The
Stikine River is a river, historically also the
Stickeen River, approximately 610 km (379 mi) long, in northwestern
British ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
in
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and southeastern
AlaskaAlaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Considered one of the last truly wild major rivers in
British ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, it drains a rugged, largely pristine, area east of the
Coast MountainsThe Coast Mountains are a major mountain range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges, of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia. They are so-named because of their proximity to the sea coast, and are often...
, cutting a fast-flowing course through the mountains in deep
glacierA glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
-lined gorges to empty into
Eastern PassageEastern Passage is a channel in Southeast Alaska, U.S.A. It extends southeast from the mouth of the Stikine River to The Narrows, separating the northeastern half of Wrangell Island from the mainland. It was named in 1877 by William Healy Dall of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey...
, just north of
the city of WrangellWrangell is a city and borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2000 census the population was 2,308.Its Tlingit name is Ḵaachx̱aana.áakʼw . The Tlingit people residing in the Wrangell area, who were there centuries before Europeans, call themselves the Shtaxʼhéen Ḵwáan after the nearby Stikine...
, which is situated at the north end of
Wrangell IslandWrangell Island is in the Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle of southeastern Alaska. It is long and 8–23 km wide. It has a land area of , making it the 29th largest island in the United States...
in the
Alexander ArchipelagoThe Alexander Archipelago is a long archipelago, or group of islands, of North America off the southeastern coast of Alaska. It contains about 1,100 islands, which are the tops of the submerged coastal mountains that rise steeply from the Pacific Ocean. Deep channels and fjords separate the...
.
Name origin
The name of the river comes from its Tlingit name
Shtax' Héen, meaning "cloudy river (with the
miltMilt is the seminal fluid of fish, mollusks, and certain other water-dwelling animals who reproduce by spraying this fluid, which contains the sperm, onto roe .-Milt as food:...
of spawning
salmonSalmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
)", or alternately "bitter waters (from the tidal estuaries at its mouth)".
Description
The Stikine watershed encompasses approximately (52,000 km²) 20,000 mi². The river's
Grand CanyonThe Grand Canyon of the Stikine is a 45 mile stretch of the Stikine River in northern British Columbia, Canada. It has been compared to the Grand Canyon of the Colorado in scale and was called the "Yosemite of the North" by naturalist John Muir. The canyon is home to a large population of...
was compared by naturalist
John MuirJohn Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, especially in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, have been read by millions...
to Yosemite.
The Stikine River arises in the
Spatsizi PlateauThe Spatsizi Plateau is a plateau in the upper basin of the Stikine River in north-central British Columbia, Canada. Most of the plateau, which is a sub-plateau of the Stikine Plateau, is enshrined in either Spatsizi Plateau Wilderness Provincial Park or Spatsizi Headwaters Provincial Park...
, the southeasternmost subplateau of the
Stikine PlateauThe Stikine Plateau is a plateau in northern British Columbia, Canada. It lies between the Boundary Ranges of the Coast Mountains on the west and southwest and the Cassiar Mountains along its northeast, and between the Skeena Mountains on its south and southeast and the Jennings and Nakina Rivers...
, a large and partly mountainous plateau lying between the
Stikine RangesThe Stikine Ranges are a mountain range in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. They are the northernmost subdivision of the Cassiar Mountains and among the least explored and most undeveloped parts of the province.-Sub-ranges:*Beady Range...
of the
Cassiar MountainsThe Cassiar Mountains are the most northerly group of the Northern Interior Mountains in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the Yukon Territory. They lie north and west of the Omineca Mountains, west of the northernmost Rockies and the Rocky Mountain Trench, north of the Hazelton...
(E) and the
Boundary RangesThe Boundary Ranges, also known in the singular and as the Alaska Boundary Range, are the largest and most northerly subrange of the Coast Mountains...
(W) in northern British Columbia. From there the river flows in a large northward arc turning to the west and southwest, past the gold rush and
TahltanTahltan refers to a Northern Athabaskan people who live in northern British Columbia around Telegraph Creek, Dease Lake, and Iskut.-Social Organization:...
community of
Telegraph CreekTelegraph Creek is a small community located off Highway 37 in Northern British Columbia at the confluence of the Stikine River and Telegraph Creek. The only permanent settlement on the Stikine River, it is home to approximately 350 members of the Tahltan First Nation, as well as another 50...
. Above Telegraph Creek is the spectacular 45 mi (75 km) long and 300 m (1000 ft) deep
Grand Canyon of the StikineThe Grand Canyon of the Stikine is a 45 mile stretch of the Stikine River in northern British Columbia, Canada. It has been compared to the Grand Canyon of the Colorado in scale and was called the "Yosemite of the North" by naturalist John Muir. The canyon is home to a large population of...
, the upper end of which is in the area of the 130th Line of Longitude. Below Telegraph Creek, which was at the head of river navigation during the
StikineThe Stikine Gold Rush was a minor but important gold rush in the Stikine Country of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. The rush's discoverer was Alexander "Buck" Choquette, who staked a claim at Choquette Bar in 1861, just downstream from the confluence of the Stikine and Anuk Rivers, at...
and Cassiar Gold Rushes, the river cuts through the
Tahltan HighlandThe Tahltan Highland is an upland area of plateau and relatively lower mountain ranges in British Columbia, Canada, lying east of the Boundary Ranges and south of the Inklin River...
and in this region are the confluences of the
TuyaThe Tuya River is a major tributary of the Stikine River in far northwestern British Columbia, Canada. Rising at Tuya Lake, which is on the south side of Tuya Mountains Provincial Park, it flows south to meet the Stikine River where that river bisects the Tahltan Highland. Its main tributary is...
and
Tahltan RiverThe Tahltan River is a river in northern British Columbia, Canada. It flows southwest into the Stikine River. The First Nations community of Tahltan is located at the confluence....
s. Much farther down, nearer the U.S. border, is the confluence of the
IskutThe Iskut River is the largest tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada, entering it a few miles above its entry into Alaska....
and several other notably large (though short) rivers such as the
PorcupineThe Porcupine River is a river that runs through Alaska and the Yukon. Having its source in the Ogilvie Mountains north of Dawson City, Yukon, it flows north, veers to the southwest, goes through the community of Old Crow, Yukon, flowing into the Yukon River at Fort Yukon, Alaska...
and
ChutineThe Chutine River, originally named the Clearwater River, is a major right tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located west of the Stikine Icecap and just inside the boundary between Alaska and British Columbia. The former settlement of Chutine or...
. After passing
Great GlacierGreat Glacier Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, created to protect the Great Glacier, one of the major sights along the lower Stikine River. The park lies on the river's west bank inland from the British Columbia-Alaska boundary, which lies a few miles downstream...
and
Choquette Hot Springs Provincial ParkChoquette Hot Springs Provincial Park is a provincial park in the Stikine Country region of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. Despite the park's name, the official and most commonly used name of the springs it was established to protect is Stikine River Hot Springs...
s and the old border-station at
Stikine, British ColumbiaStikine, also known formerly as Boundary, is an unincorporated locality and former customs post on the Stikine River, located on the Canadian side of the British Columbia-Alaska boundary on the Stikine River's west bank. The customs post was seasonal and operated in the summer months only...
, it passes through a steeply cut gorge in the
Boundary RangesThe Boundary Ranges, also known in the singular and as the Alaska Boundary Range, are the largest and most northerly subrange of the Coast Mountains...
along the Canada-U.S. border, and above that Grand Canyon of the Stikine. It briefly enters southeast Alaska for its lower 64 km (40 mi) to form a
deltaA delta is a landform that is formed at the mouth of a river where that river flows into an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, flat arid area, or another river. Deltas are formed from the deposition of the sediment carried by the river as the flow leaves the mouth of the river...
opposite
Mitkof IslandMitkof Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago in southeast Alaska, at . between Kupreanof Island to the west and the Alaska mainland to the east. It is about wide and long with a land area of , making it the 30th largest island in the United States.The island is relatively flat with...
, approximately 40 km (25 mi) north of
WrangellWrangell is a city and borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2000 census the population was 2,308.Its Tlingit name is Ḵaachx̱aana.áakʼw . The Tlingit people residing in the Wrangell area, who were there centuries before Europeans, call themselves the Shtaxʼhéen Ḵwáan after the nearby Stikine...
at the confluence of
Frederick SoundFrederick Sound is a passage of water in the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska that separates Kupreanof Island to the south from Admiralty Island in the north....
and
Sumner StraitSumner Strait is a strait in the Alexander Archipelago in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is about long and wide, extending from the mouth of the Stikine River to Iphigenia Bay on the Gulf of Alaska, separating Mitkof Island, Kupreanof Island, and Kuiu Island on the north...
. The USGS describes its estuary as being
Eastern PassageEastern Passage is a channel in Southeast Alaska, U.S.A. It extends southeast from the mouth of the Stikine River to The Narrows, separating the northeastern half of Wrangell Island from the mainland. It was named in 1877 by William Healy Dall of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey...
, which is the fjord-channel on the east side of
Wrangell IslandWrangell Island is in the Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle of southeastern Alaska. It is long and 8–23 km wide. It has a land area of , making it the 29th largest island in the United States...
, separating it from the mainland.
An international river
The outlet of the river is now in Alaska, but at the time of the boundary survey in 1901-03 it had been at the boundary; the lower part of the river has since filled in from
aggradationAggradation is the term used in geology for the increase in land elevation due to the deposition of sediment. Aggradation occurs in areas in which the supply of sediment is greater than the amount of material that the system is able to transport...
. According to the terms of the treaty, as per prior usage by mining and commercial traffic in the Stikine, Canadian marine traffic technically has the right of navigation of this river from the sea, independent of US border controls, but this is no longer in practical effect through disuse and because of the relocation of the river's mouth.
Tributaries
The Stikine's main tributaries are, in descending order from its source:
- Duti River
- Chukachida River
- Spatsizi River
The Spatsizi River is a tributary of the Stikine River, rising near Mount Gunanoot in the southeastern Spatsizi Plateau."Spatsizi" is a phrase from the Sekani language meaning "red goat", a reference to the habit of mountain goats in the region of rolling in the red dust of a particular mountain,...
- Pitman River
- McBride River
- Klappan River
The Klappan River is a major tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It flows north from an area known as the Sacred Headwaters, which is the source not only of this river but also of the Nass, Skeena, Spatsizi and Stikine Rivers...
- Tanzilla River
- Klastline River
- Tuya River
The Tuya River is a major tributary of the Stikine River in far northwestern British Columbia, Canada. Rising at Tuya Lake, which is on the south side of Tuya Mountains Provincial Park, it flows south to meet the Stikine River where that river bisects the Tahltan Highland. Its main tributary is...
- Little Tuya River
The Little Tuya River is a river in far northwestern British Columbia, Canada, flowing southeast from the Nahlin Plateau to meet its parent, the Tuya River a few kilometres upstream from the latter's confluence with the Stikine River. It is the Tuya's only significant tributary....
- Tahltan River
The Tahltan River is a river in northern British Columbia, Canada. It flows southwest into the Stikine River. The First Nations community of Tahltan is located at the confluence....
- Chutine River
The Chutine River, originally named the Clearwater River, is a major right tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located west of the Stikine Icecap and just inside the boundary between Alaska and British Columbia. The former settlement of Chutine or...
- Porcupine River
The Porcupine River is a left tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada, entering that stream south of the confluence of the Anuk River and above the confluence of the Iskut....
- Choquette River
The Choquette River is a tributary of the Stikine River, flowing west into that river just north of its confluence with the Iskut. The river is named for Alexander "Buck" Choquette, discoverer of the strike which launched the Stikine Gold Rush and the first non-native settler in the region, who...
- Scud River
- Iskut River
The Iskut River is the largest tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada, entering it a few miles above its entry into Alaska....
History
The river is navigable for approximately 210 km (130 mi) upstream from its mouth. It was used by the coastal Tlingit as a transportation route to the interior region. The first European to explore the river was
Samuel BlackSamuel Black was a Canadian fur trader and explorer noted for his exploration of the Finlay River and its tributaries in present-day north-central British Columbia, which helped to open up the Muskwa, Omineca, and Stikine areas to the fur trade; as well for his role as Chief factor of the Hudson's...
, who visited the headwaters during his
Finlay RiverThe Finlay River is a 402 km long river in north-central British Columbia flowing north and thence south from Thutade Lake in the Omineca Mountains to Williston Lake, the impounded waters of the Peace River formed by the completion of the W.A.C. Bennett Dam in 1968. Prior to this, the Finlay...
expedition in 1824. It was more extensively explored in 1838 by
Robert CampbellRobert Campbell was a Hudson's Bay Company fur trader and explorer. He explored a large part of the southern Yukon and established Fort Frances, Yukon on Frances Lake in the Liard River basin and Fort Selkirk, Yukon at the juncture of the Yukon River and the Pelly River. He was for a time in...
, of the
Hudson's Bay CompanyThe Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
, completing the last link in the company's transcontinental
canoeA canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
route. In 1879 the lower third was travelled by
John MuirJohn Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, especially in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, have been read by millions...
who likened it to "a Yosemite that was a hundred miles long". Muir recorded over 300 glaciers along the river's course. The
Grand Canyon of the StikineThe Grand Canyon of the Stikine is a 45 mile stretch of the Stikine River in northern British Columbia, Canada. It has been compared to the Grand Canyon of the Colorado in scale and was called the "Yosemite of the North" by naturalist John Muir. The canyon is home to a large population of...
has been successfully navigated by less than 50 expert whitewater kayakers. It is considered one of the world's most difficult whitewater rivers in that particular section.
From 1897 to 1898 it furnished one of the laboureous routes to the
Klondike Gold RushThe Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
in the Yukon Territory. Several railway schemes were floated to provide an "All Canadian" route to the Dawson goldfields—A Teslin Railway, Omineca Railway, and the Canadian Yukon Railway promoted by the CPR. Railway contractors were hired and ready to build the route, though the Federal Senate and American government prevented the five hundred mile project from proceeding. Several river steamers were built to haul materials to Glenora to aid the project.The first road bridge was built across the river in the 1970s as part of the Stewart-Cassiar Highway. In 1980,
BC HydroThe BC Hydro and Power Authority is a Canadian electric utility in the province of British Columbia generally known simply as BC Hydro. It is the main electric distributor, serving 1.8 million customers in most areas, with the exception of the Kootenay region, where FortisBC, a subsidiary of Fortis...
began to study the feasibility of building a five-dam project in the Grand Canyon, however the plan quickly led to opposition by conservation groups and a long struggle over the fate of the river. The mouth of the river in the United States provides a habitat for migratory birds and is protected as part of the
Stikine-LeConte WildernessThe Stikine-LeConte Wilderness is on the mainland of southeast Alaska, southeast of Petersburg and north of Wrangell, Alaska. The boundary extends from Frederick Sound on the west to the Alaska-Canada boundary on the east. The wilderness is in size...
Area.
The river is noted for its prolific
salmonSalmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
runs despite heavy depletion by commercial fish traps during the early 20th century. The force of the current in the river's Grand Canyon limits the salmon runs to the lower one-third of the river, and to its lower tributaries.
See also
- List of Alaska rivers
- List of British Columbia rivers
- Stikine Territory
The Stickeen Territories , also colloquially rendered as Stickeen Territory, Stikine Territory, and Stikeen Territory, was a territory of British North America whose brief existence began July 19, 1862, and concluded July of the following year. The region was split from the North-Western...
- Stikine Country
The Stikine Country, also referred to as the Stikine District or simply "the Stikine" , is one of the historical geographic regions of the Canadian province of British Columbia, located inland from the central Alaska Panhandle and comprising the basin of the Stikine River and its tributaries...
- Stikine Region
The Stikine Region is an unincorporated area in northwesternmost British Columbia, Canada and is the only area in B.C. not in a regional district...
- Stikine Ranges
The Stikine Ranges are a mountain range in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. They are the northernmost subdivision of the Cassiar Mountains and among the least explored and most undeveloped parts of the province.-Sub-ranges:*Beady Range...
- Stikine River Provincial Park
The Stikine River Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia. The park covers a total area of approximately 217,000 hectares. The main feature of the Stikine River Provincial Park is a portion of the Stikine River known as "The Grand Canyon"...
- Stikine, British Columbia
Stikine, also known formerly as Boundary, is an unincorporated locality and former customs post on the Stikine River, located on the Canadian side of the British Columbia-Alaska boundary on the Stikine River's west bank. The customs post was seasonal and operated in the summer months only...
(aka Boundary, 1930–1964)
- Stikine Strait
The Stikine Strait is a strait in the Alexander Archipelago of Alaska, located between Zarembo Island to the west and Etolin and Woronkofski Islands just southwest of the City of Wrangell. The strait's name derives from that of the Stikine River, the outlet of which is just northeast of Wrangell...
- Steamboats of the Stikine River
right|thumb|Beaver on the Willamette River, OregonSteamboats operated on the Stikine River in response to gold finds in northwestern British Columbia, Canada.- Early activity:...
External links