Chinchaga is a river in north-western Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

. It is a tributary of the Hay River

Hay River (Canada)

Hay River is a large river in northern Alberta and southern Northwest Territories, Canada.It originates in the muskeg of north western Alberta, flows west to British Columbia, then returns to Alberta, where it follows a northern course towards the Northwest Territories, where it discharges in the...

.
Through the Hay River, its waters are carried to the Arctic Ocean

Arctic Ocean

The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...

 via Great Slave Lake

Great Slave Lake

Great Slave Lake is the second-largest lake in the Northwest Territories of Canada , the deepest lake in North America at , and the ninth-largest lake in the world. It is long and wide. It covers an area of in the southern part of the territory. Its given volume ranges from to and up to ...

 and Mackenzie River

Mackenzie River

The Mackenzie River is the largest river system in Canada. It flows through a vast, isolated region of forest and tundra entirely within the country's Northwest Territories, although its many tributaries reach into four other Canadian provinces and territories...

.

The name Chincaga is native, and means "Big Wood River".

Course

Chinchaga River originates in the Chinchaga Lakes, a series of small lakes in the muskeg

Muskeg

Muskeg is an acidic soil type common in Arctic and boreal areas, although it is found in other northern climates as well. Muskeg is approximately synonymous with bogland but muskeg is the standard term in Western Canada and Alaska, while 'bog' is common elsewhere. The term is of Cree origin, maskek...

 of north-eastern British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, at an elevation of 795 m. It flows east into Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

, then continues north-east until west of Keg River, where it turns north. It merges into the Hay River between Zama Lake

Zama Lake

Zama Lake is a large lake in the Mackenzie County, in north-western Alberta, Canada.It is located approximately west of High Level, at the confluence of Zama River and Hay River. The lake covers and forms an intricate river, lakes and wetland system. The Hay-Zama Lakes complex is a Ramsar site...

 and High Level

High Level, Alberta

- Demographics :According to the 2006 census, High Level had a:*population of 3,887 living in 1,519 dwellings, a 12.9% increase from 2001;*land area of ; and*population density of .- Economy :...

, at an altitude of 325 m. A series of oxbow lake

Oxbow lake

An oxbow lake is a U-shaped body of water formed when a wide meander from the main stem of a river is cut off to create a lake. This landform is called an oxbow lake for the distinctive curved shape, named after part of a yoke for oxen. In Australia, an oxbow lake is called a billabong, derived...

s are formed on the lower course. The approximate length of the river is 500 km, and the average discharge at its confluence with Hay River is 30 m³/s.

Tributaries

• Lennard Creek
• Tanghe Creek
• Werniuck Creek
• Sloat Creek
• Vader Creek
• Thordarson Creek
• Waniandy Creek
• Haro River
• Haig River

Conservation and development

Chinchaga Wildland Park is a large tract of land set aside by the Alberta Government for protection of the habitat of grizzly bear

Grizzly Bear

The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...

s and woodland caribou, as well as nesting sites of trumpeter swan

Swan

Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...

. However, the rest of the Chinchaga area is a well known hunting

Hunting

Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...

 ground. Significant oil and gas fields (such as Hamburg

Hamburg (oil field)

The Hamburg oil field is a remote area in north-western Alberta, Canada, with intense exploration and production of oil and gas.The closest town is Manning, at 180 km east....

) and logging

Logging

Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...

are developed in the area.