Caniapiscau

The Caniapiscau River (French: rivière Caniapiscau) is a tributary of the Koksoak River in Nunavik, Quebec, Canada. In Cree the name of the river means rocky point.

Starting from Lac Sevestre (53 km (33 mi) south-west from Fermont) on the Canadian Shield, the Caniapiscau River flows northward through a wide, timbered glacial valley until it makes a sharp turn at its confluence with the Rivière aux Mélèzes (Larch River). At this point (called Kanniq Confluence), the river becomes the Koksoak River. The total length of the Caniapiscau River is 737 kilometres (458 mi).

Since 1985, the headwaters of the Caniapiscau River have been diverted into the La Grande hydroelectric complex. The headwaters of the Caniapiscau River, representing about 45% of the total flow, now drain into the La Grande River of James Bay. The Caniapiscau Reservoir, which covers about 4,300 km2 (1,700 sq mi), or about nine times the size of the natural Lake Caniapiscau, fills a depression in the highest part of the Canadian Shield. The total catchment basin is about 36,800 km2 (14,200 sq mi).