Puskwaskau River Puskwaskau River The Puskwaskau River is a short river in Northern Alberta, Canada. It is a tributary of the Smoky River flowing westwards in the Peace River Country. Its waters flow through the Smoky River, Peace River, Slave River, Great Slave Lake and Mackenzie River into the Arctic Ocean. The name of the river originates from the Cree word for "short grass". The Puskwaskau Formation, a stratigraphical unit of the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, was named for the river. The river originates from the Puskwaskau Lake in the Sturgeon Heights, at an elevation of , north-west from Valleyview. It flows
Mackenzie River is scant, despite the efforts of many researchers. Many archaeological sites have probably been destroyed by flooding, freeze-thaw and erosion. The Inuvialuit, Gwich'in and other indigenous peoples have lived along the river for thousands of years; however, the oldest evidence of continuous occupation stretches back only about 1300–1400 years, at the Gwich'in community of Tsiigehtchic. The Mackenzie provided the major route into Canada's northern interior for European explorers as early as the late 18th century. Scottish explorer Alexander Mackenzie travelled the river in the hope it would lead to the Pacific Ocean, but instead reached its mouth on the Arctic