The York boat was a type of inland boat used by the Hudson's Bay Company to carry furs and trade goods along inland waterways in Rupert's Land, the watershed stretching from Hudson Bay to the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains. It was named after York Factory, the headquarters of the HBC, and by some accounts was supposedly modeled after the Orkney yole. Two variations to the York Boat were scows and "Sturgeon Heads."

Portage or portaging is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a portage. The term comes from French, where porter means "to carry", as in "portable". In Canada, the term "carrying-place" was sometimes used.