Sturgeon River
Sturgeon Falls
Sturgeon River (Lake Nipissing) is located in Ontario
Sturgeon River (Lake Nipissing)
Location
Canada
ProvinceOntario
DistrictsTimiskaming, Sudbury, Nipissing
Physical characteristics
Sourceapprox. 22 km (14 mi) south of Gowganda
 • locationUnorg. West Timiskaming
 • coordinates47°27′08″N 80°47′30″W / 47.45222°N 80.79167°W / 47.45222; -80.79167
MouthLake Nipissing
 • location
Sturgeon Falls
 • coordinates
46°19′02″N 79°58′04″W / 46.31722°N 79.96778°W / 46.31722; -79.96778[1]
 • elevation
195 m (640 ft)
Length230 km (140 mi)[2]
Basin size6,889.4 km2 (2,660.0 sq mi)[3]
Discharge 
 • locationSturgeon Falls
 • average89.53 m3/s (3,162 cu ft/s)[3]

The Sturgeon River is a river that springs near Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park in the Timiskaming District in Ontario, Canada.[1] It flows 230 kilometres (140 mi) in a mostly south-easterly direction through Sudbury and Nipissing Districts before it empties into Lake Nipissing on the north shore.[2] The town of Sturgeon Falls is located on the river about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) north of its mouth.

The river is provincially significant recreational river[4] with some 65 sets of rapids, mostly rated CI and CII that can be run all season.[5]

Ontario Power Generation operates a hydroelectric plant on the river at Crystal Falls. From 1848 to 1879, the Hudson's Bay Company operated a fur trading post called Sturgeon River House at the mouth of this river (now turned into a local museum).[6] Up until the middle of the 20th century, the river was used to transport logs to sawmills on Lake Nipissing. The lower part of the river is prone to flooding. In 1979 the area around the community of Field experienced a disastrous flood that prompted all residential homes to be relocated.[3]

The upper (northerly) part of the Sturgeon River is protected in the Sturgeon River Provincial Park. This park consists of 79.85 square kilometres (30.83 sq mi) of protected wilderness stretched out along the river banks without any visitors facilities present. It is managed by Ontario Parks.[7]

Geography

Upper Goose Falls, Sturgeon River Provincial Park

The river features a continually changing landscape, from the Temagami highlands, with bedrock outcrops and long slender lakes to narrow river channels, rapids and shallows, eventually turning to sandy shores.[7]

Tributaries

  • Smokey Creek
  • Tomiko River
  • Pike River
  • McCarty Creek
  • Hebert Creek
  • Temagami River
  • Azen Creek
  • Wawiashkashi Lake (Grassy Lake)
  • Manitou River
  • Kabikotitwia River (Ess Creek)
  • Obabika River
  • Chiniguchi River (Murray Creek)

+ very many nameless creeks

Hydroelectricy

The Sturgeon River system contains 7 dams and 2 hydroelectric power stations (Crystal Falls and West Nipissing).[3]

Installation Capacity Year built Operator Notes
Crystal Falls Generating Station 8 MW1921Ontario Power Generationoriginally owned by the Spanish River Co. and acquired by the Hydro-electric Power Commission in 1937
Sturgeon Falls Generating Station 6.5 MW1902West Nipissing Power Generation6x Francis turbines; privately owned by MacMillan Bloedel until acquired by Municipality of West Nipissing in 2004

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Rivière Désert". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
  2. 1 2 Annual Report Volume X. Ottawa: Geological Survey of Canada. 1899. p. 220. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Sturgeon River / Lake Nipissing / French River Water Management Plan" (PDF). Ministry of Natural Resources Ontario. March 1992. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  4. ↑ "Policy Report P173e: STURGEON RIVER PROVINCIAL PARK (WATERWAY CLASS)". Crown Land Use Policy Atlas. Ministry of Natural Resources Ontario. 1 December 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  5. ↑ Wilson, Hap (1988). Temagami canoe routes (Rev. and updated ed.). Merrickville, Ontario: The Canadian Recreational Canoeing Association. ISBN 0969325819.
  6. ↑ "Sturgeon River House Museum". routechamplain.ca. Route Champlain. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  7. 1 2 "Sturgeon River". www.ontarioparks.com. Ontario Parks. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
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