Great Bear Lake (Slavey: Sahtú, French: Grand lac de l'Ours) is the largest lake entirely within Canada (Lake Superior and Lake Huron straddling the Canada-US border are larger), the fourth largest in North America, and the seventh largest in the world. The lake is in the Northwest Territories and is situated on the Arctic Circle between 65 and 67 degrees of northern latitude and between 118 and 123 degrees western longitude, 186 m (610 ft) above sea level. The name is believed to have originated with the First Nations living along the northern shores of the lake, who referred to themselves by Chipewyan words meaning “grizzly bear water people.” Grizzly Bear Mountain on the shore of the Lake comes from the Chipewyan, meaning, literally “bear large hill.”
Read more about Great Bear Lake: Geography, Prehistoric Geology, Human Usage, History, Ice Road, Climate
Famous quotes containing the words bear and/or lake:
“Out then spak her father dear,
And he spak meek and mild,
And ever alas, sweet Janet, he says,
I think thou gaes wi’ child.
If that I gae wi’ child, father,
Mysel maun bear the blame;
There’s ne’er a laird about your ha’,
Shall get the bairn’s name.”
—Unknown. Tam Lin (l. 53–60)
“Such were the first rude beginnings of a town. They spoke of the practicability of a winter road to the Moosehead Carry, which would not cost much, and would connect them with steam and staging and all the busy world. I almost doubted if the lake would be there,—the self-same lake,—preserve its form and identity, when the shores should be cleared and settled; as if these lakes and streams which explorers report never awaited the advent of the citizen.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)