Methye Portage Trail

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The Methye Portage Trail, also known as Portage La Loche, is a portage on a historic fur-trader route in Alberta, Canada, connecting the Clearwater River with Lac La Loche.

At an overgrown landing in a small cove not far from the Saskatchewan-Alberta border, Clearwater River runners will encounter a path leading steeply up to a forested ridge. A short hike into the woodland above reveals the Methye Portage Trail.

A landing on the lower Clearwater, just east of the Saskatchewan-Alberta border, marks the uphill climb to the trail, where wagon wheel ruts are still visible in the deeply worn path. Backtrack from Rendezvous Lake, midway along the 20 kilometre trail, to view the panorama of the Clearwater Valley as it looked to explorer Peter Pond in 1778.

The route extends 20 kilometres over a pine and spruce-covered sandy ridge. The legendary Methye Portage (also known as Portage La Loche) spans a plateau separating the Clearwater River from Lac La Loche, and marks a continental divide between the Churchill and Athabasca-Mackenzie river systems. In 1778, this short stretch of land became one of the busiest hubs of the 19th century fur trade, opening up the rich fur country of the North West to the merchants of Montreal.

The portage was used continually until 1886, when it was replaced by an alternate route from Edmonton north to Athabasca Landing.

Today, the trail is marked by a National Historic Plaque which commemorates its role as a major doorway to the west.

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