A river is a large natural stream of water that usually flows into a larger body of water. The rivers of Gespe’gewa’gi have been very important to us and our ancestors. In the spring, summer and fall they used canoes that they made from birch bark to travel along the rivers. And in the winter, when the water was frozen they’d use snowshoes and dog sleds to cross.
Traveling through rivers also brought us to places where we could find resources such as salmon, trout, fiddleheads, salt, mint, berries, sweetgrass, moose, caribou and many others. They also connected us to greater northern and southern waterbeds like the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the Bay of Chaleur.
The Listuguj river is one of the main rivers of Gespe’gewa’gi. It has many arms that connect to it. The Ulpsalquitch River provides access to the south-western section of the territory. The Matapedia river valley provides the main north-south transit to the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and in the west of the Gespe’gewa’gi are the Kedjwick and Patapedia River systems. In the centre of the Gespe’gewa’gi is the Cascapedia River system which flows through the northern mountains into the Baie des Chaleurs.
In the east of the Gespe’gewa’gi, the York, Dartmouth and St.Jean rivers connect to the western section of the Gespe’gewa’gi. They all flow north from the mountains into the ocean. The York River provides an important connection from the western section of the Gaspegewagi to the St. Lawrence River and the north shore via the Madelene River.