The origins:

It was shaped during the last glaciation, when miles-high glaciers carved the surface of the earth. The lakes, rivers, mountains, minerals rich underground and fertile clay of the area are all the direct results of their passage.

The Lake Timiskaming, called "Temikami" or "Temikaming" by the Algonquins, which means "deep waters", is the remains of the Ojibway-Barlow Sea, a huge basin that was covering the whole region, from northeastern Ontario to the limits of Fugèreville, Québec, tens of thousands of years ago.

As the temperatures slowly warmed-up, the Ojibway-Barlow Sea melted down. It left rich organic sediments on the solid ground, which is why the soils of the region are so rich and well suited for agriculture.

The History:

The social history of the region all starts with one road, the Fur Road, used by the aboriginals for thousands of years, and, after 1670, by the europeans fur traders, explorers, missionnaries and settlers. The Ontario-Québec border runs in the middle of the Lake.

Physical characteristics:

• Affluents : Rivière Blanche ( White River ), Des-Quinze, Montréal, Kipawa, Metabetchouan, Wabi and La Loutre.
• Latitude: 46'52"
• Longitude: 79'15"
• Altitude: 175,6 meters ( 585 feets) above sea level
• Volume: 8 532 000 cubic feet of water
• Surface: 294,85 square kilometers ( 72.857 miles square )
• Perimeter: 352,6 kilometers ( 160.3 miles )
• Maximum lenght: 110 kilometers ( 70 miles )
• Minimum Lenght: 156 metres ( 500 feets )
• Maximum depth: 216,2 metres ( 720 feets )
• Average depth: 35,69 metres ( 118 feets )
• Average water temperature in Summer: 70° at the surface

The Témiscamingue area's underground conseals rich minerals such as gold, silver, nickel, cobalt, as well as limestone, granit, silice and quartz.

Biological characteristics:

30 species of fish live in the Lake Timiskaming, of whom the best known are the northern pike, the sturgeon, different varieties of minnows, the lake trout , the walleye or yellow pickerel, the largemouth bass, the bullhead, the carp, the ling, the perch and the whitefish.

The area is also inhabited by deers, mooses, bears, a wide variety of ducks and partridges, wild geese and herons. Many rare species of plants also live in the region, some at the outmost limits of their distribution.

Other particularities:

The Lake Timiskaming (on both sides of the border ) features many islands, cliffs up to 106 metres high ( 350 feet ), for example, the "Devil's Rock" or "Manidoo-Wabikong" (Sacred Rock), and beaches. In many places around it, there has been development of many services like marinas, campgrounds, swimming, fishing and golf outfits.

Source: Lieu historique national de Fort-Témiscamingue