Mackenzie River
The Mackenzie River is a large, north flowing river, in Northern Canada. It has the second largest drainage basin of all the rivers in North America. It drains portions of the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and the territories of Yukon, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
Its basin is sparsely populated, but resources rich. Alberta's tar sands are within the Mackenzie's basin, as are mine of gold, uranium, and other precious metals, and minerals including both diamonds and potash.
The Mackenzie and many of its tributaries are navigable -- but only for approximately four months of the year the rivers aren't frozen.
The northern extent of the North American railroad grid is at Hay River, Northwest Territories, where there is an intermodal terminal. Tugs tow barges at that point throughout the river's basin, and into the Beaufort Sea and Canada's Arctic Archipelago.
