Chaleur Bay

ARTICLE CONTENTS:  |  Links to Other Sites
Chaleur Bay, which lies between the GASPÉ PENINSULA, Québec, and northern New Brunswick, is the largest bay in the Gulf of St Lawrence. At its entrance lies MISCOU ISLAND. The bay is divided into 2 basins: the outer or eastern basin, with water depths mostly 70-90 m, and the inner or western basin, with depths generally less than 50 m.

The RESTIGOUCHE RIVER enters the western end of the bay to produce an estuary roughly 130 km long. In ancient times the western basin and Chaleur Trough to the east were part of the Restigouche Channel, providing a natural preglacial drainage system for the surrounding area.

Near the entrance of the bay, cold, fresh surface water from the Gaspé Current enters on the north side, while flow on the south shore is directed outward into the gulf to create a counterclockwise gyre in the surface circulation.

The Gaspé water is rich in nutrients and promotes a high and sustained level of primary production throughout the summer months. The bay is a famous fishing ground for ATLANTIC SALMON and also supports HERRING, LOBSTER and SCALLOP fisheries.

As the name (meaning "warm" in French) bestowed on the bay by Jacques CARTIER suggests, the climate of the bay is unusually warm compared to adjacent areas of the gulf, making it a favoured location for summer resorts. Cartier explored the bay in July 1534 and traded for furs with the natives, likely MI'KMAQ. DALHOUSIE, at the mouth of the Restigouche estuary, and BELLEDUNE, farther south along the coast, are major ports for northern New Brunswick.

Author P.C. SMITH


Links to Other Sites
Battle of the Ristigouche National Historic Site of Canada
The website for the Battle of the Restigouche National Historic Site, located at the mouth of the Restigouche River, at the far end of Chaleur Bay. From Parks Canada.

Charlo
The website for the Village of Charlo in Restigouche County, N.B.

The Legend of the Phantom Ship
Fact and fiction about the legend of the phantom ship of Chaleur Bay. From the City of Bathurst website.

0
0
Absolutely free, with over 40,000 articles in French and English, The Canadian Encyclopedia is the ultimate online resource for all things Canadian, from history, sports, arts, science, technology, and much, much more. Get started at www.TheCanadianEncyclopedia.com
Feature Articles
Maisonneuve and the Founding of Montreal

The story of the founding of Montreal is perhaps unique in history....

INSIDE TCE

Gallery
Browse the rich visual resources of The Canadian Encyclopedia through thematic galleries of Canadian Art, History, Nature, People, and Science and Technology.
Interactive Resources
Illustrations, lively text, animations, sounds and games help make learning about Canadian history, art, geography, architecture and other topics entertaining as well as informative.
Canucklehead
The ultimate test of your knowledge of Canada, trivial and otherwise. You can choose from more than 60 dynamic quizzes with visual or text clues. Your scores depend on the speed with which you answer and the number of clues you need. Results are sent to you by email and high scores are posted on the site.
Timeline
This unique resource includes more than 6000 events from Canadian and world history. It can be searched by era, subject, keyword or date. To find out what happened on your birthday, select the month and day of your birth.
100 Greatest Events
This selection of the 100 "greatest" events in Canadian history was made by editor in chief James H. Marsh to draw attention to events that have left an indelible memory in the minds of later generations.