The Nikanassin Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Late Jurassic (Portlandian) to Early Cretaceous (Barremian) age.

Dowling in 1909 (Coal Fields South of Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountain, Alberta Page 140 paragraph 4 " to this it is proposed to give the name Nikanassin, from the Cree word meaning outer range" Also it is noted on the map by D.B.

Mackay did not designate a type locality for the formation, although he described outcrops near the hamlet of Brûlé, north of the Yellowhead Highway outside of Jasper National Park.

[5][6] The Nikanassin Formation grades from marine sediments at the base to coastal and continental at the top.

[5][6] The Nikanassin thickens northward from the foothills near the North Saskatchewan River, reaching a maximum of about 400 meters (1,300 ft) near Brûlé.