Wabakimi Provincial Park
Encyclopedia
Wabakimi Provincial Park is a wilderness
park located to the northwest of Lake Nipigon
in the province of Ontario
, Canada
. The park contains a vast and interconnected network of more than 2,000 kilometres of lakes and rivers. The park covers an area of 8,920 km²
and became the second largest park in Ontario and one of the world's largest boreal forest reserves following a major expansion in 1997 (it was expanded almost sixfold that year). A number of local citizen groups and residents, including Bruce Hyer
(now MP for Thunder Bay-Superior North) have been instrumental in the creation, expansion, and preservation of this region.
Access is to this remote park is possible by canoe, float plane or rail. The main line of the Canadian National Railway
skirts the south end the park and Via Rail
provides passenger service three times a week.
Paddlers (mostly canoeing) often travel the Allan Water
, Flindt, Pikitigushi, and Ogoki River
(along with a number of additional extended waterways) during the summer months. Wabakimi Provincial Park's waterways straddle a height-of-land from which water flows either to the Atlantic Ocean
via Lake Superior
or to the Arctic Ocean
via the James Bay
/Hudson Bay
basins.
Several provincial waterway parks connect to Wabakimi:
Many camps and outfitters use Wabakimi including Keewaydin Canoe Camp.
To date, 125 different volunteers from across North America and Europe have collectively spent a total of 624 days on 70 trips exploring and mapping the canoe routes of this vast wilderness area. Together, they have travelled over 3500 km (2,174.8 mi), identified and cleaned more than 660 campsites and located, cleared and measured 701 portages whose total measured lengths exceeded 177,000m (193,600 yards or 35,190 rods). At least three more years will be required to complete reconnaissance of all area canoe routes.
From the outset, the primary purpose of The Wabakimi Project has been to produce a set of canoe route maps designed to help visitors plan and mount trips in the Wabakimi area. This lofty ambition continues to be realized with the pending release of the third volume of detailed canoe route maps. Proceeds from the sale of these booklets will be used to achieve the targets set out below.
Mission - to promote the Wabakimi area as a world-class wilderness canoeing destination
Aim - to make self-propelled travel on area canoe routes safer, more inviting and user-friendly
Objective - to advocate the preservation and improved protection of area canoe routes
Goal - to develop public support for the long-term stewardship of area canoe routes
Vision - to establish a province-wide land use land use policy for the uniform protection of Ontario’s Crown land canoe routes
Wilderness
Wilderness or wildland is a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by human activity. It may also be defined as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet—those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with...
park located to the northwest of Lake Nipigon
Lake Nipigon
Lake Nipigon is the largest lake entirely within the boundaries of the Canadian province of Ontario . It is sometimes described as the sixth Great Lake. Lying 260 metres above sea level, the lake drains into the Nipigon River and thence into Nipigon Bay of Lake Superior...
in the province of Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, 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...
. The park contains a vast and interconnected network of more than 2,000 kilometres of lakes and rivers. The park covers an area of 8,920 km²
1 E9 m²
To help compare orders of magnitude of different geographical regions, we list here areas between 1,000 km2 and 10,000 km2. See also areas of other orders of magnitude.* areas less than 1000 km2* 1,000 km2 is equal to:...
and became the second largest park in Ontario and one of the world's largest boreal forest reserves following a major expansion in 1997 (it was expanded almost sixfold that year). A number of local citizen groups and residents, including Bruce Hyer
Bruce Hyer
Bruce Tolhurst Hyer is an American-born Canadian politician, who was first elected to represent the electoral district of Thunder Bay—Superior North in the 2008 Canadian federal election, and re-elected with a wider margin in the 2011 federal election...
(now MP for Thunder Bay-Superior North) have been instrumental in the creation, expansion, and preservation of this region.
Access is to this remote park is possible by canoe, float plane or rail. The main line of the Canadian National Railway
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
skirts the south end the park and Via Rail
VIA Rail
Via Rail Canada is an independent crown corporation offering intercity passenger rail services in Canada. It is headquartered near Montreal Central Station at 3 Place Ville-Marie in Montreal, Quebec....
provides passenger service three times a week.
Paddlers (mostly canoeing) often travel the Allan Water
Allan Water (Ontario)
Allan Water is a river in the James Bay drainage basin in Unorganized Thunder Bay District in northwestern Ontario, Canada.-Course:The river begins at the community of Allanwater Bridge at the confluence of the two branches of the Brightsand River: the western branch arriving as the outlet from...
, Flindt, Pikitigushi, and Ogoki River
Ogoki River
The Ogoki River is a river in the Thunder Bay and Cochrane Districts of Ontario.The river flows northeast from lakes west of Lake Nipigon to Ogoki, where it joins the Albany River which empties into James Bay. The river is 480 km in length...
(along with a number of additional extended waterways) during the summer months. Wabakimi Provincial Park's waterways straddle a height-of-land from which water flows either to the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
via Lake Superior
Lake Superior
Lake Superior is the largest of the five traditionally-demarcated Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded to the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, and to the south by the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Michigan. It is the largest freshwater lake in the...
or to the Arctic Ocean
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
via the 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...
/Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
basins.
Several provincial waterway parks connect to Wabakimi:
- Ogoki River, to the east
- Albany RiverAlbany RiverThe Albany River is a river in Northern Ontario, Canada, which flows northeast from Lake St. Joseph in Northwestern Ontario and empties into James Bay. It is long to the head of the Cat River, tying it with the Severn River for the title of longest river in Ontario...
, to the north - Kopka River, to the south
- Brightsand RiverBrightsand RiverThe Brightsand River is a river in the James Bay drainage basin in Unorganized Thunder Bay District in northwestern Ontario, Canada.-Course:...
, to the southwest
Many camps and outfitters use Wabakimi including Keewaydin Canoe Camp.
The Wabakimi Project
The Wabakimi Project is a unique grassroots volunteer initiative to explore, rehabilitate and document the historical and traditional canoe routes of Wabakimi Provincial Park. Since its inception in 2004, the scope of this ambitious effort has been expanded to include the canoe routes that lie on the Crown lands adjacent to the park. They provide vital access to Wabakimi as well as strategic links to nearby provincial parks and conservation reserves.To date, 125 different volunteers from across North America and Europe have collectively spent a total of 624 days on 70 trips exploring and mapping the canoe routes of this vast wilderness area. Together, they have travelled over 3500 km (2,174.8 mi), identified and cleaned more than 660 campsites and located, cleared and measured 701 portages whose total measured lengths exceeded 177,000m (193,600 yards or 35,190 rods). At least three more years will be required to complete reconnaissance of all area canoe routes.
From the outset, the primary purpose of The Wabakimi Project has been to produce a set of canoe route maps designed to help visitors plan and mount trips in the Wabakimi area. This lofty ambition continues to be realized with the pending release of the third volume of detailed canoe route maps. Proceeds from the sale of these booklets will be used to achieve the targets set out below.
Mission - to promote the Wabakimi area as a world-class wilderness canoeing destination
Aim - to make self-propelled travel on area canoe routes safer, more inviting and user-friendly
Objective - to advocate the preservation and improved protection of area canoe routes
Goal - to develop public support for the long-term stewardship of area canoe routes
Vision - to establish a province-wide land use land use policy for the uniform protection of Ontario’s Crown land canoe routes