The Geographical Position of Canada

Read to know about Canada Geography

Canada is the second largest country in the world after Russia. Total area of land is nearly ten million square kilometres. Its western coast is washed by the Pacific Ocean and its eastern coast is washed by the Atlantic Ocean. In the north the country has a seashore on the Arctic Ocean. Canada boasts of the longest coastline in the world. If you want to have an idea of how long this is, it is estimated that at a pace of about 20 km a day, it would take a person 33 years to finish strolling Canada’s shorelines. In the south Canada shares 8, 892 kilometers boundary with the United States. Canada’s neighbour across the Arctic Ocean is Russia. From west to east Canada encompasses six time zones.

Canada has mountains, high plains and low plains. The Rocky Mountains run parallel to the Pacific coast. The low plains lie in the region of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. There are also mountains which run parallel to Canada’s east coast, in Labrador and Baffin Island. Mount Logan in Yukon is Canada’s tallest mountain. It is 5,995 metres high.

Canada has more lakes than the rest of the world combined. There are some two million lakes in Canada. Besides the Great Lakes – Lakes Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario (the fifth Great Lake, Michigan, lies in the USA), there are other very large lakes, for example, Great Bear Lake, Great Slave Lake and Lake Winnipeg.

Canada also has large rivers: the Mackenzie flows from the Rocky Mountains into the Arctic Ocean, the Yukon flows into the Pacific, the St. Lawrence flows into the Atlantic Ocean. The longest river is the Mackenzie. The Niagara Falls are one of the most splendid sights in the world.

The Niagara Falls, on the Niagara River between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, are one of the most splendid sights in the world.

Since the building of the St. Lawrence Seaway the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River form a great waterway from the Atlantic to the heart of the country.

Canada has several climatic regions. Winter in Canada lasts from four to five months with heavy snowfalls. There is much rain in the east and west, but less in the centre. The north of the country near the Arctic is tundra.

Canada maintains 38 national parks.

Canada is rich in raw materials, such as metal ores, oil and gas, and the metal, machine-building, motor-car and ship-building industries are highly developed. The hydro-electric industry is highly developed, its main centres are in the provinces of Quebec and Ontario. There is a very large hydro-electric station at the Niagara Falls.

Canada’s main agricultural products are wheat, meat, some kinds of fruit, especially apples, leather and dairy products. Canada produces timber (half of the country is covered with forests) for paper-making and building. Fishing industry is important on both the Pacific and the Atlantic coasts. Canada’s largest ports are Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax.

Since 1965 the country has had its own national flag with a maple leaf. Canada is a big producer of maple syrup made from maple sap.

Canada is divided into ten provinces: Quebec, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia and the three territories: the Yukon, Nunavut and NWT (the Norwest Territories).

Ottawa, the capital of Canada

Inhabitants are more than 32 million people. Half of the population is British, 30 % French and the rest are Indians and Eskimos.

The largest cities are Toronto and Montreal, which is also the second largest French-speaking city in the world and a major inland seaport. The other famous town is Vancouver and, of course, the capital Ottawa.