Churchill River (Hudson Bay)

Churchill River
Otter Rapids (Churchill River)
Country	Canada
Province	Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba
Source	Churchill Lake
- location	Saskatchewan
- coordinates
Mouth	Hudson Bay
- location	Manitoba
- coordinates
Length	1,609 km (1,000 mi)
Basin	281,300 km2 (108,600 sq mi)
Discharge
- average	1,200 m3/s (42,378 cu ft/s)
Churchill River Basin (shown in green) in Canada

The Churchill River (French: Rivière Churchill) is a major river in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada. From the head of the Churchill Lake it is 1,609 kilometres (1,000 mi) long. It was named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and governor of the Hudson's Bay Company from 1685 to 1691.

The Cree name for the river is Missinipi, meaning "big waters".

The river is located entirely within the Canadian Shield. The drainage basin includes a number of lakes in Central-East Alberta which flow into a series of lakes in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The main tributary, the Beaver River (Canada), joins at Lac Île-à-la-Crosse.

Nistowiak Falls — the tallest falls in Saskatchewan – are on the Rapid River, which flows north, out of Lac la Ronge into Nistowiak Lake on the Churchill just north of La Ronge.

A large amount of flow of the Churchill River after Manitoba–Saskatchewan border comes from the Reindeer River, which flows from Wollaston and Reindeer lakes. Flow from Reindeer Lake is regulated by the Whitesand Dam. From there, the Churchill River flows east through a series of lakes (Highrock, Granville, Southern Indian and Gauer), then flows via a diversion for hydro-electric generation into the Nelson River (60% of flow), and the rest flows as the Churchill River into Hudson Bay at Churchill, Manitoba. (see also Nelson River Hydroelectric Project)

History

The Churchill formed a major part of the "voyageur highway" in the 18th to 20th centuries after Dene people showed Peter Pond the Methye Portage which connects the Hudson Bay watershed with the Clearwater – Athabasca – MacKenzie rivers which flow to the Arctic Ocean. See Canadian Canoe Routes (early).

Fish species

The Churchill is also home of several fish species including: walleye, sauger, yellow perch, northern pike, lake trout, lake whitefish, cisco, white sucker, shorthead redhorse, longnose sucker, lake sturgeon and burbot.

Photos

• 

  Churchill Lake viewed from Buffalo Narrows

• 

  View of upper Nistowiak Falls

• 

  Mouth of the Churchill River at Hudson Bay

See also

• List of longest rivers of Canada
• List of rivers of Manitoba
• List of rivers of Saskatchewan

External links

• Saskatchewan's Churchill River, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society
• Saskatchewan Documented Canoe Routes, Canoe Saskatchewan website
• Fish Species of Saskatchewan
• Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan