Community

Background

Big Trout Lake is a large lake in Northern Ontario. The Fawn River flows into it from the west and drains it from the east. The reserve of the Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, Big Trout Lake, is located on Post Island on the lake's northern shore.

Kitchenuhmaykoosib Aaki 84 Reserve's treaty allocated land-base is a 29,937.6 hectares (73,976.38 acres).

Population

The language spoken by the people of KI is Anishiniimowin, where Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug translates to "the people of the big lake where trout are found." KI has 1,732 registered members of the Nation, where about 1,200 members live on-reserve and just over 500 members live off-reserve.

The community has been living as one with the land since time immemorial and they continue to actively practice and celebrate their culture through fishing, hunting, trapping, and other land-based activities. Radiocarbon dating of bones found on the land in 2004 informs that Big Trout Lake territory has been permanently settled by its people for over 5,000 years.

Location

Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI), also known as Big Trout Lake, is located in northern Ontario. KI is a fly-in community where from about January to March it is accessible by winter road. KI is located approximately 600 km north of Thunder Bay, or 450km north of Sioux Lookout. The coordinates of KI are 53.75°N, 90.07°W. Big Trout Lake is a large lake in Northern Ontario where it is 57 km (35 mi) long, and 23 km (14 mi) wide, occupying a 660 km² (255 sq mi) surface area.

Climate

KI has 6 seasons in a year:

• Spring - "Siikwan"
• Mid-spring - "Minokamin"
• Summer - "Niibin"
• Autumn - "Dakwaakon"
• Early-winter - "Bichibiboon"
• Winter - "Biboon"

Highest temperatures are experienced in July where the average temperature is between 21.2°C to 11.2°C, with highs up to 35.6°C.

Lowest temperatures are in January where the average temperature is between -18.5°C to -29.0°C, with lows down to -47.8°C and windchills which make it feel as cold as -60.3°C.

The overall amount of precipitation is 609.1 mm per year where the average amount of rainfall is 398.5 mm experienced over 82 days of the year, and the average amount of snowfall is 227.2 cm experienced over 95 days of the year.