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 . This river is 72 km in length.

The river follows an ancient fault line through the Algoma Highlands. From Lake Talon to Mattawa the river flows through a rock-walled canyon up to 500 feet in places. It was an important transportation corridor for native peoples of the region and formed part of the water route leading west to Lake Superior in the days of the fur trade. Canoes travelling north up the Ottawa turned left to enter the Mattawa, reaching Lake Nipissing by way of "La Vase Portage", an 11 km stretch of water and portages. The route from Lake Nipissing to the Ottawa River has been designated as a Canadian Heritage River.

In the 19th century, the river provided access to large untouched stands of white pine. The river was also used to transport the logs to sawmills. Logging is still an important industry in this region.

Today, the river is mainly used for recreation and two provincial parks are located along it.

The river's name comes from the Algonquin word for "meeting of waterways".

Tributaries include the:

• Amable du Fond River
• Kaibuskong River
• North River

See also

• List of Ontario rivers

External links

• http://www.nbmca.on.ca/ North Bay Mattawa Conservation Authority