Nipigon River

Nipigon River
Nipigon River viewed to the south, with Nipigon Bay in the distance
Location
Canada
Province	Ontario
District	Thunder Bay
Physical characteristics
Source	Lake Nipigon
• coordinates	49°27′35″N 88°13′00″W / 49.45972°N 88.21667°W / 49.45972; -88.21667
• elevation	259 m (850 ft)
Mouth	Nipigon Bay
• location	Red Rock
• coordinates	48°57′42″N 88°15′00″W / 48.96167°N 88.25000°W / 48.96167; -88.25000
• elevation	184 m (604 ft)
Length	48 km (30 mi)[1]
Basin size	25,400 km2 (9,800 sq mi)[2]
Discharge
• location	Alexander Generating Station
• average	350 m3/s (12,000 cu ft/s)[3]
Basin features
River system	Great Lakes Basin
Waterbodies	Helen Lake
Bridges	Nipigon River Bridge, CP Railway Bridge

The Nipigon River is located in Thunder Bay District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada.^[4] The river is about 48 km (30 mi) long^[1] (or 209 kilometres (130 mi) when measured to the head of Ombabika River^[2]) and 50 to 200 m (160 to 660 ft) wide^{[citation needed]}, and flows from Lake Nipigon to Nipigon Bay on Lake Superior at the community of Red Rock, dropping from an elevation of 260 to 183 m (853 to 600 ft). It is the largest tributary of Lake Superior.^[5]

Since 1943, 14,360 square kilometres (5,545 sq mi) of the Ogoki River basin has been diverted to the headwaters of the Little Jackfish River, a tributary of Lake Nipigon. This diversion increases the size of the river's watershed by almost 60% to 39,760 square kilometres (15,350 sq mi), and contributes an average of about 116 cubic metres per second (4,100 cu ft/s) to the Nipigon River.^[6][7] This increased flow has caused significant erosion and landslides along the river.^[5]