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CHURCHILL RIVER BASIN
Nature at it's best
When we hear about the Churchill River, many of us have a picture in our minds of wilderness. Eagles soaring on thermals. Canoes bobbing through rapids, or silently slicing across a glassy lake. The sounds of water on rocks and in waves. Moose feeding at water's edge. The blaze of sunsets and campfires. Indeed ... nature at its best!
Abundance of water
The Churchill is a big river, both in length and in the size of its drainage. In Saskatchewan, the river basin occupies 72,000 square kilometres. The Churchill River drains about one quarter of the province, including a significant area of the three major boreal ecosystems in Saskatchewan: the Boreal Plain (50%), the Boreal Shield (66%) and the Taiga Shield (20%). Eleven of Saskatchewan's fifteen largest lakes are part of the Churchill River system, including Reindeer Lake, Wollaston Lake, and Lac La Ronge, each of which are over 400 square km in area.
Wildlife and People
The Churchill is also big for other reasons. It is a biological hot spot in the middle of the boreal forest with exciting biological diversity. The river supports one of the largest inland populations of Bald Eagles in North America: eagles from the Churchill have been used to re-establish populations as far away as Pennsylvania.
The forests of the Boreal Plain (whose waters drain into the Churchill River from the west and south) contain the largest number of species of breeding songbirds in North America north of Mexico. The basin is also home to the woodland caribou who's populations are seriously 'threatened' as human developments move ever northward.
The Churchill river basin is a special part of our human history as well. For millennia the lands have been home and life-line to First Nations. The river was a meeting ground for many peoples including Plains, Swampy and Woodland Cree, and Dene. On rocky cliffs all along the Churchill River, timeless pictographs tell of earlier traditions. The river was also a major exploration and fur trade route in the north. Alexander MacKenzie cruised the Churchill in 1792 on his historic drive to the Pacific Ocean. Saskatchewan's oldest building, lovely Stanley Mission Church sits on the north shore of the Churchill, shining white in the sunlight as it has since the Anglican missionaries built it in the 1850s.
Today, the river basin continues to be important to both northern and southern people in Saskatchewan. It is homeland to many and a vacation destination for others. Modern adventure and eco-tourism with kayaks, canoes and hiking boots, are ongoing pursuits.
Wood products and minerals from this area add to both local and provincial economies. The majority of people living in the area are indigenous Cree, Dene and Metis. Travel remains an important function on the river and its tributaries, and traditional hunting, fishing and trapping are very important to local people.
LEARN MORE:
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| Churchill River |
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| An introduction to the Churchill River. |
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| Issues & Threats to the Churchill River |
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| Learn about hydro, forestry and mining threats to the Churchill River. |
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| Special Places |
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| Read stories about special places in Saskatchewan including the Churchill River. |
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| Churchill River Corridor Campaign |
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| Protection is needed along the length of the Churchill River in Saskatchewan. |
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