28 Facts About Stikine River

Stikine River is a major river in northern British Columbia, Canada and southeastern Alaska in the United States.

However, most of the Stikine basin remains wilderness, with only a few small settlements; only two bridges, one disused, cross the river along its entire length.

However, in recent decades the water quality and natural beauty of the Stikine River have been threatened by new energy, transport and mining developments in northern BC.

Stikine River was known to the Tlingit as Shtax'heen, "bitter river" or "muddy river", in reference to its murky glacial waters.

The Stikine River Plateau is bordered on the east by the Cassiar Mountains and Omineca Mountains and on the south by the Stikine River Ranges of the Skeena Mountains.

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Drainage basins adjacent to the Stikine are the Taku River to the northwest, the Dease, Kechika and Finlay Rivers to the north and east, and the Skeena, Nass and Unuk Rivers to the south.

At the confluence with the Pitman Stikine River, it turns due west again, now flowing along the south side of the Three Sisters Range, then receives the Klappan Stikine River from the south.

The Stikine is joined by its largest tributary, the Iskut River, from the east before passing the former border station of Stikine, BC where it enters Alaska.

Flows of the Stikine River are affected by three main sources of runoff: snowmelt from the Stikine Plateau, glacier melt from the Coast Mountains, and rainfall from coastal Pacific storms .

Stikine River basin includes several major terranes or crustal fragments that accreted to the western North American continent starting from about 180 million years ago.

The Stikine Icecap, located in the Coast Mountains between the Stikine and Taku Rivers and the source of numerous glaciers descending to the Stikine valley, is one of the largest.

Stikine River creates one of the only natural passages through the Coast Mountains, and for thousands of years it has been used as a trade route by indigenous peoples.

Pacific coastal part of the Stikine River basin is in the traditional lands of the Shtax'heen Kwaan .

The lands of the Tahltan people extended over much of the interior Stikine River Plateau, including the entirety of the inland Stikine River basin.

The area included the mouth of the Stikine River, which became a key route for transporting furs from the interior.

In 1838, HBC trader Robert Campbell reached the upper Stikine River and became the first white man to make contact with the Tahltans.

In 1842 the Tlingit besieged Fort Stikine River, and were close to destroying it before the arrival of British and Russian reinforcements.

Stikine River remained the primary route to interior northern BC well into the twentieth century.

The shallow channels of the Stikine River delta were another hazard to shipping, with boats occasionally stranding at low tide.

One of the last boats to operate regularly on the Stikine was the Judith Ann, which plied the river between 1950 and 1970.

In 2000 the Tahltan negotiated a management plan with the BC government, which protected parts of the Stikine River including the Grand Canyon from future hydroelectric development.

The Stikine River basin is home to several species of freshwater fish, including the coastal cutthroat, lake, rainbow and Dolly Varden trout, grayling, mountain whitefish and longnose sucker.

Where the Stikine River delta has partially filled in the Inside Passage at Dry Straits, it has provided a passage for mainland animals such as moose to colonize Mitkof, Kupreanof and Kuiu Islands.

Lower Stikine River, with its proximity to the ports of Wrangell and Petersburg, is a popular area for recreational boating, fishing and camping.

The upper Stikine River is more technical, with a few class III-IV rapids, but is suitable for recreational boating.

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Canadian portion of the Stikine River has had a commercial gillnet fishery, based out of Telegraph Creek, since 1975.

US and Canadian shares of the Stikine River fishery are regulated by the Pacific Salmon Treaty, signed between the US and Canada in 1985.

Stikine River Plateau has extensive mineral deposits including gold, silver, copper, molybdenum, and coal.