The Chilkat 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 ...
in
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 ...
and southeastern
Alaska
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 north ...
that flows southward from the
Coast Range to the
Chilkat Inlet and ultimately
Lynn Canal
Lynn Canal is an inlet (not an artificial canal) into the mainland of southeast Alaska.
Lynn Canal runs about from the inlets of the Chilkat River south to Chatham Strait and Stephens Passage. At over in depth, Lynn Canal is the deepest fjor ...
. It is long. It begins at
Chilkat Glacier, in Alaska, flows west and south in British Columbia for , enters Alaska and continues southwest for another .
It reaches the ocean at the abandoned area of Wells, Alaska and deposits into a long delta area.
The river was named by the Russians for the Chilkat group of
Tlingit
The Tlingit or Lingít ( ) are Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. , they constitute two of the 231 federally recognized List of Alaska Native tribal entities, Tribes of Alaska. Most Tlingit are Alaska Natives; ...
, called /t͡ʃiɬqut/ in their own language,
who lived in the region. The name means "salmon storehouse".
[
Near the Chilkat River is the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, where thousands of ]bald eagle
The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...
s appear between October and February, to take advantage of late salmon runs. Nearby Haines, the nearest town, is the most common organization spot for birdwatchers.
Threats
The Chilkat was listed as one of America's Most Endangered Rivers in 2019 and again in 2023 due to threats from the Palmer Project, a proposed underground copper and zinc mine sited upstream from the Tlingit
The Tlingit or Lingít ( ) are Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. , they constitute two of the 231 federally recognized List of Alaska Native tribal entities, Tribes of Alaska. Most Tlingit are Alaska Natives; ...
village of Klukwan. If built, the project is feared to result in pollution from acidic wastewater laced with heavy metals and hydrocarbons.
Tributaries
* Klehini River
* Tsirku River
See also
*Chilkat Peninsula
The Chilkat Peninsula is a peninsula in Lynn Canal, Southeast Alaska, that divides the Chilkoot and Chilkat Inlets and divides the Chilkat and Chilkoot watersheds. The peninsula extends into Lynn Canal as well. It was first charted in 1794 by ...
* List of rivers of Alaska
*List of rivers of British Columbia
The following is a partial list of rivers of British Columbia, organized by drainage basin, watershed. Some large creeks are included either because of size or historical importance
(See Alphabetical List of British Columbia rivers ). Also includ ...
References
{{authority control
Rivers of Haines Borough, Alaska
Rivers of Alaska
Rivers of the Boundary Ranges
Rivers of British Columbia
International rivers of North America
Tlingit