Browse "Geographical features"

Trinity Bay, reputedly named by Gaspar CORTE-REAL on Trinity Sunday, in 1500, is entered between Grates Pt on the N side of Newfoundland's AVALON PENINSULA and the N tip of the Bonavista Pen, 60 km NW, which forms the bay's western shore.

Tundra, which comes from a Sami word meaning “barren land,” refers to a treeless arctic region characterized by permafrost. Canada’s tundra is known for its freezing temperatures, lack of trees, low-growing vegetation and abundant rock outcrops. The southern boundary of tundra in Canada extends from the Mackenzie River delta to the southern reaches of Hudson Bay and northeast to the Labrador Peninsula. The term “alpine tundra” is often used to describe any area above the treeline in mountainous areas. But “alpine tundra” and “arctic tundra” are not interchangeable. (While the two regions share some similarities, the differences are significant.)

The Ungava Peninsula is a large peninsula approximately 350 000 km2 in area and washed by the waters of Hudson Bay, Hudson Strait and Ungava Bay.

Valdes Island is one of a range of islands on the outer edge of the Gulf Islands in the Str of Georgia, off the SE coast of Vancouver I, BC. The long, narrow island is heavily wooded and has a few farms. A reserve occupies a third of it and there are several Indigenous burial grounds.

With the Haida Gwaii, Vancouver Island forms part of a partially submerged chain of the Western Cordillera and is a continuation of the US coastal mountains.

​Vegetation regions are geographical areas characterized by distinct plant communities.

Vermilion Pass, elev 1651 m, is situated between Boom and Storm mountains on the BC-Alberta border, 42 km W of Banff. It takes its name from the mineral springs of iron oxide located along the VERMILION R, 9 km SW of the pass, where Indians gathered material for war paint and decoration.

Vermilion River, 70 km (from its headstream to its confluence with the Kootenay R), rises in the Continental Ranges on the BC-Alberta border at the N end of KOOTENAY NATIONAL PARK. Fed by Tokumm Cr, it drains in a southerly direction, eventually emptying into the Kootenay R.

GeologyVictoria Island is largely composed of sedimentary rock. There is a belt of Precambrian rock on the west coast and another on the south coast, veined with copper formerly used by the COPPER INUIT.

Waskahegan Trail is a regional hiking trail of more than 300 km developed in and around EDMONTON, Alta. It began as a Canadian Centennial project (1967) to promote hiking opportunities in Alberta's capital region. Similar in

A lifeline of trade and commerce into the heart of North America, the first Welland Canal opened in 1829, an achievement attributed primarily to a St Catharines businessman, William Hamilton MERRITT.

White Pass, elevation 888 m, sits on the Alaska-BC boundary, approximately 125 km south of Whitehorse, YT. In 1887 the federal government sent William OGILVIE to survey the 141st meridian national boundary where it crosses the Yukon River; members of his party found the pass.

Williston Lake, 1761 km2, is the largest freshwater body in BC. Created in 1968 as the reservoir of the W.A.C.

Winisk River, 475 km long, rises in Wunnummin Lake in the Kenora District of northern Ontario.

Winnipeg River, 813 km long (to head of Firesteel River), issues from the north end of Lake of the Woods and flows northwest to Lake Winnipeg.

Wollaston Lake, 2681 km2, elev 398 m, lies in the wooded Shield country of NE Saskatchewan.

Wood Mountain, elev 1000 m, is located about 135 km southwest of Moose Jaw, Sask, near the Forty-Ninth Parallel.

Wrangel Island lies in the Arctic Ocean 200 km N of the coast of eastern Siberia. Discovered in 1849, it was named in 1867 after Baron Wrangel, the Russian governor of Alaska. Though uninhabited, it served for 6 months in 1914

Yellowhead Pass, elev 1133 m, crosses the continental divide between Alberta and BC, 25 km W of JASPER. The Miette R flows E from the pass to meet the Athabasca R at Jasper. Yellowhead Lk, on the W side, empties into the Fraser River.

At 3,185 km (1,149 km of which lie in Canada), the Yukon River is the fifth-longest river in North America.