Geography of Quebec

Quebec, Canada's largest province, occupies a vast territory (nearly three times the size of France), most of which is very sparsely populated. More than 90 percent of Quebec's area lies within the Canadian Shield, a large part of which was historically referred to as the Ungava Region. This vast and virtually uninhabited northern region created the massive Province of Quebec as seen today. This huge new addition to Quebec bordered James Bay and is where Quebec is located in eastern Canada, bordered by Ontario and Hudson Bay to the west, Atlantic Canada to the east, the U.S (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York States) to the south, and the Arctic Ocean to the north.

the Province's three largest hydro-electric projects would eventually be built on the La Grande River.

The territory of Quebec is extremely rich in resources in its coniferous forests, lakes, and rivers—pulp and paper, lumber, and hydroelectricity are still some of the province's most important industries. The extreme north of the province, now called Nunavik, is subarctic or arctic and is home to the Inuit nation.

The most populated region is the Saint Lawrence River Valley in the south, where the capital, Quebec City, and the largest city, Montreal, are situated. North of Montreal are the Laurentians, a range of ancient mountains, and to the East are the Appalachian Mountains which extends into the Eastern Townships and Gaspésie regions. The Gaspé Peninsula juts into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the East. The Saint Lawrence River Valley is a fertile agricultural region, producing dairy products, fruit, vegetables, maple sugar (Quebec is the world's largest producer), and livestock.

Parks

Quebec contains three of Canada's national parks:

• Forillon National Park
• La Mauricie National Park
• Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve

Quebec also has a network of provincial parks (Parcs nationaux du Québec - not to be confused with Canada's national parks):

• Parc national d'Aiguebelle
• Parc national d'Anticosti
• Parc national du Bic
• Parc national de Frontenac
• Parc national de la Gaspésie
• Parc national des Grands-Jardins
• Parc national des Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie
• Parc national de l'Île-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Percé
• Parc national des Îles-de-Boucherville
• Parc national de la Jacques-Cartier
• Parc national de Miguasha
• Parc national du Mont-Mégantic
• Parc national du Mont-Orford
• Parc national du Mont-Saint-Bruno
• Parc national du Mont-Tremblant
• Parc national des Monts-Valin
• Parc national d'Oka
• Parc national de Plaisance
• Parc national de la Pointe-Taillon
• Parc national du Saguenay
• Parc national de la Yamaska

These parks are administered by the Société des établissements de plein-air du Québec (Sépaq), a government body, which also co-administers the Saguenay - St. Lawrence Marine Park with Parks Canada.