, Hart Lake, Small Lake Bear; * south side:

; * west side: Lake Saint-Cirque, outlet of Lake Saint-Cirque. An unnamed lake (length: ; altitude: ) constitutes the head of the Bear River. This body of water is located west of Bois Franc Lake (altitude: ), south of Tom Lake (altitude: ) and at south of Lake Montégron (altitude: ). From this head lake, the Bear River flows for to Lake Chasy (length: ; altitude: ; formed of swamp) that the current crosses on towards the south. Then the current flows on south-west to the outlet of Lac La Noire (altitude: ). Then the current flows on to the southwest, collecting the waters of Lac de la Fauvette (altitude: ) and Lac Esgriseilles (altitude: ), to Lac Beaubel (altitude: ) which the current crosses over to the southeast. From Lac Beaubel, the Bear River flows for to the southeast in a valley of the

zec Dumoine The zec Dumoine is a controlled harvesting zone (''French: Zone d'exploitation contrôlée (ZEC)'') located in the unorganized territory of Les Lacs-du-Témiscamingue, in the MRC Témiscamingue Regional County Municipality, in the administrativ ...

, then to the south. The last segment of the river has several rapids. The river pours into the bottom of a bay () on the east shore of

Holden Lake Holden Lake is a small lake in Timiskaming District, Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, countr ...

which is crossed by the

. The mouth of the Bear River is located upstream of the mouth of the Petite rivière à l'Ours, upstream from the mouth of the

Dumoine River The Dumoine River is a river in western Quebec with its source in Machin Lake near La Vérendrye Wildlife Reserve. From Dumoine Lake, the river flows almost due south off the Canadian Shield and empties into the Ottawa River, just west of Rapides- ...

and downstream from Rocher Capitaine Island.

Toponymy

Animals are used frequently in French Canadian toponymy. The bear is an animal respected for its character and its strength. Its meat is edible. Its bones (after having cut or sharpened them) can be used to make tools (eg scrapers) or weapons. Its skin can be used in particular for clothing, bags, blanket, carpet or shelter. The bear is the subject of several legends, generally of Aboriginal origin. The toponym Rivière à l'Ours is associated with the neighboring watercourse (east side) which is designated Little Bear River and with the neighboring lake (east side) designated Petit lac à l'Ours. The toponym Rivière à l'Ours 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 - Rivière à l'Ours
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Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ours, rivière à l' Rivers of Abitibi-Témiscamingue

Geography

Toponymy

See also

Notes and references