Attawapiskat River

The Attawapiskat River is a river in Northern Ontario, Canada that flows east from Attawapiskat Lake to James Bay, a distance of approximately km to mi|750|precision=-1 [http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Attawapi.html] . It has a drainage area of approximately 50,500 square km [http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/learningresources/facts/rivers.html] . Tributaries of this river include the Otoskwin River, the Marten-Drinking River and the Pineimuta River, all of which run into Attawapiskat Lake. The First Nations community of Neskantaga is located on the west side of the lake. Leaving Attawapiskat Lake, the river splits into the more easily navigated North Channel and the South Channel. The elevation of the river drops significantly in this area, descending from the relatively higher ground of the Canadian Shield to the flatter and more boggy Hudson Bay Lowlands. After a series of rapids, the two channels converge; the river then continues east, makes a bend to the north, beginning at Pym Island, before flowing east once more to the Bay.

Less than km to mi|100|precision=-1 from its mouth, the Attawapiskat has carved out a several clusters of spectacular high limestone islands, (nicknamed by canoeists the "Birthday Cakes"), which are unique formations in this region. It is the Omushkegowuk word "chat-a-wa-pis-shkag", refering to this region, which gave the name to the rivercite book | author = Jonathan Berger and Thomas Terry | title = Canoe Atlas of the Little North | year = 2007 | publisher = Boston Mills Press | pages = pp. 109, 111, 115 | isbn = 978-1-55046-496-2} | location = Erin, Ontario] .

The community of Attawapiskat is located a few kilometers upriver of the mouth of the river. Since June 26, 2008 there is De Beers Victor diamond mine operating on the river about km to mi|75|precision=0 from the village [http://www.republicofmining.com/2008/08/01/ontarios-first-diamond-mine-officially-opened-by-de-beers-near-attawapiskat/] .

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