Spruce River, also called Little Red River, is a river in the north-central region of the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

. It begins in the

Waskesiu Hills Waskesiu Upland is a hilly plateau in the central region of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. ''Waskesiu'' means ''red deer'' or ''elk'' in the Cree language. The plateau is just south-west of the geog ...

Prince Albert National Park Prince Albert National Park encompasses in central Saskatchewan, Canada and is about north of Saskatoon. Though declared a National parks of Canada, national park March 24, 1927, official opening ceremonies weren't performed by Prime Ministe ...

and flows generally in a southward direction through

boreal forests Taiga or tayga ( ; , ), also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, and larches. The taiga, or boreal forest, is the world's largest land biome. In North Ame ...

, glacier-carved hills and valleys,

muskeg Muskeg (; ; , lit. ''moss bog'') is a peat-forming ecosystem found in several northern climates, most commonly in Arctic and boreal ecosystem, boreal areas. Muskeg is approximately synonymous with bogland, bog or peatland, and is a standard te ...

, and

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

en route to 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 the east end of the city of

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Alb ...

. Several lakes with recreational amenities such as Namekus, McPhee,

Anglin The Anglin () is a long river in the Creuse, Indre and Vienne departments in central France. Its source is near Azerables. It flows generally northwest. It is a right tributary of the Gartempe The Gartempe () is a French river, long. It is ...

, Emma,

Christopher Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...

, and Halkett are within its watershed. Anglin Lake was created by the building of Spruce River Dam along the river's course.

Course and description

Spruce River begins at an

unnamed lake An unnamed lake is a body of water with no official nor generally agreed upon name. Such a lake is officially nameless though it may have one or more unofficial names used locally. This is common for many tiny lakes, farm ponds, and minor lakes i ...

at an elevation of over in the Nimrod Hills range of the

, just south of the source for the neighbouring Sturgeon River in Prince Albert National Park. Sturgeon River parallels Spruce River south to the North Saskatchewan River ending up on the western side of Prince Albert. From its source, the Spruce River heads south out of the Nimrod Hills dropping over in elevation into a valley. From there, it follows the valley east towards a natural

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 '' ...

at Beartrap Lake and Beartrap Creek. Beartrap Creek flows north into Waskesiu Lake and is part of the Churchill River watershed. From the portage, Spruce River turns south following a valley towards

Anglin Lake Anglin Lake is a reservoir in the boreal forest ecozone in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is east of the Prince Albert National Park in the central part of the province in the District of Lakeland No. 521. Access to the lake is from ...

and Spruce River Dam at the eastern boundary of Prince Albert National Park and the western boundary of

Great Blue Heron Provincial Park Great Blue Heron Provincial Park is a recreational park in the central region of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan in the boreal forest ecozone of Canada. It is adjacent to the eastern boundary of Prince Albert National Park, about north ...

. South of the dam, Spruce River leaves Prince Albert National Park and passes through three

Indian reserve In Canada, an Indian reserve () or First Nations reserve () is defined by the '' Indian Act'' as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band." ...

s ( Little Red River 106D, Montreal Lake 106B, and

Little Red River 106C Little Red River 106C is an Indian reserve of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band in Saskatchewan. It is about north of Prince Albert. In the 2016 Canadian Census, it recorded a population of 354 living in 88 of its 98 total private dwellings. In th ...

) before entering the

RM of Buckland No. 491 The Rural Municipality of Buckland No. 491 (Canada 2016 Census, 2016 population: ) is a List of rural municipalities in Saskatchewan, rural municipality (RM) in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan within D ...

. From the Little Red River Indian Reserves south, Spruce River is also known as ''Little Red River''. Once in the RM, the river carries on southward passing through Wahpaton Indian Reserve and Little Red River Park before entering the east end of Prince Albert and emptying into the

near Bateman Island.

Tributaries

The following are the tributaries of Spruce River from its headwaters in the Waskesiu Hills to its mouth at the North Saskatchewan River: *Cowan Creek *McKenzie Creek begins at Halkett Lake. Upstream from Halkett Lake are Kapesiwin and Witsukitshak Lakes. *Bitter Creek flows into

from Trappers Lake. The creeks from Namekus Lake in Prince Albert National Park and McPhee Lake flow southward into Trappers Lake. **McPhee Creek flows into McPhee Lake and its watershed is the farthest north in the Spruce River drainage basin. *Bell Creek flows in from the west. **Kitigan Creek *Christopher Creek drains

and Emma Lakes and is part of the Emma Lake diversion. **Montreal Creek flows into Emma Lake from Marshall Lake.

Spruce River Dam

The Spruce River Dam (), located along the south-eastern boundary of Prince Albert National Park, was built in 1960 along the course of the Spruce River by the

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

's Department of Northern Affairs to regulate flow along the river and to provide additional water for a diversion into the recreational lakes of Emma and Christopher. About upstream was another dam that was built in 1939. The 1960 Spruce River Dam was built to replace that 1939 dam as it was prone to washouts. The building of the Spruce River Dam also over-flowed the Tower Road Dams that were used to control the water levels of

's Jacobsen Bay by . With the building of the dam, Anglin Lake water levels increased from the original levels by . Spruce River Dam is long and high. It is an

embankment dam An embankment dam is a large artificial dam. It is typically created by the placement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil or rock. It has a semi-pervious waterproof natural covering for its surface ...

with a concrete

spillway A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of water downstream from a dam or levee, typically into the riverbed of the dammed river itself. In the United Kingdom, they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways ensure tha ...

made up of four wide stop-log bays. A grated

culvert A culvert is a structure that channels water past an obstacle or to a subterranean waterway. Typically embedded so as to be surrounded by soil, a culvert may be made from a pipe (fluid conveyance), pipe, reinforced concrete or other materia ...

controls the water's flow between 1 April and 31 October to allow a riparian downstream flow of . Access to the dam is from Highway 953.

Emma Lake diversion

The Emma Lake diversion project was built in conjunction with Spruce River Dam. About one kilometre north-east of the dam along Anglin Lake's eastern shore is a pumphouse that lifts water up eight metres at a maximum rate of through a long pipeline into a 10-kilometre long diversion channel that flows into Emma Lake at its northern end. The diversion channel went into operation 1961 and, within a few years, Emma Lake water levels rose above 1960 levels. At the south-eastern corner of Emma Lake, a short channel was built connecting Emma to

Christopher Lake Christopher Lake ( 2016 population: ) is a village in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within the District of Lakeland No. 521 and Census Division No. 15. The village lies in the boreal forest of central Saskatchewan, 2 km south and ...

. This channel, called the Christopher Lake diversion, opened in 1965 and, within a few years, had risen the water levels of Christopher Lake by above 1960 levels. At the southern end of Christopher Lake, a partially man-made, partially natural channel called Christopher Creek was constructed that connects with Spruce River farther downstream, south of Little Red River Indian Reserve. Prior to the construction of the Emma Lake diversion, Emma and Christopher Lakes did not connect to Spruce River.

Parks and recreation

The Spruce River begins in the south-central area of

in the Waskesiu Hills. From there it heads east then south near the south-eastern boundary of the park. The park has multiple trails throughout and several of them run along or intersect with the Spruce River. The Spruce River Trail and the Freight Tait Springs Trail both follow sections of the river and the trailhead for Spruce River Highlands Trail is on Highway 263 at the river crossing. The Spruce River Highlands Trail has a one-kilometre spur trail that connects up with 18 kilometres of trails in neighbouring

. Most of Anglin Lake is in Great Blue Heron Provincial Park and there are several campgrounds, hiking trails, and fishing opportunities at the lake.

Little Red River Park

Little Red River Park is a Prince Albert city park located near the mouth of the Spruce River. It is a forested park that provides year-round recreational opportunities. There are over of trails for hiking, cycling,

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

, and

snowshoe Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footw ...

ing.

Fish species

Fish commonly found in the river include

walleye The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', Synonym (taxonomy), synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the walleyed pike, yellow pike, yellow pikeperch or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern ...

and

northern pike The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus ''Esox'' (pikes). They are commonly found in brackish water, moderately salty and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). T ...

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Saskatchewan Prince Albert National Park Tributaries of Hudson Bay North Saskatchewan River Dams in Saskatchewan Buckland No. 491, Saskatchewan Dams completed in 1960