The Broadback River is a river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 in northern Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. It drains into Rupert Bay (a smaller bay at the south end of James Bay

James Bay

James Bay is a large body of water on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean. James Bay borders the provinces of Quebec and Ontario; islands within the bay are part of Nunavut...

), just south of the Rupert River

Rupert River

The Rupert River is one of the largest rivers in Quebec, Canada. From its headwaters in Lake Mistassini, the largest natural lake in Québec, it flows west into Rupert Bay on James Bay. The Rupert drains an area of . There is some extremely large whitewater on the river, but paddlers can avoid...

 and Cree

Cree

The Cree are one of the largest groups of First Nations / Native Americans in North America, with 200,000 members living in Canada. In Canada, the major proportion of Cree live north and west of Lake Superior, in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories, although...

 community

Community

The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...

 Waskaganish. The major lake

Lake

A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...

 on the river's course is Lac Evans

Lake Evans (Quebec)

Lake Evans is a lake in western Quebec, Canada, south of Lake Nemiscau near James Bay.For canoeists, lake is renowned by the difficult portage over Longue Pointe peninsula....

.

The Broadback, together with the Nottaway

Nottaway River

The Nottaway River is a river in Quebec, Canada. The river drains Lake Matagami and travels north-west before emptying into Rupert Bay at the south end of James Bay. Its drainage basin is and has a mean discharge of 1190 m³/s...

 and Rupert Rivers, was initially considered to be dammed and diverted as part of the James Bay Project

James Bay Project

The James Bay Project is a series of hydroelectric development with a combined installed capacity of over 16,000 megawatts built since 1974 for Hydro-Québec by the on the La Grande and other rivers of Northern Quebec....

. But in 1972 hydro-electric development began on the more northerly La Grande

La Grande River

La Grande River is a river in northwestern Quebec, Canada, which rises in the highlands of north central Quebec and flows roughly west to drain into James Bay. It is the second largest river in Quebec, surpassed only by the Saint Lawrence River....

 and Eastmain River

Eastmain River

The Eastmain River is a river in northwestern Quebec which rises in north central Quebec and flows 800 km west to drain into James Bay. 'East Main' is an old name for the east side of James Bay. This river drains an area of 46,400 km²...

s, and the NBR Project was shelved. With the decision to divert the Rupert River to the La Grande, it is not likely that the Broadback will be developed in the foreseeable future.

River is a popular canoe-tripping

Canoe camping

Canoe camping is a combination of canoeing and camping. It is similar to backpacking, but canoe campers travel by canoes or kayaks...

destination.

Tributaries

Since the Broadback River flows relatively close to the northern edge of its basin, most of its major tributaries are left tributaries. Major tributaries in downstream order include:

• Châtillon River
• Assinica River
• Coigne River (right tributary)
• Nipukatasi River
• Salamandre River
• Ouasouagami River
• Colomb River
• Kaminahikuschit River
• Natouacamisie River
• Machisipi River
• Lepallier River