Ekwan River
Introduction The '''Ekwan River''' is a river in Kenora District in northwestern Ontario, Canada. It appears as Equam on Bellin map of 1744.Ekwan River is of Cree origin, meaning "the river far up the coast". It travels about  from its source at Zumar Lake on the Canadian Shield, through the Hudson Bay Lowlands, northeast and then east, to its mouth on James Bay.
Course The Ekwan drainage basin lies between and is enveloped by the larger ones of neighbouring rivers, the Winisk River on the north and the Attawapiskat River on the south. The source of the river is Zumar Lake at an elevation of , just  northeast of part of the North Channel outlet from Attawapiskat Lake, the source of the Attawapiskat River. It travels northeast over a series of rapids and falls, taking in various small tributaries, to a confluence point at  at an elevation of , where an unnamed tributary, which begins at a point  within  of the Attawapiskat River, joins from the right.The river continues northeast to take in the North Washagami River from the left at an elevation of  then on to its point furthest north at , before turning southeast for . Then, within , three named tributaries join: the Matateto River from the right; the Crooked River from the right; and the Little Ekwan River from the left. They join at an elevation of about . The Ekwan River continues east southeast for , passing over the Flint Rapids at  at an elevation of , before reaching its mouth at sea level at the Akimiski Strait on James Bay, across from the western tip of Akimiski Island, about  north of the mouth of the Attawapiskat River.Discharge measurements taken for 28 years to 1995 below the confluence point of the North Washagami River at a point near  showed a high mean monthly discharge of  per second in May and a low of  per second in March.
Economy Mining exploration has taken place on the upper reaches of the river.
Tributaries *Little Ekwan River (left)*Crooked River (right)*Matateto River (right)*North Washagami River (left)
See also *List of rivers of Ontario
References