Cardinal River is a short river in western

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

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 ...

. It flows from the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies () or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part of the Canadian Cordillera, w ...

, and empties into the

Brazeau River The Brazeau River is a river in western Alberta, Canada. It is a major tributary of the North Saskatchewan River. The river was named for Joseph Brazeau, a linguist associated with the Palliser Expedition. Course The river originates in the h ...

, itself a major tributary of the

North Saskatchewan River The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows from the Canadian Rockies continental divide east to central Saskatchewan, where it joins with the South Saskatchewan River to make up the Saskatchewan River. Its water flows event ...

. At its origin, just east of

Jasper National Park Jasper National Park, in Alberta, Canada, is the largest national park within Alberta's Rocky Mountains, spanning . It was established as Jasper Forest Park in 1907, renamed as a national park in 1930, and declared a UNESCO world heritage site ...

, the Cardinal River forms in a basin between Tripoli, Cheviot, Prospect, Climax, and Blackface Mountains, as well as Mount Cardinal, in the Nikanassin Range. From there it flows east, through the eastern slopes of the

and into the foothills. A portion of Grave Flats Road follows the river before it reaches the

Bighorn Highway The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of sheep native to North America. It is named for its large horns. A pair of horns may weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspecie ...

, where it empties into the

south of Pembina Forks. The Cardinal river and other surrounding landmarks are named for Jacques Cardinal, a local

fur trader The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal ecosystem, boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals h ...

. His grave is located on the banks of the river.Karamitsanis, Aphrodite (1991). ''Place Names of Alberta, Volume 1''. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, pg. 41

Tributaries

*Toma Creek *Russell Creek *Nomad Creek *Ruby Creek **Ruby Lakes, Flapjack Lake, Flapjack Creek *Grave Creek *Muskiki Creek **Muskiki Lake

References

Rivers of Alberta {{Alberta-river-stub

Tributaries

See also

References