The Saskatchewan River is a major river in Canada, about long, flowing roughly eastward across Saskatchewan and Manitoba to empty into Lake Winnipeg. Through its tributaries the North Saskatchewan and South Saskatchewan, its watershed encompasses much of the prairie regions of central Canada, stretching westward to the Rocky Mountains in Alberta and northwestern Montana in the United States. It reaches to its farthest headwaters on the Bow River, a tributary of the South Saskatchewan in Alberta.
Description
It is formed in central Saskatchewan, approximately east of Prince Albert, by the confluence of its two major branches, the North Saskatchewan and the South Saskatchewan, at the Saskatchewan River Forks. Both source rivers originate from glaciers in the Alberta Rockies. The St. Mary River, draining the Hudson Bay Divide region of Glacier National Park, also empties into the Saskatchewan River via the south fork. The combined stream flows east-northeast, into Codette Lake formed by the Francois Finlay Dam at Nipawin then into Tobin Lake, formed by the E.B. Campbell Dam. It then flows northeast, passing through a region of marshes, where it is joined from the northwest by the Torch River and the Mossy River. At the northern edge of the marshes it flows east, twisting between a series of small lakes into west-central Manitoba to The Pas, where it is joined from the southwest by the Carrot River. Southeast of The Pas, it forms several streams in a delta on the northwest side of Cedar Lake, then exiting the lake on its southeast end and flowing approximately to Lake Winnipeg, entering on the northwest shore north of Long Point. The waters of Lake Winnipeg eventually drain into Hudson Bay, via the Nelson River. The river, like the province of Saskatchewan, takes its name from the Cree word kisiskāciwani-sīpiy, meaning "swift flowing river". The river and its tributaries provided an important route of transportation for First Nations and early European trappers.
Hydroelectric Developments
Operating Hydroelectric Facilities
In Saskatchewan, SaskPower owns and operates E.B. Campbell and Nipawin Hydroelectric Stations. In Manitoba, Manitoba Hydro owns and operates Grand Rapids Generating Station.
Proposed Hydroelectric Facilities
The Choiceland Generating Station would be located 32 miles upstream of the Nipawin site. It would consist of four 150MW generating units, providing 300MW of baseload power, and an additional 300MW of peaking power. The Forks Generating Station would be located 11 miles downstream of the North and South Saskatchewan River Forks, and would be approximately the same size as the Nipawin Station. In 2019, James Smith Cree Nation began developing the project with AECOM and Tesla Energy.
The river, labeled as the "Kish-stock-ewen" is identified on a Hudson's Bay Company map of 1760, produced from oral information from a First Nations man named Attickasish who had been Anthony Henday's guide. Another map from 1774 shows a fairly accurate course of the river. The Saskatchewan River and its two major tributaries formed an important transportation route during the precontact, fur trade, and early settlement periods in the Canadian West. In early fur trading days the South Saskatchewan tributary was known as "La Fourche des Gros Ventres" and the North Saskatchewan was known as "Rivière du Pas". First Nations inhabiting the area of the rivers included at one time or another the Atsina, Cree, Saulteaux, Blackfoot Confederacy, Assiniboine, and Sioux. Henry Kelsey penetrated the area in the 1690s for the Hudson's Bay Company, and Louis de la Corne, Chevalier de la Corne, established the farthest western post of the French Empire in America just east of the Saskatchewan River Forks at Fort de la Corne. In addition to this the Hudson's Bay Company and North West Company both ran numerous fur posts up the river and its two branches throughout the late 18th to late 19th centuries. York boats and canoes formed the primary means of travel during the fur trade period. In the mid-19th century Metis settlements became important along stretches of the rivers. Riverboats were introduced from the Red River of the North in the 19th century and remained an important means of transportation until the 1890s and the coming of railways to the area. The earliest settlements in Saskatchewan and Alberta generally were established around the rivers. Examples include Fort Edmonton, Fort Battleford, Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, and Cumberland House, Saskatchewan. Fur trade on the lower river: The first European to ascend the river as far as the forks was Louis-Joseph Gaultier de La Vérendrye in spring 1739. The main posts on the river were : Fort Le Jonquière, Fort de la Corne, Cumberland House, Saskatchewan, :second Fort Paskoya, first Fort Paskoya and second Fort Bourbon,, Grand Rapids, Manitoba, and first Fort Bourbon. There were also a number of temporary posts that have left few records. By far the most important post was Cumberland House which was the depot for the route northwest to the rich Athabasca country. To the west, the North Saskatchewan had the greatest number of posts.
In popular culture
The Saskatchewan River is featured in The Arrogant Worms' song "The Last Saskatchewan Pirate", which implies incorrectly that it flows past Regina, Saskatchewan.
