The Saint-Athanase River is a tributary of the south shore of the Saguenay River flowing into the municipality of Petit-Saguenay in the Le Fjord-du-Saguenay Regional County Municipality, Quebec, Canada.
| Saint-Athanase River | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Native name | Rivière Saint-Athanase (French) |
| Location | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Quebec |
| Region | Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean |
| Regional County Municipality | Le Fjord-du-Saguenay Regional County Municipality |
| Municipalities | Petit-Saguenay |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Petit lac Alphée |
| • location | Petit-Saguenay |
| • coordinates | 48°11′19″N 70°00′54″W / 48.18852°N 70.01503°W |
| • elevation | 183 m (600 ft) |
| Mouth | Saguenay River |
• location | Petit-Saguenay |
• coordinates | 48°13′47″N 69°58′39″W / 48.22972°N 69.9775°W |
• elevation | 3 m (9.8 ft) |
| Length | 9.7 km (6.0 mi)[1] |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Petit-Saguenay |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | (from the mouth) Décharge d'un ensemble de petits lacs, décharge d'un ensemble de petits lacs. |
| • right | (from the mouth) Décharge d'un ensemble de petits lacs, décharge d'un lac non identifié, décharge de 4 petits lacs. |
The Saint-Athanase River Valley is mainly served by Saint-Louis Road and Saint-Etienne Road.[2][3]
Forestry is the first economic activity in the sector; recreational tourism activities, second.
The surface of the Saint-Athanase River is usually frozen from the beginning of December to the end of March, however, safe ice circulation is generally from mid-December to mid-March.
Geography edit
The main hydrographic slopes near the Saint-Athanase River are:
- North side: Saguenay River;
- East side: Saint-Étienne River, Petites Îles River, St. Lawrence River;
- South side: Petit Saguenay River;
- West side: Petit Saguenay River, Cabanage River.
The Saint-Athanase River rises at the mouth of Petit Lac Alphée (length: 0.3 km (0.19 mi); altitude: 183 m (600 ft)). This source is located at:
- 5.4 km (3.4 mi) south of its mouth (confluence with the Saguenay River);
- 2.6 km (1.6 mi) northeast of the Petit Saguenay River;
- 23.8 km (14.8 mi) west of the mouth of the Saguenay River;
- 4.9 km (3.0 mi) east of the village center of Petit-Saguenay.
From its source (Petit Lac Alphée), the course of the Saint-Athanase River descends on 8.6 km (5.3 mi) according to the following segments:
- 0.6 km (0.37 mi) to the north, in particular, crossing the Alphée lake (length: 0.4 km (0.25 mi); altitude: 164 m (538 ft)) on 0.6 km (0.37 mi) to its mouth;
- 0.5 km (0.31 mi) easterly, forming a curve to the north, to the discharge (coming from the north) of a group of small lakes;
- 1.0 km (0.62 mi) easterly forming at the beginning of a segment a hook to the south, to the discharge (coming from the south) of a set of small lakes;
- 1.4 km (0.87 mi) northerly forming a large S, to the discharge (from the east) of an unidentified lake;
- 2.4 km (1.5 mi) northerly, curving to the northeast, to the discharge (from the east) of a set of unidentified lakes;
- 0.8 km (0.50 mi) northwesterly to a dump of unidentified lakes;
- 1.9 km (1.2 mi) north in a steep valley curving westward around a large mountain to its mouth.[4]
The mouth of the Saint-Athanase River flows into the bottom of "Anse au Cheval" on the south shore of the Saguenay River. This confluence is located at:
- 3.4 km (2.1 mi) northwest of the village center of Saint-Étienne;
- 9.1 km (5.7 mi) northeast of the confluence of the Petit Saguenay River with the Saguenay River;
- 23.2 km (14.4 mi) west of Tadoussac.
Toponymy edit
The toponym "rivière Saint-Athanase" (St. Athanase River) refers to St. Athanasius, a patron of the Roman Catholic Church.
The toponym "Saint-Athanase River" was formalized on December 5, 1968, at the Bank of place names of the Commission de toponymie du Quebec.[2]
Notes and references edit
- ^ "Rivière Saint-Athanase, Bank of Quebec place names". Commission de toponymie du Québec. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
- ^ a b "Saint-Athanase River". Commission de Toponymie. Bank of Quebec place names.
- ^ wiki-osm.pl?project=en&article=Saint-Athanase River Open Street Map - Retrieved December 9, 2019
- ^ "Atlas of Canada from the Department of Natural Resources Canada - Features extracted from the map, database and site instrumentation - accessdate on December 9, 2019". 12 September 2016.
External links edit
See also edit
- Petit-Saguenay, a municipality
- Saguenay River, a watercourse
- List of rivers of Quebec
