James Bay
James Bay in the winter of 2001
The James Bay (French Baie James; rarely eingedeutscht: James Bay or James Bay ) is the southern part of Hudson Bay in Canada. Its coastline borders the provinces of Quebec and Ontario.
The bay itself and thus lying in the Bay Islands are part of the territory of Nunavut. In the catchment area of James Bay are numerous hydroelectric power plants, as well as inflows to the bay are a popular recreation area.
History
The bay was in 1610, known in Europe, when Henry Hudson sailed it for the first time during his exploratory trips in the greater Hudson Bay named after him. The Baie- James bears her name in honor of Thomas James, an English captain who explored the area in 1631 in more detail.
As one of the climatically more friendly places in the region around the Hudson Bay Baie - James is remarkable in Canadian history, even by their importance for the Hudson 's Bay Company and the British expansion into other parts of Canada. Pierre -Esprit Radisson and Médard Chouart, Sieur of Groseilliers founded Rupert House (today: Waskaganish ), the first harbor for fur trading on the Baie- James under a contract with Charles II The fur trade continued in the region until well into the 1940s. on, however, the James Bay became less important. Despite everything, she was the gateway to British settlement in Manitoba and later in the west to the Rocky Mountains.
Development projects
In recent years, the James Bay gained importance again by the James Bay hydroelectric project ( Projet de la Baie James ). In Quebec, a majority ( 97 %) of the electricity is produced by hydroelectric power plants, since 1971, the provincial government is driving the construction of such power plants in the Baie- James region, especially on the river La -Grande with a length of 893 km.
Another project that was under discussion, the Great Recycling and Northern Development ( GRAND ) Canal dar. In recent decades, several variants have been discussed, up to date, the proposal is the southern part of James Bay by a large dike of the Hudson Bay to separate. This part would by the numerous tributaries to a freshwater lake, which could be used for drinking water supply in the region. However, it is very unlikely that the GRAND Canal will ever be built.
Tourism
The James Bay has hundreds of tributaries, which have often very similar characteristics by the nature of the area. In the mouth region of the Bay ( James Bay Lowlands or bass terres de la baie James ) out they are rather broad and flat, in the upper reaches, however, they are usually deeply incised and steep. In many rivers, whitewater kayaking is offered. The river Missinaibi River of Ontario, which is also known as a Canadian Heritage River, is the most famous thereof.
Moosonee, Ontario, is the starting point for many such trips because to Moosonee lead many rivers in the Baie- James. Many tourists go then with the Polar Bear Express, a train south to Cochrane. Waskaganish is a city located further north on James Bay. The last few years, reachable on the city street is a popular starting point for excursions on the river Broad Back, Pontax or Rupert.
Islands
In the bay there are several islands, the largest of which Akimiski, Charlton, North Twin and South Twin are all part of the territory of Nunavut.