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| James Bay | |
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 A satellite image of James Bay | |
  James Bay | |
| Location | Southern end ofHudson Bay, betweenOntario andQuebec, politically part ofNunavut |
| Coordinates | 53°30′N80°30′W / 53.500°N 80.500°W /53.500; -80.500 (James Bay)[1] |
| Basin countries | Canada |
| Max. length | 443 km (275 mi)[2] |
| Max. width | 217 km (135 mi)[2] |
| Surface area | 68,300 km2 (26,400 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 60 m (200 ft)[2] |
James Bay (French:Baie James,[3]pronounced[bɛdʒɛmz];Cree:ᐐᓂᐯᒄ,romanized: Wînipekw,lit. 'dirty water') is a body of water located on the southern end ofHudson Bay in Canada. It borders the provinces ofQuebec andOntario, and is politically part ofNunavut. Its largest island isAkimiski Island.
Numerous waterways of the James Bay watershed have been modified with dams or diversion for several majorhydroelectric projects. These waterways are also destinations for river-based recreation. Several communities are located near or alongside James Bay, including a number ofAboriginal Canadian communities, such as theKashechewan First Nation and nine communities affiliated with theCree of northern Quebec.
As with the rest of Hudson Bay, the waters of James Bay routinely freeze over in winter. It is the last part of Hudson Bay to freeze over in winter, and the first to thaw in summer.
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Human presence along the shores of the bay began after the retreat of the glaciers at the end of thelast ice age, around 8,150 years ago. A variety of indigenous cultures have lived in this area. At the time of contact with Europeans, the indigenous peoples along both shores of the bay were ethnicallyCree peoples.
Henry Hudson is believed to have been the first European to enter the bay, when he explored it in 1610 as part of his exploration of the larger bay that was named for him. This southerly bay was named in honour ofThomas James, aWelshcaptain who explored the area more thoroughly in 1630 and 1631.
James Bay is important in thehistory of Canada as one of the most hospitable parts of the Hudson Bay region, although it has had a low human population. It was an area of importance to theHudson's Bay Company andBritish expansion into Canada. The fur-trapping duo of explorersPierre-Esprit Radisson andMédard des Groseilliers convinced the English Crown, primarilyPrince Rupert of the Rhine, a favoured nephew ofCharles I and cousin toCharles II, that a colonial enterprise inthe north would yield wealth in minerals and fur. Des Groseilliers accompanied Captain Zachariah Gillam on theketchNonsuch and they jointly founded Charles Fort, the first European fur-trading post on James Bay.
Their success was such that the company was chartered by Charles II on their return, although they did not bring any minerals. This charter granted a complete trading monopoly to the company of the wholeHudson Bay basin (including James Bay). At the same time, the first English colony on what is now mainland Canada,Rupert's Land, was formed, with the first "capital" designated at Charles Fort. The first colonial governor, Charles Baley (various spellings exist, including but not limited to "Bailey"), was aQuaker, and this is believed to have been a factor in his respectful relations with the company's trading partners, theFirst Nations.
Significant fur trapping has continued in the region. In general, the east coast or East Main of James Bay was too easily accessed by French and independent traders from the south. The Hudson's Bay Company emphasised from an early period trading relations with tribes in interior trapping grounds, reached from the west coasts of James and Hudson bays. East Main was, nevertheless, the gateway to British settlements in what would becomeManitoba (Winnipeg, for example) and as far west as theRocky Mountains.
James Bay represents the southern extent of theArctic Archipelago Marineecozone. While the coastal areas are primarily in theHudson Plains, the northeastern coast bordering Quebec is in theTaiga Shield ecozone. This rocky and hilly eastern shore forms the western edge of theCanadian Shield in Quebec and as such, the main habitat isboreal forest of theEastern Canadian Shield taigaecoregion. The western shore, however, is characterised by broadtundra lowlands that are an extension of theHudson Bay Lowlands, and the vegetation is mostlymuskeg bog. A large portion of this area is part of thePolar Bear Provincial Park.Ringed seals are common elsewhere along James Bay andpolar bears can be seen hunting the seals as prey.[4]Beluga whales within James Bay basin could be distinct from those found in Hudson Bay.[5]
Hundreds of rivers flow into James Bay. The geography of the region gives many of them similar characteristics. They tend to be wide and shallow near the Bay (in the James Bay Lowlands), whereas they are steeper and narrower farther upstream (as they pour off theCanadian Shield). For a larger list of waterways in the region, seelist of Hudson Bay rivers.
Hannah Bay is the southernmost bay of James Bay. Here theKesagami andHarricana Rivers flow into James Bay. About 238 km2 is protected under theMigratory Birds Convention Act of Canada as theHannah Bay Bird Sanctuary. This sanctuary has also been designated as aWetland of International Importance under theRamsar Convention since May 1987.
The shores in this area are a mixture of intertidalmud, sand, andsalt flats,estuarine waters, intertidalmarshes, freshwater ponds,swamps, and forestedpeatlands.[6] These elements make an abundance of wildlife.
James Bay contains numerous islands. The largest of the islands isAkimiski Island, which covers 3,002 square kilometres (1,159 sq mi).[2]
All of northern Ontario and northern Quebec were part of theHudson Bay Company's proprietary colony ofRupert's Land, and after Rupert's Land was purchased by Canada in 1869, the area became part of theNorth-West Territories (NWT). In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Canada transferred much of the NWT to Ontario and Quebec, thus forming modern northern Ontario and northern Quebec. However, all of the islands in Hudson Bay and James Bay remained part of the NWT.[2] Following the partition of the NWT in 1999, the islands in Hudson Bay and James Bay were transferred to the new territory ofNunavut.
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The shores of James Bay are sparsely populated. On the eastern shore in Quebec there are four coastal communities belonging to theCree, theindigenous people of the region (from south to north):
On the western shore in Ontario there are five coastal communities (from south to north):
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Since 1971, thegovernment of Quebec has builthydroelectric dams on rivers in the James Bay watershed, notablyLa Grande andEastmain rivers. Built between 1974 and 1996, theJames Bay Project now has a combined generating capacity of 16,021MW and produces about 83 billionkWh of electricity each year, about half of Quebec's consumption. Power is also exported to theUnited States via a direct transmission high voltage line. The James Bay Project continues to expand, with work that began in 2010 on a new phase that involves the diversion of theRupert River.
A proposed development project, theGreat Recycling and Northern Development Canal (GRAND Canal), centred on constructing a largedike to separate southern James Bay from Hudson Bay. This would turn the bay into a freshwater lake, due to the numerous rivers that empty into it. The main benefit expected from this would be to redirect this freshwater for human use. Water would be pumped south from the newly formed James Lake into theHarricana River, crossing into the Great Lakes watershed nearAmos, intoLake Timiskaming and theOttawa River, crossing nearMattawa intoLake Nipissing and theFrench River toLake Huron (Georgian Bay).
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Many of the rivers flowing into James Bay are popular destinations for wilderness canoe-trippers. Among the more popular rivers are:
Two less-travelled rivers are the Groundhog River and theHarricana. The Groundhog is less travelled in modern times due to a series of seven dams that are about a day or two up-river from the Moose. Canoeists can contact the dam company and arrange to be portaged around the dams on company trucks, but they must make arrangements specific to the hour, and they cannot be late. The Groundhog flows into theMattagami. The Mattagami then flows into the Moose; it is at the meeting of the Missinaibi and Mattagami rivers that the Moose river begins, marked by an island known as Portage Island. This point is about two or three days travel by canoe to Moosonee. Though the Missinaibi and the Groundhog are both fairly high in the summer, the Moose is often quite low. Depending on the tides, groups have had to walk long stretches of the river. Rapids on the Groundhog tend to be bigger and more technical than those on the Missinaibi, but the campsites are few and poor, because the volume of travel is so much less.
The Harricana River is wild, powerful, dangerous river that flows into James Bay 40 miles (64 km) east ofMoosonee after two infamous sections of river known as 1-mile and 7-mile island. Consistent whitewater and waterfalls make these sections of river extremely dangerous. Anyone wishing to take this route must allow about two days to cross the bay, an extremely dangerous proposition if the tides and the weather are unfavourable.
The most common access point for paddlers to this area is Moosonee, at the southern end of James Bay. A campsite atTidewater Provincial Park provides large campgrounds with firepits and outhouses on an island across the river from the town. Water taxis will ferry people back and forth for aboutC$20 each. Many of these rivers finish near Moosonee, and paddlers can take thePolar Bear Express train south toCochrane at the end of a trip. This train regularly features a 'canoe car' enabling paddlers to travel with their canoes.
Waskaganish,Quebec, is a town farther to the north and east on James Bay. It is accessible via theJames Bay Road, and is the most common end point for trips on the Broadback, Pontax, and Rupert rivers (the town itself is situated at the mouth of the Rupert).
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