Its north–south mainline is located entirely in Ontario, starting at its southern terminus at North Bay, running northward through Cobalt, New Liskeard, Cochrane, and on to its northern terminus at Moosonee on the Moose River, about south of the shore of James Bay. There is one major branchline running eastward from Swastika through Kirkland Lake and over the Quebec border to end at Rouyn-Noranda. The railway's branch from Swastika to Rouyn-Noranda, including 40 kilometres of track in Quebec, is operated by a subsidiary, the Nipissing Central Railway.