Belly River
Encyclopedia
Belly River is a river in northwest Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and southern Alberta
Southern Alberta
Southern Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of the year 2004, the region's population was approximately 272,017. The primary cities are Lethbridge and Medicine Hat...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. It is a tributary of the Oldman River
Oldman River
The Oldman River is a river in southern Alberta, Canada. It flows roughly west to east from the Rocky Mountains, through the communities of Fort Macleod, Lethbridge, Taber, and on to Grassy Lake, where it joins with the Bow River to form the South Saskatchewan River, which eventually drains into...

, itself a tributary of the South Saskatchewan River
South Saskatchewan River
The South Saskatchewan River is a major river in Canada that flows through the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan....

.

The name of the river may come from the Blackfoot
Blackfoot language
Blackfoot, also known as Siksika , Pikanii, and Blackfeet, is the Algonquian language spoken by the Blackfoot tribes of Native Americans, who currently live in the northwestern plains of North America...

 word "Mokowan" or "Mokoan", meaning stomach (the river was previously referred to as Mokowan River).

The river was the scene of the Battle of the Belly River
Battle of the Belly River
The Battle of the Belly River was the last major conflict between the Cree and the Blackfoot Confederacy, and the last major battle between First Nations on Canadian soil....

 between the Cree and the Blackfoot Confederacy in 1870.

The river gives the name to the Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...

 age Belly River Formation, which was observed on its banks by George Mercer Dawson
George Mercer Dawson
Dr. George Mercer Dawson F.R.S., C.M.G., was a Canadian scientist and surveyor. He was born in Pictou, Nova Scotia, the eldest son of Sir John William Dawson, Principal of McGill University and his wife, Lady Margaret Dawson...

 in 1883.

Course

The Belly River originates in northwestern Montana, United States in Helen Lake
Helen Lake
Helen Lake is located in Glacier National Park, in the U. S. state of Montana. Helen Lake is at the head of the Belly River and is situated below Ahern Peak to the west and Ipasha Peak to the northwest...

, at the feet of Ahern Peak
Ahern Peak
Ahern Peak is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. The mountain was named after George Patrick Ahern. Ahern Peak is immediately southwest of Helen Lake and straddles the Continental Divide. Ahern Glacier lies just north of the peak....

 in Glacier National Park. It flows north across the 49th parallel north
49th parallel north
The 49th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 49 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean....

 into Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

 near Chief Mountain, in the east of the Waterton Lakes National Park
Waterton Lakes National Park
Waterton Lakes National Park is a national park located in the southwest corner of Alberta, Canada, and borders Glacier National Park in Montana, USA. Waterton was Canada's fourth national park, formed in 1895 and named after Waterton Lake, in turn after the Victorian naturalist and conservationist...

.

It continues north, being crossed by Highway 6 and Highway 5. It passes near the communities of Hill Springs and Glenwood
Glenwood, Alberta
Glenwood is a village in southern Alberta, Canada. It is located north of the town of Cardston, in Cardston County.Glenwood is located in the Cardston County. The village was named for a man named Glen Edward Wood. The founder of the village was Edward J. Wood, successor to Mormon leader Charles...

, then turns north-east. It is crossed by Highway 2, then continues north along the foot of the Mokowan Ridge, where it receives the waters of the Waterton River. Its flow becomes meander
Meander
A meander in general is a bend in a sinuous watercourse. A meander is formed when the moving water in a stream erodes the outer banks and widens its valley. A stream of any volume may assume a meandering course, alternately eroding sediments from the outside of a bend and depositing them on the...

ed before the river turns east around the Wild Turnip Hill, then it empties into the Oldman River
Oldman River
The Oldman River is a river in southern Alberta, Canada. It flows roughly west to east from the Rocky Mountains, through the communities of Fort Macleod, Lethbridge, Taber, and on to Grassy Lake, where it joins with the Bow River to form the South Saskatchewan River, which eventually drains into...

 west of Coalhurst, south of the Crowsnest Highway
Crowsnest Highway
The Crowsnest Highway, also known as the Interprovincial or, in British Columbia, the Southern Trans-Provincial, is an east-west highway, in length, through the southern parts of British Columbia and Alberta, providing the shortest highway connection between British Columbia's Lower Mainland and...

, at an elevation of 875 metres (2,870.7 ft).

Tributaries

From spring to mouth, the Belly River receives the following tributaries:
  • North Belly River
  • Mami Creek
  • Dipping Vat Lake
  • Bullhorn Coulee
  • Layton Creek
  • Waterton River
  • McNab Coulee

See also

  • List of rivers of Alberta
  • List of rivers of Montana
  • Montana Stream Access Law
    Montana Stream Access Law
    The Montana Stream Access Law says that anglers, floaters and other recreationists in Montana have full use of most natural waterways between the high water marks for fishing and floating, along with swimming and other river or stream-related activities...

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