The Mattawa River is a

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

in central

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, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada. It flows east from Trout Lake east of North Bay and enters 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 ...

at the town of Mattawa. Counting from the head of Trout Lake, it is long. The river's name comes from the Algonquin word for "meeting of waterways". Two provincial parks are located along it: the Mattawa River Provincial Park stretches along both sides of the river's banks for almost its full length; and Samuel de Champlain Provincial Park, located about from the river's end.

Geography

The river flows inside a

graben In geology, a graben () is a depression (geology), depressed block of the Crust (geology), crust of a planet or moon, bordered by parallel normal faults. Etymology ''Graben'' is a loan word from German language, German, meaning 'ditch' or 't ...

through the Algonquin highlands. This valley is an offshoot arm of ancient rift valley, called the Ottawa-Bonnechere Graben, which still causes minor earthquakes in the area.Canadian Heritage Rivers System: Mattawa River fact sheet, Ministry of Natural Resources
Online version
) From Lake Talon to Mattawa the river flows through a rock-walled

canyon A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency t ...

up to in places. Tributaries include the: * Amable du Fond River * Kaibuskong River * North River The ''Porte de l'enfer'' (Hell's Gate) is a peculiar cave in the river's bank speculated to be a native

ochre Ochre ( ; , ), iron ochre, or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colou ...

mine. In 1761, Alexander Henry the elder reported on this cave and the myths surrounding it. It was said to be inhabited by an evil and fierce demon, hence its name. Evidence of a post-glacial spillway which drained the Great Lakes into the Ottawa River until about 4000 years ago can be seen at several sites along the river. There are potholes at Portage de Talon and numerous cataracts and former river channels, such as the boulder pavement between Pine Lake and McCool Bay, 12–15 metres (39–49 ft) above the river's present-day waterline.

History

The Mattawa River had been used by native peoples as an important transportation corridor for many centuries. In 1610,

Étienne Brûlé Étienne Brûlé (; – c. June 1633) was the first European colonization of the Americas, European explorer to journey beyond the St. Lawrence River into what is now known as Canada. He spent much of his early adult life among the Wyandot peop ...

and in 1615,

Samuel de Champlain Samuel de Champlain (; 13 August 1574#Fichier]For a detailed analysis of his baptismal record, see #Ritch, RitchThe baptism act does not contain information about the age of Samuel, neither his birth date nor his place of birth. – 25 December ...

were the first Europeans to travel the river.Archeological and Historic Sites Board of Canada For some 200 years thereafter, it formed part of the important water route leading from Montreal west to

Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...

. It was the primary access to the vast Canadian interior in the days of the

fur trade 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 ...

Canoe A canoe is a lightweight, narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles. In British English, the term ' ...

s travelling west up the Ottawa turned left at "the Forks" (the mouth of the Mattawa) to enter the "''Petite Rivière''" ("Small River", as compared to the Ottawa), reaching

Lake Nipissing Lake Nipissing (; , ) is a lake in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. It has a surface area of , a mean elevation of above sea level, and is located between the Ottawa River and Georgian Bay. Lake Nipissing i ...

by way of "La Vase Portage", an stretch of water and

portage Portage or portaging ( CA: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a '' ...

s. Other notable travellers on the Mattawa included Jean Nicolet in 1620, Jean de Brébeuf in 1626, Gabriel Lallemant in 1648, Pierre-Esprit Radisson and Médard des Groseilliers in 1658, La Verendrye in 1731, Alexander MacKenzie in 1794, and David Thompson in 1812. In the 19th century, the river provided access to large untouched stands of white pine. The river was also used to transport logs to sawmills. The value of the Mattawa River as a transportation link ended in 1881 when the railroad was built to Mattawa. Almost the full length of the river was protected as a provincial park in 1970 and has been designated as a Canadian Heritage River in January 1988. While

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucks In 2006, the park was greatly expanded as a result of Ontario’s Living Legacy Plan. An additional of Crown Land was added along both shores, and extending it on the eastern side of Samuel de Champlain Park towards the town of Mattawa. It now includes Rice Bay Delta marsh communities, silver maple swamp forests, and the Talon Lake Forest. It is a non-operating park, meaning there are no visitor services. Permitted activities are mountain biking, boating, canoeing, fishing, hiking, hunting, snowmobiling, and swimming. There are 20 backcountry campsites provided and the portage trails are marked with signs and historic plaques. However most are in various stages of neglect.

Canoeing

The Mattawa River is a popular destination for weekend canoe camping trips, that can be travelled in both directions. It has 14

s which all are fairly short, well-marked and cleared. The route description below follows the river's flow from west to east. Public access is on Trout Lake. Continue east on the river. Some older maps may still show the Tortue

Rapids Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep stream gradient, gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Flow, gradient, constriction, and obstacles are four factors that are needed for a rapid t ...

but these were blasted and no longer present. Turtle Lake follows. From here the river goes north through several sets of small lakes (requiring a lift-over or short portage between each), before looping back and flowing into the north end of Lake Talon. But the historic canoe route bypasses this section by going to Lake Talon through Pine Lake, via ''Portage de la Mauvaise Musique'' and ''Portage Pin de Musique''. At the end of Lake Talon, portage around the dam. After Pimisi Lake, there are a few Class 1 rapids until the Paresseux Falls. Shortly after follows the ''Porte de l'Enfer'' (Hell's Gate) on the north bank. There are two short whitewater sections inside Champlain Park but which become shallow and a rock garden in low water. The last portage before Mattawa and the Ottawa River is around the Hurdman Dam.

Race

The Mattawa River Canoe Race has been held each year since 1976. The race runs from Olmsted Beach on Trout Lake in North Bay to Mattawa Island Conservation Area, through open water, rapids, and portages. This popular race is open to several classes of competition, including marathon and recreational canoeing, kayaking, voyageur canoes, and stand-up paddleboards. There is also a race which runs from Samuel de Champlain Provincial Park to the finish link at the Mattawa Island Conservation Area. The race is organized by the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority and sanctioned by the Ontario Marathon Canoe and Kayaking Racing Association (OMCKRA). The race record was set in 1995 at 5 hours, 27 minutes and 53 seconds.

References

External links