The Pigeon River forms part of the Canada–United States border between the state of Minnesota and the province of Ontario, west of Lake Superior. In pre-industrial times, the river was a waterway of great importance for transportation and the fur trade.
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness comprises 1,090,000 acres (440,000 ha) of pristine forests, glacial lakes, and streams in the Superior National Forest. Located entirely within the U.S. state of Minnesota at the Boundary Waters, the wilderness area is under the administration of the United States Forest Service. Efforts to preserve the primitive landscape began in the 1900s and culminated in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Act of 1978. The area is a popular destination for canoeing, hiking, and fishing, and is the most visited wilderness in the United States.
The Mattawa River is a river in central Ontario, Canada. It flows east from Trout Lake east of North Bay and enters the Ottawa River at the town of Mattawa. Counting from the head of Trout Lake, it is 76 kilometres (47 mi) long. The river's name comes from the Algonquin word for "meeting of waterways".
The Boundary Waters, also called the Quetico-Superior Country, is a region of wilderness straddling the Canada–United States border between Ontario and Minnesota, in the area just west of Lake Superior. While "Boundary Waters" is a common name for this region, the two nations also share extensive boundary waters along their border, beyond this region. This region is part of the Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota, and in Canada it includes La Verendrye and Quetico Provincial Parks in Ontario. Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota may also be considered part of the Boundary Waters. The name "Boundary Waters" is often used in the U.S. to refer specifically to the U.S. Wilderness Area protecting its southern extent, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
Lake Nipigon is part of the Great Lakes drainage basin. It is the largest lake entirely within the boundaries of the Canadian province of Ontario.
Quetico Provincial Park is a large wilderness park in Northwestern Ontario, Canada, known for its excellent canoeing and fishing. The 4,760 km2 (1,180,000-acre) park shares its southern border with Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which is part of the larger Superior National Forest. These large wilderness parks are often collectively referred to as the Boundary Waters or the Quetico-Superior Country.
The Steel River is a river in Thunder Bay District in northern Ontario, Canada. It empties into the north shore of Lake Superior east of Terrace Bay. Most of the river is protected in a provincial waterway park. It is a popular location for canoeing and fishing.
Grand Portage National Monument is a United States National Monument located on the north shore of Lake Superior in northeastern Minnesota that preserves a vital center of fur trade activity and Anishinaabeg Ojibwe heritage. The area became one of the British Empire's four main fur trading centers in North America, along with Fort Niagara, Fort Detroit, and Michilimackinac.
Rainy Lake is a freshwater lake with a surface area of 360 square miles (932 km2) that straddles the border between the United States and Canada. The Rainy River issues from the west side of the lake. Today it is harnessed to make hydroelectricity for US and Canadian locations. International Falls, Minnesota and the much smaller city of Ranier, Minnesota are situated opposite Fort Frances, Ontario, on either side of the Rainy River. Rainy Lake and Rainy River establish part of the boundary between the US state of Minnesota and the Canadian province of Ontario.
The North Shore of Lake Superior runs from Duluth, Minnesota, United States, at the western end of the lake, to Thunder Bay and Nipigon, Ontario, Canada, in the north, to Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario in the east. The shore is characterized by alternating rocky cliffs and cobblestone beaches, with forested hills and ridges through which scenic rivers and waterfalls descend as they flow to Lake Superior.
Grand Portage State Park is a state park at the northeastern tip of the U.S. state of Minnesota, on the Canada–United States border. It contains a 120-foot (37 m) waterfall, the tallest in the state, on the Pigeon River. The High Falls and other waterfalls and rapids upstream necessitated a historically important portage on a fur trade route between the Great Lakes and inland Canada. This 8.5-mile (13.7 km) path as well as the sites of historic forts at either end are preserved in nearby Grand Portage National Monument.
The Obabika River is located in central Ontario, Canada. It is south of Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park and west of Lake Temagami, within Sudbury District. It flows from Obabika Lake in a south-westerly direction and drains into the Sturgeon River. The Obabika River is remote and surrounded by undeveloped wilderness.
Height of Land Portage is a portage along the historic Boundary Waters route between Canada and the United States. Located at the border of the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, the path is a relatively easy crossing of the Laurentian Divide separating the Hudson Bay and Great Lakes-St. Lawrence watersheds.
The Pine River flows along the Minnesota-Ontario border a short distance, primarily within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and La Verendrye Provincial Park. The river is part of the Winnipeg River drainage basin and is a tributary of the Granite River.
Jacques de Noyon was a French Canadian explorer, sergeant and coureur des bois. He is the first known European to visit the Boundary Waters region west of Lake Superior.
The Sturgeon River Provincial Park is a provincial park in northern Ontario, Canada, that protects about 70 kilometres (43 mi) long section of the Sturgeon River and its banks, from Woods Lake to the Sudbury-Nipissing District boundary. It was established in 1989 and expanded in 2005. It protects outstanding water routes that provide recreational canoe camping opportunities. Other activities include hunting and fishing.
The Grand Portage State Forest is a state forest located near the community of Hovland in Cook County, in extreme northeastern Minnesota. The forest encloses Judge C. R. Magney State Park, Swamp River Wildlife Management Area, Hovland Woods Scientific and Natural Area, and Spring Beauty Hardwoods Scientific and Natural Area. It borders the Grand Portage Indian Reservation to the east, the Superior National Forest to the west, and Ontario to the north. The forest is named after the Grand Portage, a historic trade route between the Great Lakes and the Northwest.
The Western Great Lakes forests is a terrestrial ecoregion as defined by the World Wildlife Fund. It is within the temperate broadleaf and mixed forests biome of North America. It is found in northern areas of the United States' states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, and in southern areas of the Canadian province of Manitoba and northwestern areas of the province of Ontario.
Abitibi-De-Troyes Provincial Park is in Cochrane District of Northern Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1985 and provides backcountry canoeing, camping, hunting, fishing and nature viewing activities. The park is named after Pierre de Troyes who may have portaged across Long Point during his Hudson Bay expedition in 1686.
Solace Provincial Park is a remote provincial park in Sudbury District, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1985 and protects a series of lakes that provide backcountry canoeing opportunities. It is characterized by boreal forest, mostly jack pine conifer forest with mixed forest including white birch. The roadless park, with topography and scenery similar to the adjacent Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park, is considered as "one of the most isolated, wild places in Ontario."
