Port-Cartier–Sept-Îles Wildlife Reserve, Wildlife reserve in Lac-Walker, Quebec

Port-Cartier-Sept-Îles Wildlife Reserve is a vast protected area in northern Quebec covered by boreal forest with thousands of lakes and several major rivers running through it. The landscape offers endless space for exploration and outdoor activities across this remote wilderness.

The reserve was created in 1965 as the Sept-Îles–Port-Cartier hunting and fishing reserve, inside the Saguenay beaver reserves, to conserve and trap beaver for Indigenous people. It covered 8,417 km², was reduced to 8,063 km² in 1976 and 6,422 km² in 1979, and became a wildlife reserve in 1980. In 1999 the two town names were reversed, giving Port-Cartier–Sept-Îles; a ministerial order dated 16 July 1999 took effect on 26 August 1999.

The reserve's name links Port-Cartier and Sept-Îles, though since 1979 access has been only from Port-Cartier. It was created in 1965 as a hunting and fishing reserve within the Saguenay beaver reserves to ensure conservation and trapping of beaver for Indigenous people. The name order was reversed in 1999.

Access to the reserve is from Port-Cartier, since 1979 the only entry point; the reserve no longer reaches Sept-Îles. Of about 1,000 lakes, roughly 100 can be reached, and 15 rivers cross the territory. Campsites and cabins serve overnight visitors, and fishing, hunting, berry picking, hiking and boating are the main activities. Trails include the De la Montagne and MacDonald routes, with a footbridge at MacDonald Falls.

Lake Walker, 33 kilometres long, lies about 20 kilometres from Port-Cartier and is named after Admiral Hovenden Walker, who tried and failed to seize New France for Britain in 1711. Its steep cliffs can be climbed, and the lake is used for boating. Lake Arthur, about 100 kilometres northwest of Port-Cartier, honours Arthur A. Schmon (1895–1964) of Newark, New Jersey, a leading figure in the paper industry.