Petite rivière Saint-François

The Petite rivière Saint-François (French pronunciation: [pətit ʁivjɛʁ sɛ̃ fʁɑ̃swa], lit. 'Little Saint-François River') is a tributary of the northwest shore of the St. Lawrence River. This river flows in the municipality of Petite-Rivière-Saint-François, in the Charlevoix Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Capitale-Nationale, in the province of Quebec, in Canada.

The lower part is served by rue Principale de Petite-Rivière-Saint-François, which runs along the Saint-Laurent river. The economic activities of this valley are concentrated on the bank of the river where recreational tourism activities (notably vacationing) are developed. In addition, the peaks and flanks of the surrounding mountains are used for recreational tourism activities, in particular the important alpine ski center of Massif de Charlevoix which is located very close to the south side of this river and whose flank the mountain for alpine skiing faces the river.

The surface of the lower part of the Petite Rivière Saint-François is generally frozen from the beginning of December until the end of March, except the backwater zones; however, safe traffic on the ice is generally from mid-December to mid-March. The upper part has an additional week's freezing period. The water level of the river varies with the seasons and the precipitation; the spring flood occurs in March or April.