Athabasca River

Province: Alberta

The Athabasca River (Indian for "where reeds grow") rises in the Rocky Mountains near the Columbia Icefield at about 2200 m (7220 ft) above sea level. It runs through Jasper National Park, plunges down on to a shelf some 150 km (90 mi.) above the Grand Rapids and after a further 1225 km (760 mi.) flows into Lake Athabaska in the North-east of Alberta; this lake covers an area of some 8000 sq. km 3100 sq. mi.) and is 320 km (200 mi.) long and up to 60 m (200 ft) deep. Above it, where the Peace River and Stone River also enter the lake, stands Fort Chipewyan, built in 1788 and one of the oldest fur-trading posts in the whole of Canada. Along the Athabasca, between the settlement of the same name and the town of Fort McMurray, rich deposits of crude oil and oil-sands were discovered and eventually exploited at great expense.

The Athabasca was an important trade route in the past, used to transport not only furs but also seed and corn.

The Athabasca River, over 1200 km (745 mi.) in length, is one of the few rivers in North America to remain clean and it therefore attracts anglers and canoeists in particular.