| Blindman River | |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Source1 Location: | Medicine Lake Provincial Grazing Reserve |
| Source1 Coordinates: | 52.8869°N -114.5775°W |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 52.3547°N -113.7572°W |
| Source1 Elevation: | 1003m (3,291feet) |
| Mouth Elevation: | 859m (2,818feet) |
The Blindman River is in south-central Alberta. It forms south of Winfield and flows southeastward before joining the Red Deer River near Red Deer. The Blindman is bridged by Alberta Highway 20 a number of times in its upper reaches, before passing near the town of Rimbey. The river then takes on the outflow of Gull Lake. It is bridged by Alberta Highway 2 at Red Deer before flowing into the Red Deer River.
There are two competing theories regarding the name of the river. One theory suggests a Cree hunting party became snowblind while travelling and had to rest on the river banks until their eyes healed. The hunting party applied the name Cree: paskapiw to the river, which translates as 'He is blind'.[1] The second theory argues that Blindman is a descriptive term, applied to the river because of its numerous meanders and curves.[2]
The Paskapoo Formation, first described in its banks, takes its name from the Cree name for the Blindman.