Sixtymile River
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Sixtymile River (also "Sixtymile Creek") (
Hän The Hän, Han or Hwëch'in / Han Hwech’in (meaning "People of the River, i.e. Yukon River", in English also Hankutchin) are a First Nations people of Canada and an Alaska Native Athabaskan people of the United States; they are part of the At ...
: ''Khel ndek'') is a tributary of the
Yukon River The Yukon River ( Gwich'in: ''Ųųg Han'' or ''Yuk Han'', Yup'ik: ''Kuigpak'', Inupiaq: ''Kuukpak'', Deg Xinag: ''Yeqin'', Hän: ''Tth'echù'' or ''Chuu k'onn'', Southern Tutchone: Chu Nìikwän, russian: Юкон, Yukon) is a major watercourse ...
, which heads in the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
before crossing into
Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...
, Canada.


Geography

This stream heads in Alaska and has a length, after crossing into Canadian territory measured along the valley, of about , and following the windings of the stream, of about in total. Its fall, measured roughly with the barometer, from the boundary to the Yukon, amounts to , and the average grade of the valley to a little over to the mile. At the international boundary, it is a rapid winding stream averaging about in width and interrupted at frequent intervals by steep bars covered with only a few inches of water. The upper portion of the river from the boundary to California creek can hardly be considered a navigable stream even for small boats. Below California creek, the volume of water increases and the descent becomes less difficult, but bars and rapids continue almost to the mouth and no part of the river is easy to ascend. The tributary streams are small, as a rule, but two large streams, one draining the country to the west and one other to the south, come in within four miles of each other, nearly opposite Indian River, and these branches nearly double the volume of the main river. Towards its mouth, Sixtymile has an average width of from . Below Sixtymile, the Yukon contains many islands. The valley of Sixtymile is generally flat-bottomed, the flats varying from a to nearly in width. The sides are usually terraced and in places, the stream for long distances, has cut a secondary rock-walled channel, similar to that noticed on Indian river and Stewart River, through the bottom of its old valley. The country bordering Sixtymile River forms part of the Yukon plateau, a highland worn into rounded hills and long zigzag ridges, but containing no well-defined and continuous mountain ranges. At several points, high hills usually of andesite, project a few hundred feet above the general level. Miller Creek enters Sixtymile about from its mouth. In addition to Miller Creek, Glacier, Gold, Little Gold, and Bed Rock creeks are all tributaries of Sixtymile. Sixtymile Butte, a prominent mountain above the headwaters of the stream, is of granite.


Geology

At the boundary and down the valley to Bedrock creek, the rocks consist principally of igneous schists of various kinds, largely granite-gneisses, with which are associated some quartzites and other clastic schists. These schists constitute the gold-bearing rocks. They are replaced below Bedrock creek by andesites which continue down to a point west of the mouth of Gold creek. The andesites extend up Miller Creek nearly and up Gold creek over .


History

Sixtymile and Fortymile were part of the Yukon district during the Klondike Gold Rush, with at least 1,000 men working the two streams in 1895. At the mouth of Sixtymile a townsite of that name was located and served as the headquarters for upwards of 100 miners. Messrs. Arthur Harper & Co. had a trading post and a sawmill on an island at the mouth of the stream, both of which were run by Joseph Ladue, one of the partners of the firm, and who was at one time in the employ of the Alaska Commercial Company.


See also

*
List of rivers of Alaska This is a List of rivers in Alaska, which are at least fifth-order according to the Strahler method of stream classification, and an incomplete list of otherwise-notable rivers and streams. Alaska has more than 12,000 rivers, and thousands more st ...
*
List of rivers of Yukon This is a list of rivers of Yukon. Arctic Ocean watershed * Mackenzie River watershed **Upper Liard River *** Rancheria River **** Little Rancheria River *** Frances River *** Hyland River *** Coal River *** La Biche River *** Beaver River (Liard ...


References

* * * * * {{authority control Rivers of Alaska Rivers of Yukon Tributaries of the Yukon River Hän