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YUKON

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Originally appearing in Volume V28, Page 945 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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YUKON , the largest See also:

river in See also:Alaska, and the fifth largest in N. See also:America. With its longest tributaries not in Alaska, the See also:Lewes and the Teslin (or Hootalinqua), its length is about 2300 m., in the See also:form of a See also:great arc, beginning in the Yukon See also:District of See also:British See also:Columbia, near the Pacific Ocean, and ending at the See also:Bering See also:Sea See also:coast. Its catchment See also:area is about 330,000 sq. m., more than one-See also:half of which lies in See also:Canada. The Lewes river rises in See also:Lake Bennet (Yukon District) on the N. slope of the Coast Range, about 25 m. inland from the See also:Lynn See also:Canal (at the See also:head of See also:Chatham Strait), and flows N. through a See also:chain of lakes, its confluence with the Pelly river, at See also:Selkirk, Yukon District, about 12o m. due E. of the Alaskan-See also:Canadian boundary, forming the headwaters of the Yukon. Flowing thence N.W., the Yukon turns abruptly to the S.W. near Fort Yukon, Alaska, on the See also:Arctic Circle, and continues nearly at right angles to its former course to a point S. of the head of See also:Norton See also:Sound, where it turns again and flows in a N.W. direction, emptying into the Sound from its S. See also:shore. The length of the river, from its headwaters to its mouth, is about 1500 M. The Yukon Valley comprises four sub-provinces, or physiographic divisions; in their See also:order from the headwaters of the river these divisions have been called the " Upper Yukon," " Yukon Flats," " Rampart Region " and " See also:Lower Yukon." The " Upper Yukon " Valley is about 450 M. See also:long and from 1 to 3 M. broad, and is flanked by walls rising to the See also:plateau level from 1500 to 3000 ft. above the stream. In this See also:part of its course the Yukon receives from the S. the See also:Selwyn river (about 40 M. below the junction of the Lewes and Pelly See also:rivers) ; from the W. the See also:White river (about 60 m. below the Selwyn); from the N. the See also:Stewart river (about io m. below the White), one of the largest tributaries of the Yukon; from the E. the See also:Klondike river (near 64° N.); from the W. See also:Forty-mile See also:Creek (about 40 M. above the Alaskan-Canadian boundary See also:line), and many other smaller streams. The "Yukon Flats " flank the river for about 200 M. and are from 40 to 100 M. wide. Here the stream varies in width from 10 to nearly 20 in., and involves a confused network of constantly changing channels.

Here, too, the river makes its great See also:

bend to the S.W., and its channels are constantly changing. The " Flats " are monotonous areas of See also:sand bars and See also:low islands, thickly wooded with spruce. The See also:principal tributaries here are the See also:Porcupine river (an important affluent, which enters the See also:main stream at the great bend about 3 M. N. of the Arctic Circle) ; the Chandlar river, also confluent at the great bend, from the N., and, near the W. edge of the Flats, the Dail river, also from the N. The " Rampart Region " begins near 66° N., where the " Flats " end abruptly, and includes about 1 to m. of the valley, from 1 to 3 M. wide, and extending to the mouth of the Tanana. No large tributaries are received in this part of the river. The Lower Yukon includes that portion between the Ramparts and the sea, a stretch of about 800 m. At the mouth of the Tanana (which enters the main stream from the S.) the See also:gorge opens into a See also:lowland from 15 to 20 M. wide. Along the N.W. boundary of the valley are low mountains whose See also:base the Yukon skirts, and it continues to See also:press upon its N. See also:bank until the See also:delta is reached. The valley is never less than 2 or 3 m., and the river has many channels and numerous islands; it has walls nearly to the head of the delta, though about too m. above the delta the S. See also:wall merges into the lowland coastal See also:plain; the See also:relief is about t000 ft. At the W. edge of the Ramparts the Yukon receives the Tanana river, its longest tributary lying wholly within Alaska. The Tanana Valley is about 400 M. long, nearly parallel to the Yukon from about due W. of its headwaters to the great bend, and drains about 25,000 sq. m.

Its See also:

sources are chiefly glaciers in the Alaskan Range, and it receives many tributaries. The Yukon delta begins near 63° N. Here the main stream branches into several channels which follow N. 'or N.W. courses to Norton Sound. The See also:northern-most of these channels is the Apoon Pass, and the most southerly is Kwikluak Pass; their outlets are about 75 m. apart on the coast, and from 40 to 50 M. from the head of the delta. Between them is a See also:labyrinth of waterways, most of the intervening See also:land being not more than to ft. above low See also:tide. The stream is mud-laden throughout its course, and though the sediment is heavier above the " Flats " than below them (where the slower current permits the settling of much of the silt), so much of it is carried to the river's mouth that the delta is being steadily extended. Immediately S. of the Yukon delta proper is that of the Kushkowim, into which undoubtedly the Yukon's See also:waters once found their way. The Yukon is navigable from May till See also:September, and steamers ply on several of its larger tributaries, making the aggregate navigable waters about 3500 m., about three-fourths of which are in Alaska. The nearest See also:harbour for ocean-going vessels is a poor one at St See also:Michael's See also:Island, about 6o m. N.E. of the delta; here See also:freight and passengers are transferred to See also:flat-bottomed river steamers. These enter the delta and the river by the Apoon Pass, which is about 4 ft. deep at mean low See also:water, the current varying from 1-1 to 4 M. an See also:hour.

The Lewes (about 400 M. long) is navigable (with some difficulty, during low water, at Lake Lebarge) as far as White See also:

Horse Rapids, which, with See also:Miles See also:Canyon, obstruct the river for a few miles; above them the stream is again navigable to its source, about too m. beyond. The Pacific & Arctic railway from See also:Skagway to White Horse (III m.) overcomes these obstructions, however, for See also:traffic and travel; and even the dangerous White Horse Rapids may be run by a skilful See also:pilot in a small See also:boat, as was done repeatedly by the See also:gold-seekers in 1896-97. The Stewart " river, seldom less than 150 yds. wide, is navigable by See also:light-See also:draught steamers to Frazer Falls, a distance of nearly 200 M. The Porcupine is navigable, in high water, to about the Alaska-Yukon boundary line (c.90m.); the Chandlar for a few miles; the Tanana (which is•about 500 in. long) for about 225 in. to the Chena river (which is navigable for about too m.) ; and the Tolovana, another affluent of the Tanana, is also navigable for about too in. In 1842—43 the Yukon was explored by the See also:Russian Lieu-See also:tenant Zagoskin, who built a trading See also:post at Nulato, ascended the river (which he called the Kwikpak) as far as the Tanana, made a track survey of the stream to that point and reported that it was not navigable beyond there. In 1861 See also:Robert See also:Kennicott made his way overland by the See also:Hudson See also:Bay route from the See also:Mackenzie river down the Yukon to Fort Yukon, and in 1865 he and See also:Captain See also:Charles S. Bulkley led the expedition sent out by the Western See also:Union See also:Telegraph See also:Company to survey a route for a land telegraph line to See also:Europe by way of Alaska and See also:Siberia. Kennicott died at Nulato in 1866, and the expedition was abandoned in that See also:year, but explorations were continued by other members, notably Dr See also:William H. Dail,' with the result that valuable surveys were made and the Yukon identified as the Kwikpak of the earlier Russian surveys. Captain C. W. See also:Raymond made a reconnoissance of the Yukon in 1869; the See also:Indian route by the Lewes to the headwaters of theYukon was used by gold prospectors as See also:early as 1881, while in 1883 See also:Lieutenant See also:Frederick Schwatka (1849—1892) crossed the Chilkoot Pass (which he called " Perrier Pass "), descended the Lewes to Fort Selkirk, and down the river to the sea.

Charles W. Homan, who accompanied Schwatka, made the first See also:

sketch survey of the great See also:system; since then it has been frequently explored, but much of the region has not been mapped. See See also:Alfred H. See also:Brooks, The See also:Geography and See also:Geology of Alaska. U.S. Geol. Survey, Document No. 201 (See also:Washington, 1906) ; also G. M. See also:Dawson, Yukon District and British Columbia, See also:Annual See also:Report of the Geol. and Natural See also:History Survey of Canada, vol. 3, pt. I (1889); William See also:Ogilvie, The Klondike See also:Official See also:Guide (See also:Buffalo, N.Y., 1898) ; C.

W. Haynes, " An Expedition through the Yukon District," Nat. Geog. Mag. vol. 4 (1892); R. G. McConnell, See also:

Salmon River Gold See also:Fields, See also:Summary of Report of Geol. Survey of Canada (1901); idem, The See also:Macmillan River, Yukon District, Summary of Report of the See also:Geological Survey of Canada for 1902 ; A. H. Brooks, A See also:Reconnaissance in the Tanana and White River Basins in 1898, Twentieth Annual Report, U.S. Geol. Survey (Washington, 1900) ; and A Reconnaissance from See also:Pyramid Harbor to See also:Eagle See also:City, Alaska, Twenty-first Annual Report, ibid.

(Washington, 1900), and other sources cited by Brooks in the first-named See also:

work.

End of Article: YUKON

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