Makigotekw

Makigotekw is the Abenaki name for the river the French called the Mille Îles, or Thousand Islands. A branch of the Ottawa, it flows from the Lake of Two Mountains through a maze of islands before joining the waters leading to the Saint Lawrence. Its name in Abenaki means “river of rakes”; the French name recalls the islands scattered through its channels. Although easier to navigate than the neighbouring Rivière des Prairies, it too had long rapids that travellers had to negotiate.