Portage - Definition and Overview

Portage refers to the practice of carrying a canoe or other boat overland land to avoid an obstacle on the water route (such as rapids in a river), or between two water routes. Over time, depending on the importance of the portage, they were sometimes upgraded to canals with locks, and even railways. Places where portaging occurred often became temporary and then permanent settlements and the settlements sometimes were named for being on a portage, particularly in North America. Some places so named are:

• Cranberry Portage, Manitoba
• Portage, Indiana
• Portage, Michigan
• Portage, Ohio
• Portage, Pennsylvania
• Portage, Wisconsin
• Portage la Prairie, Manitoba (often referred to as "Portage")
• Portage Township, Michigan
• Portage Township, Pennsylvania

There is also the settlement of Portage, New Zealand and Volokolamsk in Russia.

It is also a computer program:

• Portage (software) - Gentoo Linux package manager.