West Shining Tree Lake
| West Shining Tree Lake | |
|---|---|
 West Shining Tree Lake
Location in Ontario
|
|
| Coordinates | 47°34′08″N 81°17′35″W / 47.569°N 81.293°WCoordinates: 47°34′08″N 81°17′35″W / 47.569°N 81.293°W |
| Basin countries | Canada |
| Islands | McRae Island |
West Shining Tree Lake is a lake in the Unorganized North Sudbury District of Ontario, Canada. It lies about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) west of East Shining Tree Lake. The community of Shining Tree lies on its east shore.
The community of Shining Tree lies on Highway 560, in Northern Ontario, which runs west from Highway 11 to Highway 144. It is midway between Sudbury to the south and Timmins to the north. The lake may also be accessed by float plane. West Shining Tree Lake is connected to five other lakes through narrow passages. The lake has over 40 miles (64 km) of highly irregular shoreline. There are many islands, channels and bays.
In the past West Shining Tree Lake was on an Ojibway canoe route from Bear Island, Temagami, to the Mattagami First Nation, north of Gogama. The Ojibway named the area "Wasakwagama", meaning White Tree Water, after the many white birches growing there, particularly on McRae Island. A fur trading post was established in 1905 by Mort and John Moore. They mistranslated Wasakwagama as "Shining Tree", whether by accident or design, and called their post the Shining Tree General Store. This became the name of the town and the lake.
The region is at an elevation of 340 to 360 metres (1,120 to 1,180 ft) above sea level, with gently undulating terrain of rounded hills sculpted by glacial action. The general drainage direction in the area is towards the north or east. The bedrock is mafic or intermediate metavolcanic rock. The area has unusually elevated levels of copper, cadmium and zinc. Gold has been mined in the region in the past, and gold exploration was continuing as of 2012.
...
Wikipedia