The Richelieu River is a tributary of the west bank of the Montmorency River. This watercourse flows on the north shore of the Saint-Laurent river, in the municipality of Sainte-Brigitte-de-Laval, in the La Jacques-Cartier Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Capitale-Nationale, in the province of Quebec, in Canada.
The lower part of this valley is served by avenue Sainte-Brigitte and by rue Auclair. The upper part is served by a secondary forest road. Forestry is the main economic activity in this valley; recreational tourism, second.
Because of its altitude, the surface of the Richelieu River is generally frozen from the beginning of December until the end of March; however, safe circulation on the ice is generally done from mid-December to mid-March. The water level of the river varies with the seasons and the precipitation; the spring flood occurs in March or April.
The Richelieu River takes its source at the confluence of two forest and mountain streams (altitude: ), on the north flank of the Montagne àDeux Têtes, either:
Course of the Richelieu river
From its source, the Richelieu River descends from the mountains into forest territory, flowing over , with a drop of , according to the following segments:
From the confluence of the Richelieu river, the current flows over generally south by the course of the Montmorency river, to the northwest shore of the Saint-Laurent river.
The toponym "Richelieu River" was formalized on December 5, 1968 at the Place Names Bank of the Commission de toponymie du Québec.