Klondike River | river, Yukon, Canada | Britannica.com Klondike River Cuyahoga River Klondike River, tributary of the Yukon River , in western Yukon , Canada . With its major tributary, the North Klondike, it rises in the Ogilvie Mountains and flows westward for 100 mi (160 km) to join the Yukon at Dawson , the river’s historic settlement. The Klondike became famous in 1896 with the discovery of gold in Bonanza Creek and other small tributaries. As a result thousands of prospectors swarmed into the valley. Several years later, with the exhaustion of the most readily accessible placer deposits, the population decreased drastically. Limited mining by hydraulic and dredging methods continued along other tributaries of the Klondike River until 1966, when all operations ceased. The surrounding territory bears the river’s name, which is of uncertain origin. Klondike River, Yukon, Can.

in Canada: The Klondike gold rush In 1896 gold nuggets were found in a small tributary of the Klondike River, itself a tributary of the Yukon River. A gold rush began in 1897 and swelled in 1898 as miners and adventurers poured in, mainly from the United States. The Klondike—the last of the great placer finds—was the most publicized of all the great rushes, exciting a world weary of economic hard times with stories... in Yukon River ...descent (including explorers from the eastward-expanding Russian Empire) began to move into the region, first as fur traders and then in search of mineral wealth. The discovery of gold on the Klondike in 1896 precipitated an influx of settlement that created an international mythology of romantic frontier existence associated with the name Yukon. 3 References found in Britannica Articles Assorted Reference Yukon River (in Yukon River ) External Links Corrections? Updates? Help us improve this article! Contact our editors with your feedback. MEDIA FOR: You have successfully emailed this. Error when sending the email. Try again later.

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Close Date Published: April 05, 2010 URL: Access Date: January 18, 2017 Share Yukon River - Background Information and Map Yukon River Atlin Events Yukon River The Yukon River is the longest river in Yukon & Alaska. Third longest river in North America, flowing northwest from the Coastal Range mountains of northern British Columbia, through the Yukon Territory and Alaska to the Bering Sea. Its overall length is 3185 kilometers (km), with 1149 km within Canadian borders. The watershed’s total drainage area is 840 000 sq. km (323 800 sq. km in Canada) and it discharges 195 cubic kilometers of water per year. ambien for sale Yukon means “great river” in Gwich’in. The river was called Kwiguk, or “large stream”, in Yupik. The Lewes River is the former name of the upper course of the Yukon, from Marsh Lake to the confluence of the Pelly River at Fort Selkirk.

Early History The valley of the Yukon is believed by some anthropologists to have been the main immigration route for North America’s first human inhabitants. According to this theory, the ancestors of today’s aboriginal peoples arrived across a now-submerged isthmus joining present-day Alaska with Russia’s Siberia. Some aboriginals dispute this theory and believe in their own traditional teachings that their ancestors originated in North America. Yukon River Route The generally accepted source of the Yukon River is the Llewellyn Glacier at the southern end of Atlin Lake in British Columbia. Others suggest that the source is Lake Lindeman at the northern end of the Chilkoot Trail. Either way, Atlin Lake flows into Tagish Lake, as eventually does Lake Lindeman after flowing into Lake Bennett. Tagish Lake then flows into Marsh Lake. The Yukon River proper starts at the northern end of Marsh Lake, just south of Whitehorse. Some argue that the source of the Yukon River should really be Teslin Lake and the Teslin River, which has a larger flow when it reaches the Yukon at Hootalinqua. The upper end of the Yukon river was originally known as the Lewes River until it was established that it actually was the Yukon.

North of Whitehorse, the Yukon River widens into Lake Laberge, made famous by Robert W. Service’s “The Cremation of Sam McGee.” Other large lakes that are part of the Yukon River system include Kusawa Lake (into the Takhini River) and Kluane Lake (into the Kluane and then White River). The river passes through the communities of Whitehorse, Carmacks, (just before the Five Finger Rapids) and Dawson City in the Yukon Territory, and into Circle, Fort Yukon, Stevens Village, Tanana, Ruby, Galena, Nulato, Grayling, Holy Cross, Russian Mission, Marshall, Pilot Station, St. Marys (which is accessible from the Yukon at Pilot Point), and Mountain Village. After Mountain Village, the main Yukon channel frays into many channels, sprawling across the delta. There are a number of communitites after the “head of passes,” as the channel division is called locally: Nunum Iqua, Alakanuk, Emmonak, and Kotlik. Of those delta communities, Emmonak is the largest with roughly 760 people in the 2000 census.

Emmonak’s gravel airstrip is the regional hub for flights. Salmon The Yukon is one of the most important salmon-breeding rivers in the world. Each year it supports huge Chinook salmon returning to spawn in its tributary creeks. The Whitehorse Fishway is, at 366 meters (m) in length, the longest wooden fish ladder in the world. It was built beside the dam at Whitehorse to provide a channel for the salmon as they migrate upstream. Yukon River Adventures Visit Canoe Kayak Rentals & Tours page to book a trip to explore the Yukon River for yourself. Northern Rivers Floating the Yukon River: Eagle to Circle - Yukon - Charley Rivers National Preserve (U.S. National Park Service) Floating the Yukon Floating the Yukon River: Eagle to Circle Deep in Interior Alaska, the great Yukon River strikes through bluffs and mountains of an ancient landscape to unmask rocks whose histories reach back a billion years to life's beginnings on Earth. Axis of the region, the silt-laden Yukon here flows constricted and swift through a great geologic fault. Side-streams tumble from the hinterlands - further passageways long inviting human traffic.

Duration: 7 minutes, 48 seconds A hyperlapse is a moving timelapse and, in this case, it is of the 100 mile stretch of Yukon River from Eagle, Alaska to Slaven's Roadhouse in Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve. Complete with notable location descriptions, this virtual tour of the Yukon River is for entertainment and basic orientation purposes. Please use it as a visual and mental reference, in addition to proper river information and maps. Enjoy a boat ride down the Yukon, regardless of your location or the weather! The Yukon River originates in the coastal mountains of Canada and flows 1,979 miles in a wide arc to the Bering Sea. The river flows northwest through Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve for 128 miles. The river is silt laden in summer due to glacial runoff, and it is completely clear in winter when glaciers are frozen. As the river enters the preserve near Eagle, it flows across a narrow floodplain flanked by high bluffs and heavily forested hills. The bluffs become less prominent as the river leaves the preserve near Circle. Access Visitors access Eagle by driving via the Taylor Highway or flying in on small aircraft.

After arriving in Circle, visitors may drive out on the Steese Highway or fly to Eagle or Fairbanks. Motorized and non-motorized boats of all sizes and types are the principal means of travel on this section of the Yukon River. Common non-motorized vessels used are canoes, kayaks, homemade wooden rafts, and inflatable rafts. Motorized jet boats are often preferred since props can be easily damaged on unseen gravel bars. Visitors may bring their own vessels or rent canoes or rafts locally. Jet skis and other personal watercraft are prohibited in the preserve. Trip Length The journey from Eagle to Circle is 158 miles long with most visitors traveling from late May through September. The Yukon River flows at an average speed of 5 to 8 miles per hour. Trip length varies depending on weather conditions, type of boat, and whether visitors continually float during long daylight hours or if they stop to camp and explore. Visitors who float approximately 30 miles a day and camp each night usually take around 5 days to reach Circle. Extra supplies should always be taken in case trip time is extended due to weather or other unplanned events.

For the safety of visitors, the NPS recommends that floaters file a Voluntary Float Plan with the preserve and a friend or relative. Floaters can also file a voluntary float plan in-person at the Eagle Visitor. For questions, contact the Eagle visitor center at (907) 547-2233. What to Bring In Eagle, visitor services are very limited because most were severely damaged or destroyed in the 2009 break-up. However, there is now a basic general store and a restaurant.The Bed & Breakfast is being repaired. Gas, propane and diesel are available, as well as a small grocery store. Circle, on the downstream side of the preserve, also has limited facilities. Therefore, it is recommended that visitors bring all necessary camping gear and supplies. Visitors must be self-sufficient since there are no developed areas between Eagle and Circle and assistance may be days away. Visitors should be prepared for all weather conditions because conditions can change rapidly and may be extreme, even in July. All visitors should wear personal flotation devices (life preservers) and keep emergency gear with them, such as a first aid kit, whistle, signal mirror, knife, magnesium fire starter, waterproof matches, and tightly sealed emergency rations.

Other items to bring may include waterproof topographic maps, compass, GPS, two-way radio, and/or personal ELT. NPS/Josh Spice Camping Gravel bars are recommended for camping since they are often breezy and deter the infamous Alaska mosquitoes. Gravel bars also allow visitors to be out in the open where they are less likely to surprise or be surprised by wildlife. Minimum impact camping techniques are encouraged. For example, making a campfire on a gravel bar instead of in the trees is not only less likely to start a wildfire, but all evidence will be washed away with the next high water event. Food and beverages, their containers and equipment used to cook or store food must be stored in a bear resistant container or secured within a hard sided building, or by caching a minimum of 100 feet from camp and suspending at least 10 feet above ground. Please dispose of inedible game parts, fish and food scraps that could attract bears at least 300 yards from camp and below high water level. Do not leave food for others as this may attract bears and present a hazard for the next traveler.

Public Use Cabins Take yourself back in time with a stay in one of the seven public use cabins that are available on a first come, first served basis. Split some wood and head inside to light a blaze in the wood stove, under the light of an oil lamp. Enjoy the warmth as your gear dries out from a long journey down the mighty Yukon River. Please replace the firewood, but keep the memories. Today, geologic processes continue within the Yukon River corridor. The diverse, uniquely beautiful arrays of rock formations along the river provide the visitor with a relatively intact record of the past 600 million years of geologic history in Eastcentral Alaska. Topographic Map Information The National Park Service Visitor Center in Eagle carries a limited number of 1:250000 series maps for this area. USGS 1:63,360 (one inch to one mile) maps may be purchased at your local USGS office, the Anchorage USGS office at (907) 786-7011, on-line at , or at sporting goods stores in Fairbanks.

Maps needed to cover the trip from Eagle to Circle are Eagle D-1; Charley A-1, A-2, B-2, B-3, B-4, B-5, B-6, C-6, and D-6; and Circle C-1 and D-1. Klondike River 1898 from Johnson's Cyclopaedia, 1898, pages 143-145 ) KLONDIKE, THE, a river in the Northwest Territories, Canada, about which gold has been discovered. This stream is a tributary of Alaska�s largest river, the Yukon, and was called by the Indians Throndink, which means "river full of fish." It is a small, shallow stream about 40 yards wide at the mouth, with clear blue water, in which salmon is abundant. The Indian name has been corrupted by the miners into Klondike, which is now the accepted name of the river and the region around it. The basin of the Yukon has about 192,000 square miles, or nearly three times the size of the New England States.

Discoveries of gold have been made in many parts of the basin of the Yukon, which lies partly in Alaska and partly in Canada, though the richest finds have been on British ground. The first white people who made their way into the interior of Alaska went there in the interest of the Hudson Bay Company. It is believed that they knew of the existence of gold in that country, though they did not suspect the richness of the deposits, and, because miners would have disturbed the animals from whose furs the Hudson Bay Company received a large revenue, they said nothing about the precious metal. In 1840 Mr. Campbell began exploration of the upper Liard and Pelly rivers, but, being told that farther on he would encounter cannibals, he turned home again. Fort Yukon, a post of the Hudson Bay Company, was established in 1847 at the head of Porcupine river; but it had to be moved, as it was found to be Russian (now United States) soil. Another post - Fort Selkirk - was established a year later at the confluence of the Pelly and Lewes rivers, but it was demolished by the Indians in 1852.

In 1867 a steamer of the Hudson Bay Company picked up a wounded man who was drifting in a canoe near Stockade Point. He said his name was Culver, that he had had two partners, one of whom had been killed by the Indians, and that he had discovered gold, and he showed some in proof of his assertion. A party of people at Port Townsend set out in a steamer, the "Louisa Downs," with Culver to guide tbem to the place of his discovery; but when they reached Taku his wits seemed to have deserted him, and when he was threatened with death he quite lost his reason. Returning to Sitka, he died there a few years later, and before dying said to his friends that there was gold where he had been, and some day it would be found again. Gold was discovered in British Columbia. in the Cassiar districts, in 1873. The Yukon region was entered by miners in 1882, the entrance being made by the �Taiya pass.

Several explorers entered central Alaska in the early �80�s, and placer mining was carried on with much success on the Stewart, Lewes, Pelly, Hootalinga, and upper Yukon rivers. On the Stewart in 1886 about 40 miners were washing gold, the highest earning of one man being $6,000. The first real excitement in the Yukon country took place in 1887, when Forty-mile creek was discovered and coarse gold was first found. News of this was brought out by Tom Williams, a messenger, who brought letters for the post trader, and who lost his life as a consequence of the hardships of the journey. In the spring of 1888 mining on Forty-mile creek began, and now nearly all accessible gold has been got out, but rich bars remain to be worked when there are greater facilities. Birch creek has, next to the Klondike, the richest placer diggings yet found in that region, and consequently the second richest in the world.

These were first worked in 1894; and Mastodon, Greenhorn, Independence, Deadwood, and Eagle creeks, all tributaries of the Birch, promise rich rewards to the explorer. In fact, the whole valley of the Yukon and its affluents is a gold-bestrewed region. Gen. Duffield, of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey, says: "The gold has been ground out of the quartz by the pressure of glaciers, which lie and move along the courses of the streams, exerting at all times a tremendous pressure. The force is present to a more appreciable extent in Alaska than elsewhere; and I believe that, as a consequence, more placer gold will be found in that region than in any other part of the world. When gold is precipitated it sinks; it does not float far downstream. It is therefore to be looked for along the small creeks and about the head waters of the larger tributaries of the Yukon. There is no reason why as rich finds may not be made on the American side of the line as in the Klondike region.

It is true that the small streams are the ones found to be rich in gold, which is generally at the bottom of thick gravel deposits. But the ground is not of equal richness, and the gold of this northern region has in combination more of the baser metals - iron, silver, and lead - than the gold of California, Yukon gold being worth $17 to $18 to the ounce, while that of California is worth $1 more. After Williams's news there was a rush made for Gastinaux channel. Claims were staked out on Gold creek, and a town was established which was named Juneau - after one of the men who first explored the region. Cook�s inlet, 600 miles west of Sitka, was rumored to be a gold region, and in 1895 many persons searched there in vain for wealth. Later, rock and gold placers were reported to be in the same vicinity, and Cook�s inlet became again the resort of miners. Few of these work for wages, and some claims yield $10 to $40 daily.

The Klondike district consists of the valley of the river of that name, which flows westward into the Yukon, and extends 30 miles south to Indian river, also flowing into the Yukon. Midway between Klondike and Indian rivers is a hill called the Dome, and streams flow into them from the height of land between. Bonanza, 23 miles long, Bear, and Hunker creeks are tributaries of the Klondike, Eldorado of Bonanza, and Gold Bottom of Hunker. Quartz creek, No Name, and Dominion flow into Indian river. More than 500 locations have been made on this river, but it has been found very difficult to take provisions up to it. The head waters of the Klondike are unknown, though explorers have ascended it 150 miles, and find it there still larger than a brook. The region is mountainous and very rugged, and is covered with a heavy growth of spruce, birch, and poplar. The earliest reports of the wealth of the KIondike were from Indians, and a white man, George W.

Carmack, located the first claim in August, 1896, on Bonanza creek. Here three men washed out $14,200 in eight days. Later one claim yielded $65.30 to the pan. On Eldorado $100, and then $280, to the pan was taken. A pan is two shovelfuls, and while miners consider dirt containing 5 cents to the shovelful, if three feet deep, is rich soil, in these creeks $1 to the pan is thought small. A nugget worth $583.25 was found on Eldorado. William Ogilvie, Dominion land surveyor, has been making a topographical survey of the British possessions on the Klondike. A census made by him of the production shows that 23 claims yielded $826,000. He estimates that $79,000,000 will be produced by Bonanza, Eldorado, and Hunker creeks in three years. After Carmack�s discovery many left the Forty-mile creek and Circle City diggings for the new fields.

Mining was apparently not so good there, for there are few diggings on the Klondike that can be worked by sluicing, as the gold-bearing strata lie from 5 to 20 feet under ground. One of the first miners, dissatisfied with his claim, which appeared to him unprofitable, sold it for $85. It was again sold for $31,000, and when worked by the third owner it yielded $130,000 in six weeks. A claim on the Eldorado was sold for $45,000, $5,000 to be paid on the day of sale, $15,000 a month later, and the remainder to be due six weeks after the second payment. The second payment was made four days early, and the third ten days. One miner, who considered that he had done "pretty well," had drifted a plat 24 by 14 feet, making $8,000 as the result of two months and a half of labor. Claim No. 9 on Eldorado has immediately above bed rock 3 or 4 inches of almost pure gold.

An offer of $1,000,000 was made for 10 adjoining claims on this creek, but was declined. A claim is 500 feet long, measured in a straight line in the direction of the valley, and is the width of the bottom. Bench claims on Eldorado run 200 to 300 feet up the mountain. One of these paid $600 a day, with one man taking out material and one rocking. Good prospects have been found 400 and 500 feet above the bar. The ground here freezes solid, and only two feet of it thaws in summer. The miners build fires over the area where they wish to excavate, and when these have burned about twenty-four hours remove the softened muck, and then light fires again. In this way they sink a shaft to bed rock, and then tunnel by the same process. This method of mining is expensive, and not all claims are rich enough to pay the cost. Where the bed rock is smooth there is no gold, but where it is rough the gold is lodged. Often the shafts do not strike a pay streak.

Unless the ground yields $15 a day to a man it is not profitable to work it, miners� wages being $1.25 an hour, and the day six or seven hours long. When a shaft yields not more than 10 cents to the pan it is abandoned. About Dawson City the bed rock is a soft shale, and this is often worked to a depth of 2 or 3 feet. The material taken out is left in a heap until spring, when the torrents are flowing, and it is then panned and cradled. In the summner of 1897 there were only two traveled routes into the gold regions - one by Lynn Canal, Taiya pass, and descending the Yukon; the other by St. Michael, Alaska, and ascending the Yukon.

There are now six principal routes by which to reach the Klondike: The second already mentioned; the Dalton trail from Haines�s Mission to Fort Selkirk; the Dyea, via Dyea to Lake Lindemann; the Skagway, via Skagway to Lake Lindemann, or Lake Bennett; the Taku river from Juneau to Lake Teslin; and the Stickeen to Lake Teslin, by way of Fort Wrangel. The Dalton is a fair trail for horses and cattle. The Dyea or Chilkoot pass has always been used by the Chilkat Indians, and all the early explorers entered the Northwest Territories by this pass. It is very hard to get .... [the rest of the article has not been located] Yukon River | river, North America | Britannica.com river, North America Yukon–Charley Rivers National Preserve Yukon River, major North American river that flows through the central Yukon territory of northwestern Canada and the central region of the U.S. state of Alaska . It measures 1,980 miles (3,190 km) from the headwaters of the McNeil River (a tributary of the Nisutlin River).

The Yukon discharges into the Bering Sea after flowing northwestward and then generally southwestward through a low plateau that slopes down across Alaska. The main east- and north-bank tributaries are the Teslin, Big Salmon, Pelly , Stewart, Klondike , Porcupine , and Koyukuk ; the west- and south-bank tributaries are the Takhini, White, and Tanana. Its headwater tributaries drain an area of about 328,000 square miles (850,000 square km) out of a surrounding semicircle of high mountains. This huge area—larger than Turkey—was occupied solely by North American Indians until the mid-19th century, when peoples of European descent (including explorers from the eastward-expanding Russian Empire) began to move into the region, first as fur traders and then in search of mineral wealth. The discovery of gold on the Klondike in 1896 precipitated an influx of settlement that created an international mythology of romantic frontier existence associated with the name Yukon. Five Finger Rapid on the upper Yukon River in Yukon. E.

Otto/Comstock Physical features Physiography and hydrology The McNeil headwaters rise in the Pelly Mountains of south-central Yukon territory and flow south into Teslin Lake and thence into the Teslin River. The main headwaters of the Yukon River, however, flow from Atlin Lake and Tagish Lake in the vicinity of the border between British Columbia and the Yukon territory. About 50 miles (80 km) downstream the Yukon once rushed through the rocky walls of narrow Miles Canyon and tumbled over rock ledges at Whitehorse Rapids. These obstacles to river travel during the gold rush era necessitated the construction of the short railroad from Skagway , Alaska, to Whitehorse in the Yukon territory, the latter becoming the southern terminal of water transport northward. The river has since been dammed south of Whitehorse for hydroelectric power; the rapids are buried under the reservoir lake, and deep water fills the former canyon. The Alaskan mountain ranges and the Mackenzie and Yukon river basins and their drainage networks. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Editor Picks: Exploring 10 Types of Basketball Movies Average summer temperatures in the valleys of this high-latitude region, with its long hours of summer daylight, are moderately warm, with July mean temperatures of about 60 °F (16 °C) at Dawson and slightly lower at Whitehorse. Annual precipitation is low, as it is in most of northwestern Canada and central Alaska, with an average of about 10 inches (260 mm) recorded at Whitehorse and 12 inches (305 mm) at Dawson. Almost half of the precipitation falls as rain during the four summer months. Plant and animal life Coniferous forests grow to low height and low densities across the valley floors and lower mountain slopes of the Yukon River basin. The upper tree line is at an elevation of about 3,500 to 4,500 feet (1,070 to 1,370 metres), depending on local exposure and drainage; thus, about two-thirds of the mountainous Yukon territory is treeless. The largest stands of potentially commercial forest are along the Alaska Highway in the Liard River valley in the southeastern Yukon, but this area is far from markets.

White spruce is dominant on the valley floors, and black spruce grows in the poorly drained areas. Outbreaks of spruce budworm threaten large areas of these forests. In addition, Alpine fir and lodgepole pine are found in the lower areas along the Alaska Highway across the southern Yukon. A varied animal life inhabits the forested valleys. The larger mammals include black and brown (grizzly) bears; caribou, deer, and moose; and mountain goats and sheep at higher elevations. Timber wolves are common. Game birds such as grouse and ptarmigan are found, and waterfowl include many species of geese, swans, and ducks. The usual furbearers trapped by the Indian population include muskrat, mink, marten, lynx, weasel, fox, fisher, and squirrel. In the river itself are found species of such fish as Arctic grayling, burbot, pike, salmon, and whitefish. People and economy The Yukon River basin has remained sparsely populated in the nearly two centuries since it was first settled by Europeans. The lure of mineral wealth has been the main attraction of the region, and mining has maintained several of the settlements.

Gold brought people to Fairbanks and Dawson; when the gold was depleted, Fairbanks continued to grow as it took on administrative and transportation functions for east-central Alaska, but the population of Dawson declined to only a tiny fraction of its size in the heyday of the gold rush. In the 1950s the Yukon territorial capital was moved from Dawson to the more accessible city of Whitehorse, on the Alaska Highway. Whitehorse then developed transportation and service functions for the other small settlements in the southern Yukon region and became the largest city in the territory. Dawson, on the bank of the Yukon River in the Yukon territory. George Hunter Eyjafjallajökull volcano Mines were always marginal economic operations in the Yukon River basin because the area is far from world markets and had only a few land-transport routes. Lead, zinc, and silver were produced at Keno City, near Mayo, from the 1920s to the late 1980s, but the high-grade ore had to be transported southward to Trail, B.C., near the U.S.-Canadian border, for smelting.

From the early 1970s to the late 1990s, copper and base metals were mined at Faro, on the Pelly River west of the Mackenzie Mountains, and ore concentrates were transported by truck to Whitehorse. Some gold is still extracted intermittently from alluvial deposits in several Yukon tributaries, and deposits of tungsten, iron, and coal are known. Other economic activities are of minor importance in the Yukon basin. Fur trapping has been the traditional livelihood for the region’s Indians, but low monetary returns plus the attraction of better pay from wage labour in the towns have taken many Indians away from their former migratory lives. Agriculture is a minor activity. Although vegetables, pasturage, and coarse grains can be grown during the long days of the short summer, only a small number of operating farms exist; most of the food consumed in Whitehorse, for example, is shipped in from southern Canadian farms. Perhaps the main resource of the Yukon basin is its scenery, isolation, and sparse population, all of which are attractive to tourists seeking to escape the more crowded and less scenically endowed areas of the continent.

The many vistas of the winding river, its forested slopes supporting game and wildlife, and the game fish in the tributary lakes are all part of an attractive natural environment that has become more difficult to find in southern regions. A major recreational area is Yukon–Charley Rivers National Preserve in Alaska, which stretches westward for some 130 miles (210 km) of the Yukon’s course from the Canadian border and encompasses the small Charley River basin south of the Yukon. Section of white-water rapids on the Charley River, a tributary of the Yukon River, … Coral Conway/U.S. National Park Service History The delta mouth of the Yukon River was known to the Russians when they occupied nearby St. Michael Island in 1831, but the headwaters in British North America remained unknown for another decade. By 1838 Russian fur traders had explored the river as far inland as Nulato (Alaska), where they established a post near the junction of Koyukuk River. By 1846 the Russians had mapped almost 600 miles (970 km) of the lower river.

The trader Robert Campbell, of the Hudson’s Bay Company , explored Pelly River, one of the Yukon headwaters, in 1840. In 1848 he established a trading post at Fort Selkirk, at the junction of the Pelly and Yukon rivers, in order to trade with the local Indians. In 1851 Campbell explored the Yukon downstream to the junction of the Porcupine River, where Fort Yukon had been built in 1847. When the trading post at Fort Selkirk was burned by hostile Indians in 1852, however, Europeans withdrew from the upper Yukon basin for two decades. Water transportation gradually extended upstream from the mouth of the Bering Sea. Shallow-draft steamers had been operating on the river in Alaska after 1866, and the first riverboat reached the Yukon territory a few years later. The Yukon River became known to the world following the rich gold strikes in 1896 on the Klondike River in Canada and the subsequent Klondike gold rush .

In the summer of 1898 at least 20 vessels rounded the extremity of southwestern Alaska and navigated the lower Yukon River to reach the booming community of Dawson City (the name later was shortened to Dawson). Other gold seekers took a shorter route by penetrating north through the Coast Mountains from Skagway, Alaska; they made crude boats or rafts on Bennett Lake and floated downstream to the rapids near Whitehorse. From there riverboats took passengers and freight downstream to Dawson. When gold-mining activity declined during the years following World War I , the use of water transport on the Yukon River also decreased. The riverboats ceased to operate on the Canadian part of the river in the 1950s, being replaced by road and air transport to Dawson and other small towns. Miners panning for gold in the Klondike region in 1897, western Yukon, northwestern Canada, near … The Bettmann Archive Yukon River - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) The longest river in the U.S.

state of Alaska and one of the longest in North America, the Yukon River originates in Canada, in Atlin and Tagish lakes near the border between the Yukon territory and British Columbia. The river rises within 15 miles (24 kilometers) of the Pacific Ocean. It flows northwestward out of Yukon and continues through Alaska to the Arctic Circle, where it turns abruptly. It then flows generally southwestward to enter the Bering Sea at Norton Sound, on Alaska’s west coast. Estimates of the Yukon River’s length vary from 1,770 to 2,300 miles (2,850 to 3,700 kilometers). Article Contributors Yukon River Yukon River Overview The Yukon River is such a giant; no words can accurately describe the scale of things along its more than 2000-mile length. There are sloughs running through large wooded islands that are bigger than most rivers, and if you need to be on one side of the river at a certain point, you better start many miles in advance getting to that side.

Running out of the Canadian subarctic and across the entire breadth of Alaska to where its gigantic delta meets the Bering Sea, the Yukon would take a lifetime of exploring to learn a fraction of its lessons. It has been carrying water all through the last ice age as part of the ice-free corridor that may have linked the subarctic regions with the southern latitudes and has been home to the Athabaskan Native groups for eons. There is a stigma to floating the Yukon that is unlike most other river journeys and it is a big undertaking but is generally a mild river with a few rapids in the Canadian section and strong eddy lines at every turn. Strong winds can create 3-foot waves and getting stopped is never an easy task. Put In & Take Out Options The Yukon is so long, there are many sections of river to float, so that one man's put in is another man's takeout. There are 1400 miles of the river in the state of Alaska and 900 miles in Canada. Of course you could land a floatplane almost anywhere to start or end a trip, but the Yukon does have enough road access to yield some good sections of river with access.

There is the Canadian section, The Yukon Charley section, the Yukon Flats section, the haul road section and the far western section to consider. The most logical upper access point is in Whitehorse Yukon Territory, unless you went all the way to Lake Bennett or Lake Atlin at the river's beginning. From Whitehorse there begins a 460-mile section of river that runs to Dawson where road access occurs. From Dawson the river runs into Alaska to the first real access, the Taylor Highway, at the town of Eagle Alaska, 240 miles below Dawson. From Eagle, it is 158 miles to where the river next sees road access at the remote town of Circle Alaska at the end of the Steese Highway. From Circle the river begins it's sweeping bend to the southwest to where the Dalton Highway crosses the river below Steven's Village after 200 miles. After going under the Dalton Highway you are on the way to a section of river without road access but there are numerous villages where regular commercial air service is your ticket out. Below the haul road a likely destination might be Galena, 310 miles away, where the Yukon starts its run to the south and to its giant delta region.

At Mountain Village the great river turns into a giant maze of braids and might be a logical place to end a trip on this lower part of the river. The village of Emmonak, near the river's mouth, might be as far as you want to go into the western delta region and is the regional hub for air traffic. The Trip Lake Bennett to Whitehorse: 100 miles (5 to 7 days) The road to Skagway from Whitehorse offers the access to the headwater lakes of the Upper Yukon River. It gives access to Lake Bennett or Lake Tagish or even the far reaches of Lake Atlin, the true headwaters. Where you start is probably dependent upon vehicles and drivers with the first opportunity at Lake Bennett, where you can paddle its length into Lake Tagish and on down to its outlet into the Yukon proper. From here, a 3 to 4 mile an hour current will take you the remaining distance to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. Whitehorse to Dawson: 460 miles (20 to 24 days) From Whitehorse the river is already a big river with riverboat traffic and wide reaches.

The Takhini River enters on river left about 12 miles from town. It winds back on itself numerous times as it runs past the suburban reaches of the outskirts of Whitehorse until it reaches the 30-mile long Lake Leberge. This is the most dangerous part of this section of river as the lake often has high winds and can capsize a canoe easily. Stay to the right hand shore for best results. After exiting Lake Leberge you have 15 miles to the confluence with the Teslin River and another 20 mile to the confluence with the Big Salmon River. Here the river swings to the west and heads to the village of Carmacks on the Klondike Highway. Beyond Carmacks a few miles is the Five Finger Rapid, a large section of river that passes through a set of rock islands that can create some waves. Stay to the right hand channel for easiest passage. After Five Fingers, the river settles into its big 5-mile an hour current and for the next 150 miles you are away from roads and will join several big rivers as the Yukon gains water. First, the White River enters from river left, then the Stewart River on river right.

Once you arrive in Dawson you can be treated to all amenities and services. It is here the Top of the World Highway enters Canada from Alaska, with ferryboat services for cars and the Klondike River joins from river right. Dawson to Eagle: 156 miles (7 to 10 days) From Dawson, the Yukon has become a giant river and runs northwest as it heads to the border with Alaska. The Ogilvie Mountains form the valley wall to the north and after 40 miles the Forty Mile River enters on river left. From Forty Mile it is about 110 miles to Eagle where the next access road is found. There is a small monument where you enter the USA and a cleared swath of land. Eagle to Circle: 258 miles (10 to 14 days) Just down river of town is the Eagle Bluffs that force the river into a big turn and is a spot where spring breakup sometimes forms ice dams and floods the river valley. There is a strong 5-mile an hour current all through here. This stretch of the Yukon is a classic bit of wide, huge river with islands and channels.

Not far ahead you enter the Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve and for over a hundred miles you will be in the preserve. Running northwest and then west the river passes the mouth of the Charley coming in from river left. About ten miles past the Charley confluence, the river flows due west past a series of cabins known as Slaven's, McGregor and Woodchopper which are on the trail of the 1000 mile Yukon Quest SledDog race. There are fish wheels and likely motorboats all along here. After another 15 miles, the big river swings to the north and pushes up against the left shore at Takoma Bluffs. A brief swing to the west is followed by a mostly northward flow as the last 40 miles flow past. Be sure and stay to the left as you get closer to Circle—there is a channel that goes to the right and rejoins the river below Circle. Circle to Dalton Highway Bridge: 310 miles (15 to 20 days) At Circle the river continues to run northwest and enters the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Reserve and when you pass the town of Fort Yukon, the confluence with the Porcupine River is reached.

Here the river system is tens of miles wide with channels through big wooded islands and thousands of lakes. Where it meets up with the Porcupine, the Yukon seems to begin its search for a direct route to the sea and begins a run to the southwest for hundreds of miles. Past Venetie and the confluence with the Chandalar River, past Beaver, past King's Slough Village with dozen's of islands and sloughs to tempt you away from the main channel. Once you reach Steven's Village the river will sweep due south for a 5-mile section, past Fort Hamlin. Then it runs due west the final 20 mile stretch to where the Dalton Highway Bridge is found. Best take out is on river right below the bridge. Dalton Highway to Galena: 320 miles (15 to 20 days) Below the Dalton highway is an area more connected by riverboat than road, so boat traffic becomes more and more common. At one point the river swings around 180 degrees to run east for a bit where it steers away from the Ray Mountains. Soon it straightens onto a SSW course.

At the town of Tanana is the confluence with the Tanana River, a giant river in its own right, and the village has a grocery store and a few other services and is on the right side of the river below the huge confluence. Where the Tozitna River enters from the right, the Yukon is pushed to the left and a large set of islands is formed. The Tozitna slough is a nifty short cut. A string of native villages are through here, with Ruby 50 miles before Galena. Ruby is another hub village and has a store and the Nowitna National Wildlife Refuge is nearby. Galena is another major river village with a fishing industry and processing plants. At one time there was a military installation here that caused a sort of boomtown atmosphere for a while. Galena to Mountain Village: 420 miles (16 to 21 days) From Galena, the river continues its westward migration until the Nulato Hills blocks the way and forces the river to hug the base of the hills and turn SSW past Koyukok, Nulato, and Kaltag.

As you approach Kaltag the down river view is actually an upriver view of the Unalakleet River. This is where the Iditarod Sled Dog Trail portages to the coast, through this valley you see on approach to Kaltag. At Kaltag the river jogs due south a bit and starts winding past big wooded islands. The current is strong and winds are a common problem through here. This region is the Innoko National Wildlife Refuge and you pass Bullfrog, Eagle, Blackburn, and Fox Point Islands to where the village of Grayling sits on the right side of the river. After passing Anvik, Paradise, and Holy Cross the river soon swings from south to west and you begin the long journey into the Yukon delta country. All along the remaining distance here are small villages with names like Dogfish Village, Russian Mission, Kakamut, Marshall, and Pilot Station. Once you pass Pitkas Point and after the confluence with the Andreafsky River, a National Wild and Scenic River entering from river right, Mountain Village marks the point where the river begins to braid a lot and turns to the north.

Mountain Village to Emmonak: 80 miles (4 to 6 days) The home stretch here is open country and exposed to the extreme weather that can happen here. Emmonak is the recommended destination as it is the regional hub out here and offers the best flight home options. Regardless, know your way through here and get any specific details you can from pilots or local informants. Past Mountain Village the river runs north for sometime and at a point about 25 miles north of MV, stay in the left main channel as the northward flowing, smaller channel goes well away from Emmonak. Fish Village is along here. Soon after this point, the river swings to the west and just at the point where the river starts to turn to the southwest there is a channel to the right you must take to get to Emmonak. If you take the turn to the south the next village is Alakanuk. Ask a local in a boat or on shore. Other Advice Camping out in the open on gravel or sand is the best way to avoid mosquitos. There is never a moment when you are not in bear country during this trip.

USGS Maps Charley River A-1, A-2, B-2, B-3, B-4, B-5, B-6, C-6, D-6 Circle C-1, D-1 Yukon River - The Canadian Encyclopedia MLA 7th Edition James Marsh "Yukon River" The Canadian Encyclopedia. Eds. . Toronto: Historica Canada, 2006. Web. 19 Jan. 2017. James Marsh "Yukon River" The Canadian Encyclopedia. Eds. . Toronto: Historica Canada, 2006. Web. 19 Jan. 2017. APA 6th Edition James Marsh, R. The Canadian Encyclopedia. (2006). Yukon River. Retrieved January 19, 2017, from James Marsh, R. The Canadian Encyclopedia. (2006). Yukon River. Retrieved January 19, 2017, from Chicago 16th Edition James Marsh. "Yukon River" In The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada, 1985–. Article published October 16, 2006.

James Marsh. "Yukon River" In The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada, 1985–. Article published October 16, 2006. Turabian James Marsh. 2006. Yukon River. The Canadian Encyclopedia (accessed January 19, 2017). James Marsh. 2006. Yukon River. The Canadian Encyclopedia (accessed January 19, 2017). While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Yukon River River // Key Terms Drainage area (or basin) The land surface area surrounding a river, typically bounded by higher elevations, where all of the rainfall or snowmelt flows into that river. Mean drainage The average volume of water that flows out of the river over a specific unit of time, usually cubic metres per second. The average is calculated for the entire year, but there are months when flow is naturally higher or lower. Tributary A river or stream that flows into a larger river. The point at which the two rivers meet is called the confluence.

Support The Canadian Encyclopedia Geography Yukon River At 3,185 km (1,149 km of which lie in Canada), the Yukon River is the fifth-longest river in North America. At 3,185 km (1,149 km of which lie in Canada), the Yukon River is the fifth-longest river in North America. Its headwaters are in the northwest corner of British Columbia , at the province’s border with the Yukon . It flows north and northwest across the Yukon into Alaska, then west to Norton Sound on the Bering Sea. Within the large central plateau of the Yukon, ringed by the Mackenzie Mountains to the east and the St. Elias range to the southwest, the Yukon River and its tributaries form the region’s dominant drainage basin. Course In Canada, four principal tributaries feed the Yukon River: the Teslin River, the Pelly River, the White River and the Stewart River. In Alaska, the major tributaries are the Porcupine, Tanana and Koyukuk rivers. The Yukon is a slow-moving, braided stream, and is shallow except when swollen by spring waters.

It can be subdivided into two regions: upstream of its confluence with the Porcupine the river rises modestly, but over the remaining 1,600 km to the Bering Sea it’s relatively flat. From Fort Selkirk to Dawson , the Yukon is sprinkled with wooded islands, and its long, wide stretches are bordered by mountains. Past Dawson, the valley becomes narrow and then, as it enters Alaska, widens into the broad interior plateau called the “Yukon Flats.” Ecology Compared to similar-sized river basins in more moderate climates, there are fewer fish species found in the Yukon River, and fewer plant and animal species along the river banks. The major fish species include Arctic grayling, an important sport fish, Dolly Varden ( trout ), inconnu, burbot, cisco and three species of salmon : chum, coho and chinook. Chinook are found from the mouth of the Yukon River to its headwaters. Some never leave freshwater environments, but most return to the mouth of the Yukon River from the Bering Sea in late spring and early summer, entering Canadian waters in mid to late July.

Rainbow trout were introduced at Jackson Lake in the 1950s but have colonized the watershed relatively slowly. The shores of the river are dominated by alpine tundra in the upper basin and boreal forest elsewhere. Spruce , lodgepole pine , balsam poplar , trembling aspen and white birch all border the river’s main stem, with alder and willow species found closest to the water. Birds and mammals, including bald eagles, and brown and black bears, prey on fish living in the river and are critically important to the river’s food webs. Other species, most notably beaver , muskrat and moose , build lodges, burrows and dams, and consume plant life along the shores of the Yukon. Smaller invertebrates that live in the river include mussels , clams , snails and many different insect species. History In Canada, the Yukon River and its headwaters traverse the territories of the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in , Tutchone , Tagish and Tlingit . In turn, the river is central to Indigenous cultural landscapes.

The story cycle of the Athapaskan hero Tachokaii (“the Traveller”) tells of the making of both the river and time itself. According to these stories, the birchbark canoe was created on the shores of the river, where it widens into the south end of Lake Laberge. In addition to the canoe, Indigenous people also travelled the river with mooseskin boats and rafts that could carry entire households. Chinook and chum salmon migrate up the Yukon River in two separate summer runs. To harvest fish from these runs, Indigenous people would move to fish camps in the late spring and early summer. Using stones to hammer in the posts, they built fish weirs that trapped the salmon, forcing them to swim along the length of the weir looking for a way through. Where the weir opened, fish baskets would capture the salmon. One of the most important historical fish trap locations for the Selkirk people (or Northern Tutchone) was on an island at Three Way Channel. Sometime in the late 19th century, the Yukon River shifted its course, leaving the site too dry for fishing.

These Indigenous communities had extensive trade networks that predated the arrival of Europeans in the late 18th century, when the Russian-American Company established trade posts in Alaska. The Hudson’s Bay Company arrived in the mid-19th century, establishing Fort Yukon at the junction of the Porcupine and Yukon rivers in 1847, and Fort Selkirk a year later at the junction of the Yukon and the Pelly. Shortly after the Alaska Commercial Company established Fort Reliance in 1874, they introduced steamboats onto the Yukon River. In the mid-1880s, prospectors and miners arrived in the river’s watershed. Beginning in 1885, a series of gold strikes foreshadowed the 1896 find on Bonanza Creek, which in turn led to the Klondike Gold Rush . The gold rush transformed the Yukon and the river, greatly increasing steamboat traffic and the number of newcomers. Although the main mining operations were on tributaries of the Yukon River, Dawson City — the territory’s principal settlement — was at the confluence of the Klondike and the Yukon.

Just south of Dawson City was Tr’ochëk, an ancient Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in fish camp. Miners purchased dwellings from the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in at Tr’ochëk, and the sawmills and rafted logs that came with their settlements began to damage the salmon fishery. Under the leadership of Chief Isaac, the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in moved to Moosehide, 5 km downstream. Sternwheelers continued to operate, serving the smaller population that stayed on at Dawson City after the gold rush. When the Alaska Highway was completed in 1942 it reoriented the activity in the central Yukon away from the river. Whitehorse , situated on the Yukon River, became the capital of the territory in 1953, and shortly thereafter construction began on a hydroelectric dam at the White Horse Rapids (for which the community was named). The power plant opened in 1958 and continues to supply electricity to the city. A 366-metre-long wood and concrete fish ladder was constructed to help migrating salmon bypass the dam to get to their spawning beds.

The river remains central to Indigenous cultural landscapes in the Yukon and also serves as a popular tourist destination for those interested in wilderness canoe trips. Many visitors paddle down the river each year to the Dawson City Music Festival and the biannual Moosehide Gathering. Environmental Concerns Since the late 20th century, climate change has caused river ice to break up earlier in the spring, sometimes aggravating natural hazards like ice-jam floods, which have historically caused damage in Dawson City. Each fall Whitehorse discharges its treated sewage into the Yukon River, where it joins waste waters from smaller communities such as Dawson. Elevated contaminant levels have been found in fish in Lake Laberge, notably lake trout, burbot and northern pike; however, these contaminants are thought to originate from distant sources. Yukon - Charley Rivers National Preserve (U.S. National Park Service) Contact Us History and Wildness Located in Interior Alaska, Yukon-Charley Rivers offers exploration in a largely untouched landscape. Whether you float the mighty Yukon River or paddle the Charley River's whitewater, your memories will last a lifetime. Geology, cultural history, gold rush remnants, wildlife, and vast scenery will be a part of your experience.

But, the strongest element will be solitude. Your adventure awaits.

Question: Where is the Klondike River?
Answer: Yukon Territory, Canada