Gull River | |
---|---|
Location | |
Country | Canada |
Province | Ontario |
County | Haliburton |
Municipalities | |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | Longboot Lake |
• location | Southern Algonquin Provincial Park in Dysart et al, Haliburton County |
• coordinates | 45°13′16″N78°16′00″W / 45.22111°N 78.26667°W |
• elevation | 457 m (1,499 ft) |
Mouth | Balsam Lake |
• location | Coboconk, Kawartha Lakes |
• coordinates | 44°38′28″N78°48′19″W / 44.64111°N 78.80528°W |
• elevation | 256.3 m (841 ft) |
Discharge | |
• average | 20 m3/s (710 cu ft/s) |
• minimum | 12 m3/s (420 cu ft/s) |
• maximum | 27 m3/s (950 cu ft/s) |
Basin features | |
River system | Great Lakes Basin |
Tributaries | |
• right | Boshkung River, Kennisis River, Redstone River |
The Gull River is a river in Algonquin Highlands and Dysart et al, Haliburton County and the single-tier municipality of Kawartha Lakes in south-central Ontario, Canada. It is in the Trent River and Lake Ontario drainage basins, and flows from southern Algonquin Provincial Park to Balsam Lake on the Trent–Severn Waterway.
While there are no sources as to the naming of the Gull river, one of the possible origins is a translation of the name of the village of Coboconk. The name is translated from the Indigenous (Likely Ojibwa) term, Quash-qua-be-conk, meaning "where the gulls nest." [1] The town of Minden, about 30 kilometres (19 mi) north, was named Gull River prior to April 1, 1859. [2]
This section needs expansionwith: course information from Percy lake to the river mouth. You can help by adding to it. (August 2010) |
The Gull River begins at Longboot Lake in the geographic township of Bruton in Dysart et al, Haliburton County. This is in the southern arm of Algonquin Provincial Park, and just south of the York River in the Ottawa River drainage basin. [3] The river leaves the lake at the southeast and loops east, south, west and north west to Percy Lake.
The Gull River drainage basin is an important reservoir for the Trent–Severn Waterway. The lakes of the system were flooded during the 1800s by man-made cofferdams in order to preserve the flow of the river throughout the year. [4] While the original purpose of this was to aid lumberjacks — who were cutting pine, spruce and hemlock in the area — in sending logs downstream to Trenton after the initial spring flooding had subsided, it would serve a dual purpose when the lock between Balsam Lake and Cameron Lake was completed in 1873, connecting Trenton with Coboconk. Balsam lake was raised 5 metres to provide enough depth for steamboats passing through the lock. [4]
Since that time, the Gull River has been an integral part of the Trent-Severn Waterway. The water levels of the lakes in the drainage basin are closely monitored in order to preserve the reservoir year-round, as well as to protect the cottage lands adjacent to the lakes. Lake levels generally swell during the spring thaw and late fall, and settle back to normal by mid-June. The lowest water levels are in late winter. [5]
Most of the lake front property on the lower sections of the Gull River system was divided into deep narrow lots in the 1830s, [6] unlike the regular-sized concessions in the adjacent land. These properties would in time develop into the many cottages that dot the lakes today.
The river's lowest and southernmost lake, Silver Lake, lies upon the boundary line between the granite Canadian Shield, and the Limestone sheaths which lie south of it. The lakes and rivers north of Silver Lake twist and wind between the mountains and valleys created by the retreating glaciers at the end of the ice age. The result is the spectacular and pristine wilderness that has earned Highway 35, that passes through the drainage basin, a reputation as one of the most scenic highways of Ontario. [7]
An artificial white water course was constructed through Minden and has earned the river a reputation amongst enthusiasts and kayakers. [8]
The Trent–Severn Waterway is a 386-kilometre-long (240 mi) canal route connecting Lake Ontario at Trenton to Georgian Bay, Lake Huron, at Port Severn. Its major natural waterways include the Trent River, Otonabee River, Kawartha Lakes, Lake Simcoe, Lake Couchiching and Severn River. Its scenic, meandering route has been called "one of the finest interconnected systems of navigation in the world".
Coboconk, often shortened to Coby, is a community in the city of Kawartha Lakes, in the south-central portion of the Canadian province of Ontario. The village lies at the junction of Highway 35 and former Highway 48, on the northern tip of Balsam Lake, the highest point on the Trent–Severn Waterway. Coboconk has a prominent role in the logging, limestone, and tourism industries of the Kawartha Lakes region over the past 150 years.
The City of Kawartha Lakes is a unitary municipality in Central Ontario, Canada. It is a municipality legally structured as a single-tier city; however, Kawartha Lakes is the size of a typical Ontario county and is mostly rural. It is the second largest single-tier municipality in Ontario by land area.
Haliburton is a county of Ontario, Canada, known as a tourist and cottage area in Central Ontario for its scenery and for its resident artists. Minden Hills is the county seat. Haliburton County and the village of Haliburton are named after Thomas Chandler Haliburton, author, statesman, and the first chairman of the Canadian Land and Emigration Company.
The York River is a river in Renfrew County, Hastings County and Haliburton County in Ontario, Canada. The river is in the Saint Lawrence River drainage basin, and flows from the southern extension of Algonquin Provincial Park to the Madawaska River.
Central Ontario is a secondary region of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario that lies between Georgian Bay and the eastern end of Lake Ontario.
Minden Hills is a township in and the county seat of Haliburton County, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgam of the townships of Snowdon, Lutterworth, Anson, Hindon and Minden. It is usually referred to as Minden, after its largest community.
Balsam Lake is a lake in the City of Kawartha Lakes in Central Ontario, Canada. It is in the Great Lakes Basin, is one of the lakes of the Kawartha Lakes, and is at the summit of the Trent–Severn Waterway.
King's Highway 35, commonly referred to as Highway 35, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario, linking Highway 401 with the Kawartha Lakes, Haliburton, and Algonquin Provincial Park. The highway travels from west of Newcastle, through Lindsay, near Fenelon Falls, Coboconk, Minden Hills, and into Haliburton before terminating at Highway 60 to the west of Algonquin Park. Within those areas, it services the communities of Orono, Cameron, Rosedale, Norland, Moore Falls, Miners Bay, Lutterworth, Carnarvon, Buttermilk Falls, Halls Lake, Pine Springs and Dorset. The winding course of the road, combined with the picturesque views offered along its length, have led some to declare it the most scenic highway in Ontario.
The Opeongo Hills are a range of hills in Southern Ontario, near Algonquin Provincial Park. The hills stretch from Opeongo Lake in Algonquin Park in the west, along the Madawaska and Opeongo Rivers, towards the Opeongo Colonization Road, and extending towards the Deacon Escarpment, Bonnechere, Ontario, and Dacre in the east. To the east of the Opeongo Hills lie the Madawaska River valley, the Mississippi River Valley, and the Ottawa-Bonnechere Graben along the Ottawa River. Its tallest peak is roughly 7 km northeast of Highway 60. At roughly 586 meters, it is the tallest point in Southern Ontario. The community of Foymount is one of the highest settlements in Southern Ontario.
Balsam Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park located in south-central Ontario, Canada, on Balsam Lake. The park is situated along the Trent-Severn Waterway, a few kilometres southwest of Coboconk. It is an all-seasons recreation area offering camping, boating and fishing, and while closed in winter it is also used for skiing and snowshoeing.
Head Lake is a lake in the village of Haliburton, in Haliburton County, Ontario, Canada. Haliburton Village is in south central Ontario, about 25 km (15 mi) east of the village of Minden and approximately 50 km (31 mi) south-west of the panhandle of Algonquin Park. From Ontario's largest city, Toronto, it is just over 200 km (124 mi) to Haliburton, and from the national capital of Ottawa, it is about 300 km (186 mi).
Boshkung Lake, also known by its historic name Lake Boshkung, or affectionately as 'Big Boshkung', is a lake in the township of Algonquin Highlands, Haliburton County in Central Ontario, Canada. It is located near Buttermilk Falls and has been a common cottage and recreation destination with a rich history that includes: logging, camping, and even some farming activities.
Redstone Lake is a lake located in geographic Guilford Township in the Municipality of Dysart et al, Haliburton County in Central Ontario, Canada. It is in the Great Lakes Basin and is part of the Gull River system. At its longest, it is approximately 6.5km.
Mitchell Lake is a small, artificial lake in the Great Lakes Basin and located in the city of Kawartha Lakes in Central Ontario, Canada. The lake was formed sometime in the first decade of the twentieth century alongside the construction of the Kirkfield Lift Lock, which was completed and operational by the end of 1907. It is part of the summit of the Trent–Severn Waterway, the middle of a connection via canals of Balsam Lake on the Gull River system, which flows eventually to Lake Ontario, and the Kirkfield Lift Lock and Canal Lake on the Talbot River system, which flows to Lake Simcoe and eventually to Lake Huron.
Silver Lake is a small lake in the city of Kawartha Lakes in Central Ontario, Canada. Located near the community of Coboconk, it is the lowest lake on the Gull River, a drainage basin that supplies water at its mouth to Balsam Lake at the top of the Trent-Severn Waterway. Like many other lakes in the Kawarthas, Silver Lake lies in a depression formed between the Precambrian granite to the north, and the Ordovician limestone to the south.
King's Highway 121, commonly referred to as Highway 121, was a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario that connected several communities in the cottage country region of Central Ontario on the southern edge of the Canadian Shield. Between Fenelon Falls and Minden, Highway 121 served as an alternative route to Highway 35, which was severely congested during summer weekends. From Minden, the highway branched east to Haliburton Village and thereafter followed the present route of Highway 118 to Highway 28 in Paudash.
The Redstone River is a river in the municipality of Dysart et al, Haliburton County in central Ontario, Canada that flows from southern Algonquin Provincial Park to the Gull River.
North River may refer to one of five rivers in Ontario, Canada:
The Irondale River is a river in Haliburton County in Central Ontario, Canada. It is part of the Great Lakes Basin, and is a left tributary of the Burnt River.