This makes it the longest river in Yukon and Alaska. It helps migrating Chinook salmon on the final leg … But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. long, and the principle river in Alaska; heads in Atlin Lake, British Columbia, then flows generally northwest through the Yukon Territory into Alaska, where it turns to the southwest and then to the north before entering the Bering Sea at Norton Sound. But what really happened during the Klondike Gold Rush? Some more interesting facts: -The Yukon Quest is known as one of the toughest dogsled races in the world. The drainage basin or watershed of the Yukon River encompasses 832,700 square kilometers (321,500 square miles) of North America, making it the fourth largest on the continent. The Yukon River Quest, at 715 kilometers (444 miles) is the longest annual canoe and kayak race in the world. Yukon is the ninth largest of Canada’s 13 provinces and territories. The source of the river is located in the northwest corner of British Columbia from which it proceeds to flow through Yukon Territory into Alaska and empties into the Bering Sea at the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. The Yukon Territory is large enough to hold the states of California, Arizona, Delaware and West Virginia. The Klondike gold rush saw an army descend upon Alaska and Northern Canada, headed for the Klondike river valley in search of their fortune. Fiver Finger Rapids and Rink Rapids are located on the Yukon River. The major exception is the Arctic Coastal Plain, a narrower eastward continuation of the same region in Alaska, which slopes down to the Beaufort Seafrom the British Mountains inland. During the Klondike Gold Rush (late 1800s, early 1900s) the Yukon River was the main means of transportation. It then flows sw to enter the Bering Sea. Numerous people have passed through the upper Yukon River region and left their histories to be interpreted. On average there are 269 hours of bright sunshin… The sediment-laden Tanana is rich in minerals. The Yukon River has a length of about 1,982 miles (3,190 km). The Yukon River flows northwest through the territory. The length of the Yukon River is around 3190 kilometers. During our Holland America Yukon/Alaska land tour we followed a large portion of the Yukon River. In the Athapaskan language, the word "Yukon" means "the great river" or "big river." Each year coho, chum, and Chinook (aka king) salmon return to their terminal streams in Alaska, the Yukon Territories, and British Columbia. 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. There are 2040 kilometers (1,267 miles) of the river in the state of Alaska and 1150 kilometers (715 miles) in Canada. The mighty Yukon River is a major watercourse through northwest North America. 10 Brachiosaurus Facts . The Yukon River is a river in northwestern North America.It starts in British Columbia, continues through the Yukon Territory, and ends in Alaska.It empties into the Bering Sea.It is the longest river in Alaska and the Yukon. If you’re looking for a river that has it all, you can’t do better than the Yukon River. Anglo-Saxon Food Facts: What Did the Anglo-Saxons Eat? There is a lot more to the Yukon River than exquisite landscape, as wolves, grizzly bears and moose are often seen at the river’s edge. Depending on which branch of the river you consider to be he main one, I count 5 or six vehicle bridges. The central part of Yukon receives 6.5 … On the summer solstice the sun rises at 4:27 AM and sets at 23:36 AM. Despite its length, there are only four vehicle-carrying bridges across the river. Charlie Chaplin: Facts and Information . Categories. It is the longest river in Alaska and the Yukon. It is the highest point in Canada. Whitehorse Fishway on the Yukon River at the Whitehorse dam is the longest wooden fish ladder in the world at 366 meters (1,200 feet) long. It is bordered by the Northwest Territories to the east, by British Columbia to the south, and by the US state of Alaska to the west, and it extends northward above the Arctic Circle to the Beaufort Sea. The famous Yukon River is 2,200 miles (3,520 km) long. Length of the River. While both nonsalmon fish species and salmon are important for Yukon communities, salmon compromises the bulk of fish harvested each year for subsistence. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. -The word Yukon comes from the native word "Yu-kun-ah", meaning great river. Yukon River Facts. 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. The river is 3,700 km (2,300 mi) long and empties into the Bering Sea at the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Glacial silt does make the waters of the Yukon look white. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. From Dawson, the Yukon has become a giant river and runs northwest as it heads to the border with Alaska. On of the longest salmon runs in the world is located in the Yukon River, and salmon continue to be an important food source for communities living near the river. Geographically the bulk of the Yukon is a subarctic plateau interspersed by mountains. This huge area 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 Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council is made up of 66 First Nations and tribes in Alaska and Canada, living along the Yukon River. Search Primary Facts. During the Klondike Gold Rush (late 1800s, early 1900s) the Yukon River was the main means of transportation. Only 4 of the bridges spanning the river can support vehicles. The Yukon and Yukon River The Yukon River is the longest river in Yukon & Alaska. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Categories Yellow River: Facts and Information About Huang He . The river gives its name to a  territory in Canada – the Yukon. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. In turn, the river is central to Indigenous cultural landscapes. Der Yukon River (französisch Fleuve Yukon) ist ein Strom, der in der kanadischen Provinz British Columbia entspringt und danach das nach ihm benannte Territorium Yukon durchfließt, bevor er im US-Bundesstaat Alaska in das Beringmeer mündet. Ospreys, golden eagles and vividly-coloured mountain bluebirds fill the skies, and otters and beavers occupy the water. It was one of the main ways that people travelled during the 1896–1903 Klondike Gold Rush. At its peak during the Klondike gold rush, nearly 30,000 gold seekers in 7,000 boats travelled the river on their way to the goldfields in Dawson City. The delta, which consists mostly of tundra, is protected as part of the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. The villages along the Yukon have historically and continue to rely on salmon for their cultural, subsistence, and commercial needs. At over 3000 km, it’s one of the longest in North America, the longest in the territory, and has a long history as the main highway of First Nations people and the Klondike Gold Rush. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. To be precise, 2040 kilometers of the river are in Alaska, and the remaining 1150 kilometers are in Canada. The Yukon River is one of the longest rivers in North America, with an estimated length of 1,980 miles. The Yukon River is home to one of the longest salmon runs in the world. The Yukon River is the third longest river in North America. The Yukon flows past the settlements of Carmacks, Dawson City, Fort Yukon, Russian mission and Pilot station (and many more). You can canoe 2,050 miles from Whitehorse to the Bering Strait. It runs more than one thousand miles between Fairbanks, Alaska and Whitehorse, Yukon. The name Yukon is derived from the Gwich’in language and means “great river.”. Pelly River There are many features of the Yukon's impressive landscape which are named for an early day governor of the Hudson Bay company. The Yukon River is home to one of the longest salmon runs in the world. Yukon Fourth-longest river in North America, deriving its name from a Native American word for ‘great’. “Despite its length, there are only four vehicle-carrying bridges across the river.” It is also the third-longest river in North America. The following pages will allow you to explore some aspects of these people; their lives and livelihoods, their ways and customs, their trials and tribulations. 2. The river gives its name to a territory in Canada – the Yukon. Some have stayed and continue to build those histories. Common methods of fishing on the Yukon include set gillnets, drift nets, dip nets, and fish wheels. The average flow is 6,430 cubic meter (227,000 cubic feet) per second. The Yukon River is a whopping 3,190km long. The Ogilvie Mountains form the valley wall to the north and after 40 miles the Forty Mile River enters on river left. Whitehorse is the driest city in Canada. Some of the Yukon’s tributaries include: Big Salmon River, Stewart River, White River, Klondike River, Indian River, Beaver Creek, Bering Creek and Reindeer River. River Otters are not abundant in Yukon, but if you travel larger rivers and lakes, you’ll likely encounter them. The Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta is a river delta located where the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers empty into the Bering Sea on the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. Geology The Yukon constitutes the northernmost part of the Cordilleran region. In the east, folded sedimentary Paleozoic and Mesozoic formati… The record low temperature in Whitehorse was -52.2 °C set on January 31, 1947. Seal-like shape with short legs, streamlined body and tapered tail. After the purchase of Alaska by the United States in 1867, the Alaska Commercial Company acquired the assets of the Russian-American Company and constructed several posts at various locations on the Yukon River. The record high temperature in Whitehorse was 34.4 °C set on June 14, 1969. The Yukon River is used to generate hydroelectricity, but it remains one of the greatest undeveloped hydroelectric resources in North America. The Yukon River originates in the coastal mountains of Canada and flows 1,979 miles in a wide arc to the Bering Sea. The story cycle of the Athapaskan hero Tachokaii (“the Traveller”) tells of the making of both the river and time itself. The drainage basin is about 20% larger than Texas. Mount Logan rises in the southwest. A portion of the river in Yukon — “The Thirty Mile” section, from Lake Laberge to the Teslin River — is a national heritage river and a unit of Klondike Gold Rush International Historical Park. Every month but July on average sees snow. Each year coho, chum, and Chinook (aka king) salmon return to their terminal streams in Alaska, the Yukon Territories, and British Columbia. It is larger than the Mississippi Delta, and comparable in size to the entire U.S. state of Louisiana. 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. In North America, it comes at position three in terms of length but it is the longest in the Yukon and Alaska. From Forty Mile it is about 110 miles to Eagle where the next access road is found. Salmon are traditionally dried, smoked, and frozen for both human and sled dog consumption. Hoover Dam: Facts and Information . These are: the Lewes Bridge, the Robert Campbell Bridge, the Yukon River Bridge (Carmacks) and the Yukon River Bridge (Dalton Highway). The Yukon River, a major North American River, drains a vast area of 832,700 square kilometers in northwestern Canada and the central region of Alaska in the United States of America. The river's source is in British Columbia, Canada, from which it flows through the Canadian Yukon Territory (itself named after the river). The Yukon River features as the setting for the 2015 National Geographic Channel series Yukon River Run. Yukon is one of the 13 provinces and territories of Canada and is located in the northwestern corner of Canada. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The Yukon River – which is the second-longest river in Canada and the third-longest in North America – is also host to the world’s longest paddling race. The world’s largest land migration Every year in the Yukon, 200,000 porcupine caribou embark on the longest mammal migration in the world. Facts about the Yukon: The Yukon River is the longest river in Yukon & Alaska. The average flow is 6,430 m /s (227,000 ft /s… Whitehorse Fishway on the Yukon River at the Whitehorse dam is the longest wooden fish ladder in the world at 366 meters (1,200 feet) long. The territory is named after the Yukon River, the longest river in Yukon. Facts on the Yukon More than 80 percent of Yukon is still wild, with majestic mountains, glaciers, rivers and exciting wildlife, including caribou, mountain sheep, grizzly bears and birds. The Tanana and White rivers together contribute almost 30 percent of the total water flow of the Yukon River, though they make up only about 20 percent of its drainage area. The total cour… The river drains approximately 44,000 square miles (114,000 square km) of interior Alaska. The length of the Yukon River is approximately 3,190 kilometers (1,982 miles). Paddle-wheel riverboats continued as the dominant form of transportation along the river until the 1950s when the Klondike Highway was completed. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river arises from its headwaters, the McNeil River in British Columbia of Canada, from where it flows through the Yukon province of Canada and into Alaska, before finally draining into the Bering Sea at the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Starting in the Canadian province of British Columbia, the river flows through the Yukon Territory, runs through the US state of Alaska, and ultimately discharges into the Bering Sea. A car ferry crosses the river at Dawson City in the summer; it is replaced by an ice bridge over the frozen river during the winter. One of the longest streams in North America, about 1,500 mi. It measures 1,980 miles (3,190 km) from the headwaters of the McNeil River (a tributary of the Nisutlin River). The Yukon River is a major watercourse in Canada and Alaska. In Yukon, mountains surround a central plateau, or high, flat area. John Henry Pelly was born in England in 1777. The Yukon River (Gwich'in: Ųųg Han or Yuk Han, Yup'ik: Kuigpak, Inupiaq: Kuukpak, Southern Tutchone: Chu Nìikwän) is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. In the summer, there is a car ferry across the Yukon River. At approximately 129,500 square kilometers (50,000 sq mi) in size, it is one of the largest deltas in the world. Over half of the river lies in Alaska, with most of the other portion in Canada’s Yukon Territory, and its headwaters in British Columbia. These cookies do not store any personal information. Source: Llewellyn Glacier (Atlin Lake), British Columbia, Canada. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. The entire U.S. state of Louisiana drainage area is more than 800,000 square )! 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