Kaministiquia River

Kaministiquia River
The Red River Expedition at Kakabeka Falls by Frances Anne Hopkins, 1877
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
Region	Northern Ontario
District	Thunder Bay
Part of	Great Lakes Basin
Landmark	Kakabeka Falls
Source	Dog Lake
- location	Ontario
- elevation	420 m (1,378 ft)
- coordinates	48°41′53″N 89°38′29″W / 48.69806°N 89.64139°W / 48.69806; -89.64139
Mouth	Lake Superior
- location	at the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario
- elevation	183.5 m (602 ft)
- coordinates	48°23′34″N 89°12′58″W / 48.39278°N 89.21611°W / 48.39278; -89.21611Coordinates: 48°23′34″N 89°12′58″W / 48.39278°N 89.21611°W / 48.39278; -89.21611
Length	95 km (59 mi)
Location of the mouth of the Kaministiquia River

The Kaministiquia River /ˌkæmᵻˈnɪstᵻkwɑː/ is a river which empties into western Lake Superior at the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario. Kaministiquia (Gaa-ministigweyaa) is an Ojibwe word meaning "(river) with islands" due to two large islands (McKellar and Mission) at the mouth of the river. The delta has three branches or outlets, reflected on early North American maps in French as "les trois rivières" (the three rivers): the southernmost is known as the Mission River, the central branch as the McKellar River, and the northernmost branch as the Kaministiquia. Residents of the region commonly refer to the river as the Kam River.

Water flow in the Kaministiquia River system is regulated at the Dog Lake dams 1 and 2 and at the Greenwater, Kashabowie and Shebandowan dams. Two generating stations, one at Kakabeka Falls (25 MW) and another at Silver Falls (48 MW), are operated by Ontario Power Generation (OPG), a public company wholly owned by Government of Ontario.

Kakabeka Falls, located on this river, is the largest waterfall in the Lake Superior watershed at a height of 47 metres (154 ft). Below these falls, the river flows through an extensive floodplain created by an ancient predecessor that flowed through this region following the last ice age.