| Rivière des Mares | |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | Canada |
| Subdivision Type2: | Province |
| Subdivision Name2: | Quebec |
| Subdivision Type3: | Region |
| Subdivision Name3: | Capitale-Nationale |
| Subdivision Type4: | Regional County Municipality |
| Subdivision Name4: | Charlevoix Regional County Municipality |
| Subdivision Type5: | City |
| Subdivision Name5: | Baie-Saint-Paul |
| Length: | 13.8km (08.6miles) |
| Source1: | Lac de la Rivière des Mares |
| Source1 Location: | Baie-Saint-Paul |
| Source1 Coordinates: | 47.5005°N -70.6408°W |
| Source1 Elevation: | 507m (1,663feet) |
| Mouth: | Rivière du Gouffre |
| Mouth Location: | Baie-Saint-Paul |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 47.4736°N 70.5181°W |
| Mouth Elevation: | 19m (62feet) |
| Tributaries Left: | (from the mouth) Acul stream, discharge from a small lake, Étangs stream, stream. |
| Tributaries Right: | (from the mouth) Mare Plate stream, two streams, Louisbourg stream, discharge from a small lake, stream, ruisseau du Pied du Mont, La Grosse Décharge Ouest. |
The rivière des Mares is a tributary of the west bank of the lower part of the Rivière du Gouffre, flowing entirely in the town of Baie-Saint-Paul, in the Charlevoix Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Capitale-Nationale, in the province from Quebec, to Canada.
This valley is mainly served by the route 138 (boulevard de Monseigneur-De Laval) which runs along the west side of the Rivière du Gouffre, and the chemin de Louisbourg which partially goes up this valley. The intermediate and upper parts being mountainous have few passable roads. Besides the agricultural area in the Gouffre river valley, forestry is the main economic activity in this valley.
The surface of the Mares River is generally frozen from the beginning of December until the beginning of April; however, safe circulation on the ice is generally done from mid-December to the end of March. The water level of the river varies with the seasons and the precipitation; the spring flood generally occurs in April.
The Rivière des Mares rises at the mouth of Lac de la Rivière des Mares (length: ; altitude:). This lake is enclosed between the mountains, a summit of which reaches at to the southwest; another peak reaches at to the northwest. The mouth of this lake is located at:
From its source, the course of the Mares river descends on in a plain on the west bank of the Gouffre river, with a drop of, according to the following segments:
The Mares river flows in a bend on the southwest bank of the Gouffre river in Baie-Saint-Paul. This mouth is located at:
From the mouth of the Mares river, the current descends on with a drop of following the course of the Gouffre river which flows in Baie-Saint-Paul in the Saint-Laurent river.[1]
During the history, this river was designated under several names with several orthographic variations: Rivière à la Truite, Ruisseau des Marées, Rivière Lamarre, Rivière des Mars, Rivière de la Mare and finally Rivière des Mares. According to some research that the Commission de toponymie du Québec has learned about, the current official name may have originated in the former Domaine de la Mare à la Truite. The latter takes its name from a small body of water located at the bottom of the valley. The use of the name "Rivière de la Mare" is old since it is found mentioned in the delimitation of the lands of Baie-Saint-Paul in 1716.[2] [3]
The toponym "Rivière des Mares" was formalized on March 25, 1997, at the Place Names Bank of the Commission de toponymie du Québec.[4]