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| Coppermine River is a river in the North Slave and Kitikmeot regions of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut in Canada. It is 525 miles (845 km) long. It rises in Lac de Gras, a small lake near Great Slave Lake and flows generally north to Coronation Gulf, an arm of the Arctic Ocean. The river freezes in winter but may still flow under the ice.
The community of Kugkluktuk (formerly Coppermine) is located at the river's mouth.
The river was named for the copper ores which could be found along the lower river. Samuel Hearne travelled down the river to the Arctic Ocean in 1771. Sir John Franklin also travelled down the river while exploring the Canadian Arctic.
The river is used for wilderness canoeing and rafting, although it sees only a few groups each year. It features major rapids, such as Rocky Defile, Sandstone, Muskox, and Escape Rapids, as well as many unnamed smaller sets. Bloody Falls, located in Kugluk/Bloody Falls Territorial Park, is the final major rapid of the river, and should be portaged.
Eruption of plateau lavas near the Coppermine River, built an extensive volcanic plateau about 1200 million years ago with an area of about 170,000 km² (65,000 sq mi) representing a volume of lavas of at least 500,000 km³ (120,000 mi³). The source of the lavas was the giant Mackenzie dyke swarm, which is the largest dyke swarm known on Earth. It originated from a mantle plume.
The Coppermine River is the namesake of Coppermine Herald at the Canadian Heraldic Authority.
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