| Watopeka River | |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | Canada |
| Subdivision Type2: | Province |
| Subdivision Name2: | Quebec |
| Subdivision Type3: | Region |
| Subdivision Name3: | Chaudière-Appalaches |
| Subdivision Type4: | MRC |
| Subdivision Name4: | Le Haut-Saint-François Regional County Municipality, Les Sources Regional County Municipality, Le Val-Saint-François Regional County Municipality |
| Subdivision Type5: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Name5: | Dudswell and Saint-Camille, Stoke, Saint-Georges-de-Windsor, Val-Joli and Windsor |
| Length: | 26.7km (16.6miles) |
| Source1: | Lake Watopeka |
| Source1 Location: | Dudswell |
| Source1 Coordinates: | 45.6389°N -71.7614°W |
| Source1 Elevation: | 303m (994feet) |
| Mouth: | Saint-François River |
| Mouth Location: | Windsor |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 45.5633°N -72.0056°W |
| Mouth Elevation: | 264m (866feet) |
| Progression: | Saint-François River, St. Lawrence River |
| Tributaries Left: | (upstream) |
| Tributaries Right: | (upstream) Décharge du lac Saint-Georges. |
| Country: |  Canada |
The Watopeka river (in French: rivière Watopeka) is a tributary of the Saint-François River, in the administrative region of Estrie, on the South Shore of St. Lawrence River, in Quebec, Canada. The course of the Watopeka river successively crosses the territories of the municipalities of:
The main neighboring hydrographic slopes of the Watopeka River are:
The Watopeka river has its source in the lake of the same name.[1] This lake is located in the municipality of Dudswell, almost at the limit of the municipalities of Saint-Camille and Stoke.
Upper course of the river (segment of)
From Watopeka Lake, the Watopeka River flows over:
Lower course of the river (segment)
From the mouth of the Stoke River, the Watopeka River flows over:
The Stoke River empties on the east bank of the Saint-François River, in the southern part of the city of Windsor, downstream from Sherbrooke which is located to the south-East.
This toponym derives from the Abenaki word “Wdopikak” meaning “where alders are found”. According to the Commission de toponymie du Québec, some sources claim that Watopeka rather means “pearl river because of the rapids”. With the combined use of the English and French languages, the spelling and pronunciation of this Amerindianyme underwent several variations before the current form was formalized in the Place Names Bank.[1]
The designation Ottopikak River, appears on a plan of the Township of Windsor from 1801. A French map of the County of Richmond from 1931, refers to the form Wattopekan River. Other documents from various periods use variant spellings, notably Watopéca, Wattopeka, Wattopekah, Wattopekak, Wattopikaw. This watercourse has also been designated with the names: Le Grand Ruisseau and The Brook.[1]
The toponym Watopeka River was officially registered on December 5, 1968, at the Commission de toponymie du Québec.[1]