Browse "Lakes & Reservoirs"

Located in Northern Ontario, between the Ottawa River and Georgian Bay, Lake Nipissing is the third largest lake located entirely within the boundaries of Ontario. The lake spans 65 km in an east–west direction and drains into Georgian Bay via the French River. Its name derives from an Ojibwa word meaning "little water," likely a comparison to the nearby Great Lakes, which were important trade routes for the Nbisiing (Nipissing), the First Nation indigenous to this region. Fishing is a popular activity on the lake both commercially and recreationally. Unfortunately, walleye, the lake’s dominant fish species, has declined drastically since the 1980s as a result of overfishing and ecosystem changes.

Lake of the Woods, 4350 km2 (of which 3149 km2 are in Canada), elevation 323 m, fed by Rainy River from the south and drained to the northwest by the Winnipeg River; it is a remnant of former glacial Lake Agassiz.

Lake Ontario occupies a bedrock depression originally produced by stream erosion and later modified by glaciation. Several glacial lakes of varying elevation occupied the basin before the current level and outlet were established about 11 000 years ago.

Lake Simcoe, 744 km2, elevation 219 m, is situated in southern Ontario between Georgian Bay and Lake Ontario, 65 km north of Toronto. In the north, The Narrows divides it from Lake Couchiching at Orillia, and both lakes drain northwesterly via the Severn River to Georgian Bay.

Lake St. Clair, 1,114 km, elevation 175 m, average depth 3.7 m, is bordered by the province of Ontario to the east and the state of Michigan to the west. Almost circular in shape, it has a length of 42 km and a maximum width of 39 km. It is connected to Lake Huron to the north by the St. Clair River and drains into Lake Erie to the south via the Detroit River. Lake St. Clair is part of the St. Lawrence Seaway, a significant transportation route stretching from Lake Superior through the Great Lakes to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The cities of Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan, are located at the southwest end of the lake, making it a popular site for recreational fishing and boating.

Lake Superior is one of the largest bodies of fresh water in the world, containing more water than all the other Great Lakes combined. With an area of 82,100 km2 (of which 28,750 km2 lies in Canada), when including the American portion, Lake Superior is Canada’s largest lake. It has a shoreline of 2,938 km, with the north shore bordering on Ontario and the south shore on the states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. The lake is 563 km long, 257 km wide, with a mean depth of 147 m and a maximum depth of 406 m. It has an elevation of 183 m.

Lake Timiskaming (Lac Témiscamingue), 304 km2, 108 km long, elev 180 m, is located on the Ontario and Québec border in the southwestern corner of Québec. Varying from a few hundred metres to 8 km in width, Lake Timiskaming straddles the boundary, half in Ontario and half in Québec.

The lake lies in a lowland basin that was scoured out of the limestone and shale bedrock by continental glaciers during the ice ages. When the glaciers finally melted, about 12 000 years ago, a large lake, Glacial Lake AGASSIZ, filled the entire basin.

Winnipegosis, Lake, 5370 km2, 195 km long, elev 254 m, maximum depth 12 m, Canada's eleventh-largest lake, is located in west-central Manitoba.

The earliest non-Indigenous settlement in the area evolved at the west end of the lake, off Buffalo Bay, where the North West Company established a post (1802) and the Roman Catholic Church followed with a mission (1872).

Little Manitou Lake, 13.3 km2, is a saline lake that lies in the rich, rolling prairie of south-central Saskatchewan near Watrous.

Napaktulik Lake, 1080 km2, elevation 381 m, maximum length 60 km, is located in Nunavut almost on the Arctic Circle, 173 km south of Kugluktuk, NWT. The lake is fed by a tributary of the COPPERMINE RIVER and drains northeast to BATHURST INLET via the Hood River.

Nettilling Lake, 5542 km2, elevation 30 m, max length 123 km, is located toward the south end of Baffin Island in the Great Plain of the Koukdjuak, about 110 km southwest of Auyuittuq National Park and 280 km northwest of Iqaluit. The name is of Inuktitut origin but its meaning is unclear.

Nueltin Lake, 2279 km2, elev 278 m, max length 144 km, is located on the border of Nunavut and northeastern Manitoba, about 660 km south of the Arctic Circle. An irregularly shaped lake, it has a heavily indented shoreline and contains numerous small islands.

Okanagan Lake is located in the southern interior of British Columbia and is the largest lake in the Okanagan Valley.

Quill Lakes, comprising 3 connected lakes – Big Quill (307 km2), Little Quill (181 km2), and Middle Quill (the smallest, known locally as Mud Lake), elevation 152 m – are located 150 km north of REGINA and 152 km east of SASKATOON.

Rainy Lake, 932 km2 (741 km2 in Canada), elev 338 m, is located in rough woodlands astride the Ont-Minn border, 240 km W of Lk Superior. It discharges into the Rainy R, which flows W along the border to LK OF THE WOODS.

Red Lake, Ontario, incorporated as a municipality in 1998, population 4,107 (2016 census), 4,366 (2011 census). The municipality of Red Lake is located in northwestern Ontario on the shore of Red Lake, 555 km northwest of Thunder Bay. The municipality is the result of the amalgamation of the former townships of Red Lake (incorporated in 1960) and Golden (established in 1985), and the unorganized territory governed by the Madsen local services board. Red Lake consists of six communities (Madsen, Red Lake, Balmertown, Cochenour, McKenzie Island and Starratt-Olsen) that sprang up around the area's gold mines.

Reindeer Lake, 6650 km2, elev 337 m, max length 233 km, located on the border between northeastern Saskatchewan and northwestern Manitoba, is the second-largest lake in Saskatchewan and ninth largest in Canada. It has a heavily indented shoreline and contains numerous small islands.