Rainy River

Climate Conditions

The West of Rainy River district sits in climate zone W, and its East in zone F.

In the May-October period of 2014, Rainy River had 1532 growing degree days, 2473 crop heat units, and 501mm of precipitation. The mean average growing season is 170 days.

Soils

Deep Gleysolic soils occupy a 580,000 acre tract of land between Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake, with some organic soils at the Manitoba border. Dystric Brunisol predominates in much of the district.

Agriculture

Beef cattle farming and ranching is a very common farm use in Rainy River district. 33,765 hectares were in use as pasture in 2011, with a total of 23,089 cattle and calves. Hay is the most common major field crop. Hired farm labour totals 1788, with 995 year-round and 793 seasonal.

Notable Centres

Fort Frances

Fort Frances is the seat of Rainy River district. The town is connected to International Falls, Minnesota, by the Fort Frances International Falls International Bridge. With a population of 7952 in 2011, Fort Frances is the third largest community in Northwestern Ontario after Thunder Bay and Kenora. It is located in the Central Time Zone.

Barwick

Barwick is located 38 minutes West of Fort Frances. Temperatures in Barwick range from a mean of -15.3 in January and 19 in July. There are 113 frost-free days, with the average last spring frost occurring on May 24 and the first fall frost occurring on September 15. The area receives on average 568.4mm rain annually, falling over 88.1 days, with a peak mean monthly rainfall of 124.7mm in June. It is located in the Central Time Zone.

Mine Centre

A former mining and railroad town, Mine Centre is located 52 minutes east of Fort Frances, along Highway 11. Temperatures in Mine Centre range from a mean of -15.4 in January and 18.6 in July. There are 109 frost-free days, with the average last spring frost occurring on May 30 and the first fall frost occurring on September 17. The area receives on average 597mm rain annually, falling over 99.5 days, with a peak mean monthly rainfall of 118.7mm in June. It is located in the Central Time Zone.

EMO

Emo, because of its geographic location, serves as the main service centre for the agricultural needs of the Rainy River District. Located along the Rainy River in northwestern Ontario, directly north of the state of Minnesota, Emo has a population of 1,186 and is home to a local feed store, the Rainy River District Regional Abattoir and popular fairgrounds. The Township of Emo's existence is based on natural resources such as agriculture and forestry.