Galiote River
The Galiote River ("French: Rivière Galiote") is a tributary of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, flowing in the municipality of L'Île-d'Anticosti, in the Minganie Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Côte-Nord, in province of Quebec, in Canada. A forest road (north–south direction) serves the west side of the middle and lower part of this valley, connecting the Grand-Lac-Salé Ecological Reserve, and the main road passing through the center-north of the island. Forestry is the main economic activity in this area; recreational tourism activities, second. Geography. The Galiote River originates from  the confluence of two mountain streams (altitude: ), located in the south-central part of the island. This source is located in a forest area at: From its source, the Galiote River flows on with a drop of , according to the following segments: The Galiote river flows on the east side of Gand lac Salé, Petit lac Salé, Baie des Sables and Côte de la Grande Traversée, on the south shore of Anticosti Island, in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. This confluence is located at: Toponymy. David Têtu, responsible for the surveillance of wrecked ships from 1870 to 1879, at the  Pointe du Sud lighthouse, used “Galiote River” to designate this river on his map. According to the 17th Report of the Geographic Survey of Canada (1922), this watercourse has been designated according to several graphic variations: Galiote River, River Galiotte, Sabotte River and Galti River. The term "galiote" refers to a sailing ship, with round shapes, used by Dutch navigators. Throughout history, the term "galiote" has also referred to a coaster and a fishing sailboat. However, the origin of the attribution of this toponymic designation remains unknown. It is reasonable to believe that this toponym evokes the shipwreck of a  galiote not far from the mouth of this river. Anticosti Island is nicknamed the “Gulf Cemetery” because more than 400 shipwrecks have been recorded since the island was donated as a fief and seigneury to Louis Jolliet in 1680. On the one hand, this statistic further supports the hypothesis of the origin of the name of the Galiote river. In addition, similar toponyms of the waterways of Anticosti Island, such as Havre du Brick and Pointe à la Goélette, evoke shipwrecks. In 1959, the Commission de géographie du Québec retained the toponymic designation “Rivière Galiote”. The toponym “rivière Galiote” was  made official on December 5, 1968, at the Place Names Bank of the Commission de toponymie du Québec. Lac-Salé Ecological Reserve. In 1991, the Quebec government established the "Lac-Salé Ecological Reserve" covering approximately 7000 hectares. Briefly, this reserve was delimited by the middle of the rivière du Brick from its confluence with the Honguedo Strait, going up the river to latitude 5,468,000 m N; thence, easterly, to the center of the Galiote river; then south following the center of the latter river, until its confluence with the Honguedo Strait. Recreational tourism activities. Between kilometers 7 and 11, the  Galiote river offers a wild setting with little steep edges. The stony plateau allows walking there if the water is low as if it is an unmarked path on the bottom of the river. In the surroundings, walkers often see hares and deer. The flora of this area includes many rare species.