Charlevoix-Est: in the unorganized territory of Mont-Élie.
This watercourse crosses the Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie National Park. The upper part of this valley is served by a secondary forest road connecting west to the valley of the upper Malbaie river. The lower part does not have roads suitable for motor vehicles due to the mountainous terrain. Recreational and tourist activities constitute the main economic activities in this valley in the park area; forestry, second. Because of the altitude, the surface of the Martres River is generally frozen from the end of November until the beginning of April; however, safe circulation on the ice is generally from the beginning of December until the end of March. The water level of the river varies with the seasons and the precipitation; the spring flood generally occurs in April.
Geography
The Martres river rises from the Lac de la Loutre landlocked between the mountains, located in a forest area in the territory not organized from Lac-Pikauba. The mouth of this small lake is located to the southwest, at:
east of a curve in the upper part of the Malbaie River;
From its source, the course of the Martres river descends on in an increasingly steep valley with high cliffs, with a drop of, according to the following segments:
to the east in an increasingly deep valley, forming a curve towards the north and entering the Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière national park] Malbaie at the end of the segment, up to the Érables stream. Note: the Érables stream drains a set of bodies of water including lakes des Martres, Malfait, Boivin, Boulianne, des Érables and Thomas;
the south-east by collecting the discharge of an unidentified lake, the discharge of two small lakes and the discharge of three small lakes, up to the outlet of a set of lakes including Lac de la Cuvette and Lac Malfait;
south-east to the limit of the two RCMs where the course curves south to the outlet of Lac Jean;
first towards the south, bending towards the east to collect two discharges from lakes, up to at the outlet of two small lakes;
towards the south-east forms a slight curve towards the south, then curving towards the south-east at the end of the segment, until its mouth..
The Martres river flows in a bend on the west bank of the Malbaie river, in the unorganized territory of Lac-Pikauba, in the Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie National Park. This mouth is located at:
From the mouth of the Martres river, the current descends on with a drop of following the course of the Malbaie river which flows to La Malbaie in the St. Lawrence River.
Toponymy
This toponym has been known since at least the 1920s. It evokes the American marten, carnivorous mammal of the Mustelidae family, whose fur was much sought after. Since the mid-20th century, due to intensive logging and the increase in the acidity rate of lakes, this mammal has become rarer in this sector. The toponym "Rivière des Martres" was formalized on December 5, 1968 at the Place Names Bank of the Commission de toponymie du Québec.
