Located in eastern Canada, the Gulf of St. Lawrence owes many of its unique characteristics to its geography. Sea water flows into and out of the gulf through only two channels. Currents and tides sweep cold, Arctic seawater through the narrow Strait of Belle Isle in the north. In the south, the wider Cabot Strait admits warmer water from the Atlantic Gulf Stream. With no other outlet to the Atlantic, the Gulf of St. Lawrence is relatively isolated.