THE OTTAWA NATURALIST 



VOL. XXVIII. OTTAWA, MAY, 1914 No. 2 . 



THE WATERWAYS OF THE MACKENZIE RIVER BASIN* 



By Charles Camsell. 



IXTRODUCTION. 



The Mackenzie is one of the great rivers of the earth, with a 

 drainage basin covering about one-fifth of the total area of 

 Canada, exclusive of the islands of the Arctic. The subject, 

 therefore, is too big a one to discuss in all its details within the 

 limits of a short paper such as this, and I will make no attempt 

 to do so. I wish, however, to draw particular attention to what 

 I consider one of the most important features of the region, and 

 one on which, to a very large extent, its future development 

 depends, namely, its navigable waterways. The importance of 

 these waterways, first in the exploration of the region and later 

 in its settlement and the development of its natural resources, 

 cannot be overestimated, and these waterways can and will be 

 used far beyond the limited extent to which they are used at 

 present. 



I have selected the Mackenzie river region for two reasons. 

 In the first place, I am familiar with much of its geography, its 

 natural resources and its inhabitants, and I am able to speak of 

 them with some degree of knowledge gathered throughout many 

 years of residence in the region. For many years I wandered 

 over much of the northern part of the region, from the barren 

 lands on the east to the Pacific coast on the west, travelling in 

 summer by canoe and in winter on snowshoes. During these 

 years I travelled over nearly all the main routes, besides some 

 that had not previouslv been explored. 



In the second place, the Mackenzie river region is at 

 present beginning to attract a good deal of attention among 

 men who are anxious to develop its natural resources in minerals 



*Paper read at the meeting of the Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club on 

 March 10th. 1914. 



