The Skagway River is a

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and the state of

Alaska, United States Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the norther ...

, flowing southwest across the international boundary at just southeast of the

White Pass White Pass, also known as the Dead Horse Trail (elevation ), is a mountain pass through the Boundary Ranges of the Coast Mountains on the border of the U.S. state of Alaska and the province of British Columbia, Canada. It leads from Skagway, Ala ...

. Flowing slightly northwest after crossing the boundary, it turns south-southwest to meet the sea at the head of

Taiya Inlet Taiya Inlet is part of the upper Lynn Canal located in the U.S. state of Alaska. Taiya Inlet is an estuary which lies in a deep valley, with Skagway, Alaska at its north end and the remainder of the Lynn Canal at its south end. History Taiya Inl ...

. There is a vehicle bridge over the river at the north end of Skagway as well as two pedestrian bridges, one next to the vehicle bridge and one at the mouth of the river near the airport. The river is not navigable by raft or canoe or kayak because of the supports under the vehicle bridge and the shallow swiftly-flowing water. In addition, there is a great quantity of scrap metal debris which has been dumped into the river over the past century. When some people have tried to raft the mile to the ocean, their rafts have been destroyed under the bridge by the accumulation of tree branches and vegetation that is choked there. __TOC__ Heading north (upstream) from its mouth, there are four major branches of the Skagway River:

East Fork

The East Fork branches off the Skagway River, opposite

milepost A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway, railway line, canal or border, boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks like Mileage sign, mileage signs; or they c ...

4.8 of the White Pass railroad. At milepost 5.8, the railroad makes a U-turn, crosses the East Fork, and loops back to follow the main river.

White Pass Fork

The Skagway River turns to the east and White Pass Fork branches off to the north, opposite milepost 12 of the railroad. At milepost 14.2, the railroad makes a U-turn, crosses the Skagway River, and loops back to follow White Pass Fork.

Cut-off Gulch

White Pass Fork splits into Cut-off Gulch to the east and Dead Horse Gulch to the north, opposite milepost 18 of the railroad. At milepost 18.6, the railroad makes a left turn and crosses Cut-off Gulch.

Dead Horse Gulch

After crossing Cut-off Gulch, the railroad goes through a tunnel which comes out along Dead Horse Gulch. The head of Dead Horse Gulch is at Pump House Lake, at milepost 20 of the railroad., at pp. 3, 19, 28 (maps). Confusingly, at various times, the ''entirety'' of White Pass Fork, from the Skagway River to Pump House Lake, has also been known both as “Cutoff Canyon” and as “Dead Horse Gulch.”

References

External links

Atlin District Cassiar Land District International rivers of North America Rivers of the Municipality of Skagway Borough, Alaska Rivers of the Boundary Ranges Rivers of Alaska Rivers of British Columbia {{Alaska-river-stub