Township of Sioux Narrows – Nester Falls

The communities of Sioux Narrows and Nestor Falls are in the heart of the Canadian Shield. The Canadian Shield is Canada’s largest physiographic region extending from Alberta eastward to Newfoundland & Labrador and northward to Greenland, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. The Shield covers a total area of 4.8 million square kilometres, and almost two thirds of Ontario.

The Canadian Shield is composed of Precambrian rocks that are more than 570 million years old. Some of these rocks are even over 2 billion years old, making the rocks of the Canadian Shield the oldest rocks in North America. The rocks are igneous (including granites, diorites and basalts) and metamorphic (including schists and marbles). The Shield has helped shape Canada’s cultural history — the navigable waterways carved into the area during glaciations dictated settlement across its expanse by both Native and European settlers.

Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the Kenora District. It is located on the eastern shores of Lake of the Woods along Ontario Highway 71. The township was formed in 2001 by amalgamating the formerly incorporate Township of Sioux Narrows with portions of Unorganized Kenora District, including the community of Nestor Falls. The township had a population of 720 in the Canada 2011 Census.

Sioux Narrows is a small resort community located on the shores of Lake of the Woods where Highway 71 crosses the eponymous narrows to Regina Bay. There are about 300 permanent residents, and about double that in the summer time when cottagers from Ontario, Manitoba, and the United States come for vacation. Tourism is the primary industry, with many resorts in the nearby vicinity.

In the mid-18th century, an Ojibwa-Cree alliance is said to have defeated an invading party of Sioux at a narrows here on the lake. Sioux Narrows is named in recognition of that event. The Sioux Narrows Bridge, a historic structure on Highway 71, which was reconstructed in 2007, overlooks the site of the battle.

Nestor Falls, located along Highway 71 at Sabaskong Bay on Lake of the Woods, held the status of designated place in the Canada 2006 Census, and has a population of 290. The settlement was founded in the early 20th century by a certain Mr. Nestor who started logging operations and used the natural waterfall there to transport the logs to Lake of the Woods.

The communities of Sioux Narrows and Nestor Falls are home to many arts, cultural, recreational and sporting events throughout the year. There is a long history of activities that have contributed to the fabric of society in this region: most notably the Canada Day festivities and reworks, Arts Festival in Sioux Narrows, Bassin’ for Bucks Fishing Tournament, Crow Lake Classic Fishing Tourney, and Winter Carnivals in both Nestor Falls and Sioux Narrows. Whether you are taking in an outdoor performance underneath the Lazy Loon in Sioux Narrows or enjoying an evening concert at Bass Lake in Nestor Falls, there is something for everyone to enjoy. Sport fishing, fly-in outpost camps, world class lodges, and big game hunting are synonymous with the region. The introduction of the Bridge & Falls studio and residency program will enhance the arts and cultural happenings in Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls, marking it as a cultural beacon in Canada and beyond.