Pouce Coupe River

Pouce Coupe River
Pouce Coupe River canyon after the confluence with Saskatoon Creek
Basin
Main source	Saddle Hills County, Alberta
Source elevation	860 m (2,820 ft)
River mouth	Peace River 56°07′54″N 119°54′40″W / 56.13158°N 119.91116°W / 56.13158; -119.91116 (Peace River)
Mouth elevation	380 m (1,250 ft)
Country	Canada

The Pouce Coupe River is a major tributary of the Peace River in Alberta and British Columbia, Canada. Its name is officially spelled Pouce Coupé River,^[1] but it is commonly written without the acute accent.

Originating in Alberta's Saddle Hills County, it flows into British Columbia's Peace River Regional District, then returns in Alberta in Clear Hills County, where it empties into the Peace River.

The region of Pouce Coupe Prairie, from which the river and village of Pouce Coupe take their names, was called that for a Beaver Indian Chief named 'Pouscapee'. The first European settler in the region was Hector Tremblay, who built a cabin there in 1898. Tremblay, of French origin, translated 'Pouskapee's Prairie' into the nearest French words of similar sound (pouce coupé, meaning "cut thumb" or "cut-off thumb").

Course

The Pouce Coupe originates in a small lake in northern Alberta, at an elevation of 860 metres (2,820 ft), in the Pouce Coupe Prairie of the southern Peace River Country, west of Spirit River and Woking, between Saddle Hills and Blueberry Hill. It flows west and receives the waters of Boone Creek before reaching the British Columbia–Alberta border.

The river then turns northwest to the village of Pouce Coupe. The Pouce Coupe Regional Park is established on the banks of the river east of the village and Highway2, at the confluence with Bissette Creek.^[2]

It receives the waters of Dawson Creek east of the city of Dawson Creek, then turns northeast, entering once again the province of Alberta, north of Highway 49. The course runs through a canyon that reaches depths of 220 metres (720 ft) in this section. Ammonite fossils harvested from the geological formations opened in the canyon can be found in the Dawson Creek Northern Alberta Railways Park museum. The river continues north and empties into the Peace River, south of Highway 64, at an elevation of 380 metres (1,250 ft).

Tributaries and crossings

Landry road bridge

From its origin to its mouth, Pouce Coupe River encounters the following tributaries and crossings:

See also

• List of British Columbia rivers
• List of Alberta rivers

References

Hydrography of Alberta Rivers Athabasca Battle Beaver Bow Brazeau Crowsnest Elbow Hay Little Bow Milk North Saskatchewan Oldman Peace Pembina Red Deer Slave Smoky South Saskatchewan Waterfalls Athabasca Bow Bridal Veil Crescent Crypt Elbow Panther Sunwapta Lakes Athabasca Beaverhill Bistcho Claire Cold La Biche Lesser Slave Pigeon Ste. Anne Sylvan Utikuma Wabamun Reservoirs Abraham Barrier Brazeau Chestermere Kananaskis McGregor Minnewanka Glenmore Milk River Ridge Sikome Gleniffer Glaciers Athabasca Bow Columbia Icefield Crowfoot Hector Peyto Saskatchewan Vulture Wapta Waputik Icefield Other Hay-Zama Wetlands Peace–Athabasca Delta Whooping Crane Summer Range (wetlands)