Geography of Ottawa

National Capital Region by SPOT Satellite in 2003

This is the outline of the geography of the city of Ottawa, the capital of Canada. Ottawa's current borders were formed in 2001, when the former city of Ottawa amalgamated with the ten other municipalities within the former Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton. Ottawa is now a single-tiered Census division, home to 870,250 people.

The city centre is located at the confluence of the Ottawa and Rideau Rivers. The Ottawa River forms the entire northern boundary of the city which it shares with the province of Quebec's municipalities of Pontiac and Gatineau. The northern boundary begins in the west at Arnprior and continues east to Rockland. The boundary then turns south in a straight line, separating the former Township of Cumberland (now in Ottawa) and the City of Clarence-Rockland. It then turns west in another straight line separating the former Township of Cumberland with the municipalities of The Nation and Russell. It then turns south separating Russell from the former Township of Osgoode (now in Ottawa). That boundary runs south in a straight line, then turns west separating Osgoode from the municipality of North Dundas. That boundary runs west in a straight line before turning north separating Osgoode from the municipality of North Grenville. This is another straight line, running north until the Rideau River near Kemptville. The boundary follows the River upstream until almost reaching Merrickville. The boundary then runs in a northwest direction in a straight line with a number of jogs. It separates the municipalities of Montague, Beckwith and Mississippi Mills from the former townships of Marlborough, Goulbourn, Huntley and Fitzroy.

Former townships

What is now Ottawa was once divided geographically into 11 townships. Ten of them in the former Carleton and one (Cumberland) in the former Russell County. The ten townships of Carleton were Fitzroy, Gloucester, Goulbourn, Huntley, March, Marlborough, Nepean, North Gower, Osgoode and Torbolton.

Physical geography

The highest point in the city is 166 m (545 ft) above sea level, and is located 2.6 km SSE of Manion Corners (45° 14' 5" N; 76° 3' 3" W). The lowest point in the city is the Ottawa River, at 44m above sea level.

Highest points by ward

Map of Ottawa showing urban area, highways, waterways, and historic townships
WardHighest pointElevation (approx.)
West Carleton-March Ward2.6 km SSE of Manion Corners166m
Rideau-Goulbourn WardJinkinson Road, 8 km N of Munster153m
Kanata South WardGlen Cairn Reservoir131m
College WardKhymer Ct, 1 km N of Fallowfield129m
Stittsville WardRockson Cres.128m
Kanata North WardHuntsville Dr, Kanata Lakes126m
Osgoode Ward1 km SE of Bank Street & Rideau Road, South Gloucester120m+
Cumberland WardCumberland Ridge Dr, Quigley Hill120m+
Barrhaven WardCedarview Road, Cedar Hill Estates120m+
Gloucester-Southgate WardTom Roberts Ave, Macdonald-Cartier International Airport119m
Knoxdale-Merivale WardCedarview Road at Cedarhill Drive115m+
River WardCarlington Hill, (Carlington Heights Reservoir, Carlington Park) Carlington115m+
Bay WardCorkstown Road, Ottawa - Nepean Tent & Trailer Park114m
Gloucester-South Nepean WardOsgoode Link Pathway (former CPR) & High Rd, 4 km SW of Leitrim114m
Innes Ward200m WSW of Forest Ridge Pumping Station114m
Beacon Hill-Cyrville WardQuarry Park, Rothwell Heights113m
Rideau-Rockcliffe WardFoxview Pleasant, Quarries106m
Alta Vista WardAlta Vista (Alta Vista Drive & Randall Ave)102m
Capital WardBank Street & Alta Vista Drive96m
Orleans WardClearcrest Cres, Fallingbrook93m
Kitchissippi WardMaitland Avenue Bridge (over the Queensway)89m
Somerset WardParliament Hill86m
Rideau-Vanier WardRichelieu Park, Vanier75m+

Geology of Ottawa

Many features of geologic interest are found in and surrounding Ottawa. [1]

SiteFeature
W. Erskine Johnston Elementary SchoolGlacially sculpted Precambrian gneiss that displays foliation, folds and cross-cutting dykes
Centrum parking lotNepean and March Formations sandstone and dolostone
Stony Swamp Conservation AreaSedimentary structures in Paleozoic strata
Champlain BridgeStromatolite fossils in plan view
Westboro BeachStromatolites, orthocones and trace fossils
OC Transitway at Roosevelt AveStromatolite fossils in cross-section
Tunney's PastureGloucester Fault in cross-section
Geological Survey of Canada, 601 Booth St.Fossiliferous limestone
Hog's Back FallsOrdovician sedimentary rocks and the Gloucester Fault
Mer Bleue BogBoreal peatland
Lemieux LandslideLeda Clay landslide, 1993
Parc Brébeuf, GatineauFossiliferous limestone bedrock and glacial erratics
Victoria IslandDune bedforms and fossiliferous limestone
Champlain Lookout, Gatineau ParkPrecambrian bedrock and Eardley Fault escarpment
Cantley quarry, QuébecOutcrops of Precambrian marble shaped in part by sub-glacial hydraulic scouring
Lac des Fées Trail, Gatineau ParkLimestones from a depositional environment of shallowing water depths
Lady Grey Dr. behind Royal Canadian MintLimestones from a depositional environment of episodic storms
Parc du Lac Beauchamp, QuébecPrecambrian-Cambrian contact exposed
Pinhey's PointSandstone, limestone and glacial erratics at an historic homestead
Petrie IslandModern shoreline processes and the geology of imported blocks
Metcalfe Geoheritage Park, AlmonteAn assemblege of rocks that are representative of regional geology
Burnt Lands Alvar, AlmonteBarren limestone plain that hosts rare vegetation
Outcrop along HWY 307, near CantleyGneiss exhibiting folding, faulting, partial melting and intrusion by dykes
Building Stones and Monuments of Downtown Ottawa
Pinhey Sand Dunes
Cardinal Creek Karst

Rivers and creeks

Tributaries of the Ottawa River (from east to west)
The Mississippi River.
The Rideau River is one of the two main rivers in Ottawa
The Ottawa River outside of Parliament Hill.
Tributaries of the Rideau River (from north to south)
The Jock River.
  • Sawmill Creek
  • Nepean Creek
  • Black Rapids Creek
  • Mosquito Creek
  • Jock River
  • Mud Creek
  • Steven Creek
  • Cranberry Creek
  • McDermot Drain (mouth not in Ottawa)
  • Brassills Creek
  • Rideau Creek
Others

Features of the Ottawa River

Nepean Point.
Chaudière Falls.

(from East to West)

  • Petrie Island
  • Lower Duck Island
  • Upper Duck Island
  • Governor Bay
  • Nepean Point
  • Victoria Island
  • Chaudière Island
  • Chaudière Falls
  • Nepean Bay
  • Lemieux Island
  • Bell Island
  • Merrill Island
  • Nicholas Island
  • Lazy Bay
  • Little Chaudière Rapids
  • Remic Rapids
  • Bate Island
  • Cummingham Island
  • Riopelle Island
  • Deschênes Rapids
  • Britannia Bay
  • Graham Bay
  • Rocky Point
  • Crystal Bay
  • Beatty Point
  • Shirleys Bay
  • Haycock Island
  • Chartrand Island
  • Innis Point
  • Aylmer Island
  • Pinhey Point
  • Stony Point
  • Horseshoe Bay
  • Constance Bay
  • Sand Point
  • Buckham's Point
  • Buckham's Bay
  • Crown Point
  • Woolsey Narrows
  • Alexandra Island
  • Kedey's Island
  • Chats Falls
  • Morris Island
  • Lavergne Point
  • Lavergne Bay
  • Pickerel Bay
  • Snake Island
  • Indian Point
  • Marshall Bay
  • Pocket Bay
  • Goodwin Bay

Features of the Rideau River

Rideau Falls.

(from North to South)

Lakes

  • Brewer Park Pond (Ottawa)
  • Constance Lake (Kanata)
  • Lac des Chats (West Carleton)
  • Dow's Lake (artificial, Ottawa)
  • Lac Deschênes (Nepean)
  • Lake Madawaska (West Carleton)
  • McKay Lake (Rockcliffe Park)
  • Mud Lake (Britannia)
  • Mud Pond (Kanata)
  • Sand Pits Lake (Rockcliffe Park)

Other geographical features

Mer Bleue bog
  • Beaver Island (West Carleton)
  • The Burnt Lands (West Carleton)
  • Canaan Hill (Cumberland)
  • Carlington Hill (Carlington)
  • Carp Hills (also known as Carp Ridge) (West Carleton)
  • Colonel By Valley (Ottawa)
  • Greenbelt (Nepean/Gloucester)
    • Mer Bleue (Cumberland/Gloucester)
    • Pine Grove Forest
    • Stony Swamp
  • LeBreton Flats (Ottawa)
  • Marlborough Forest (Rideau-Goulbourn Ward)
  • Nanny Goat Hill (Ottawa)
  • Quigley Hill (Cumberland)

Sources

  • National Resources Canada Topographic Maps
  • MapArt map of Ottawa
  • Ontario Base Survey

References

  1. ↑ "Ottawa-Gatineau Geoheritage". Retrieved 2018-10-04.
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