Amisk Lake


Amisk Lake is a lake in east-central Saskatchewan in Canada. 'Amisk' means beaver in Cree. Saskatchewan Highway 167 provides road access. Denare Beach, the largest settlement, is located on the east side of the lake.

Forts

Amisk Lake is on the Sturgeon-Weir River, an important part of the canoe route from eastern Canada to the rich Lake Athabasca country. There was an independent trading post on Amisk Lake in 1775 and a Hudson's Bay Company trading post in 1776.

Frobisher-Henry Fort

In June 1775 Alexander Henry the elder left Montreal with 16 canoes and goods worth £3,000. On Lake Winnipeg he was joined by Peter Pond, Joseph Frobisher and Thomas Frobisher. From the new Hudson's Bay Company post at Cumberland Lake Henry and the two Frobishers went north up the Sturgeon-Weir hoping to reach Frog Portage where Thomas had traded successfully the previous year. They crossed Amisk Lake on the first of November and the next morning it was frozen over. Since there was good fishing they stopped at the mouth of the West Weir and built a fort. On the first of January Henry set out on foot and spent three months visiting the Indians. Next spring they went north to Frog Portage and were successful in trade. Joseph Frobisher maintained the post of Amisk Lake until it was abandoned in 1778.

Fish Species

The fish species include walleye, yellow perch, northern pike, lake trout, lake whitefish, cisco, white sucker, longnose sucker and burbot. Smallmouth bass are stocked in nearby Konuto Lake.