La Vase Portages

Photo by Barry Sullivan - August 18, 2005

Plaque Location

The District of Nipissing
The City of North Bay
On Highway 17 about 4 km east of North Bay

Plaque Text

The historic La Vase (Mud) Portages began at the head of the nearby pond. These three portages, connecting Trout Lake and the lower La Vase River, were linked by small navigable streams and ponds. They formed part of the great canoe route via the Ottawa and Mattawa Rivers, Lake Nipissing and the French River, leading to the upper Great Lakes and the West, which was followed by the early explorers, missionaries and fur traders. Among many famous men who passed here were: Etienne Brûlé, 1600; Samuel de Champlain, 1605; Father Jean de Brébeuf, 1626; Jean Nicolet, 1634; Pierre de la Vérendrye, 1731; Alexander Henry, 1761; and Sir Alexander MacKenzie, 1802.