The Chilkat River is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

and southeastern

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., ...

that flows southward from the Coast Range to the

Chilkat Inlet Chilkat Inlet is an inlet in Lynn Canal in the Southeast region of the U.S. state of Alaska that includes the delta for the Chilkat River and borders Haines and the Chilkat Peninsula. It was first charted in 1794 by Joseph Whidbey, master of dur ...

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 fjord ...

. It is about long. It begins at

Chilkat Glacier Chilkat or The Chilkat, or Chilkats, may refer to: Chilkat tribe and related uses * Chilkat Tlingit, a tribe found on the Chilkat River and on Chilkat Peninsula ** Chilkat Reservation, a U.S. Indian Reservation in Alaska, see List of Indian re ...

, 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 ; also spelled Tlinkit) are indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their language is the Tlingit language (natively , pronounced ),

, 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 The Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is a state park and wildlife refuge in the U.S. state of Alaska near Haines. Established in 1982, the park covers 49,320 acres (199.6 km2), mainly along the Chilkat River, with sections along the Klehini ...

, 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 as ...

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.

Tributaries

Klehini River The Klehini River is a large, glacially fed stream in the vicinity of Haines in the U.S. state of Alaska. The Klehini River is about long from its source in British Columbia to its mouth at the Chilkat River, of which it is the largest tributar ...

Tsirku River The Tsirku River is a glacier-fed stream in Southeast Alaska near the town of Haines in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river's source is found at the Tsirku Glacier, a large, sprawling ice mass at the border of Alaska and the Canadian province ...

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

Tributaries

See also

References