Pelly Crossing is a community in

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

, Canada. It lies where the Klondike Highway crosses the

Pelly River The Pelly River (Ts'ekínyäk Chú) is a river in Canada, and is a headstream of the Yukon River. The river originates west of the Mackenzie Mountains and flows long through the south central Yukon. The Pelly has two main tributaries, the R ...

. It is the home of the

Selkirk First Nation The Selkirk First Nation (Hucha Hudan people) is a First Nation self-government in the Canadian territory, Yukon. Its original population centre was the trading post of Fort Selkirk, Yukon along the Yukon River, but most of its citizens now live in ...

, and home to the

Northern Tutchone The Northern Tutchone are a First Nations people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group living mainly in the central Yukon in Canada. Language and culture The Northern Tutchone language, originally spoken by the Northern Tutchone p ...

culture. Cultural displays and artifacts are housed in a replica of Big Jonathan House. Visitors can make the journey from Minto by boat to visit the original structure down the Yukon River at

Fort Selkirk Fort Selkirk is a former trading post on the Yukon River at the confluence of the Pelly River in Canada's Yukon. For many years it was home to the Selkirk First Nation (Northern Tutchone). History Archaeological evidence shows that the site h ...

, an important historic and cultural site for the Northern Tutchone people.

History

The Selkirk First Nation community was established as a ferry crossing and a highway construction camp when the Klondike Highway from

Whitehorse Whitehorse () is the capital of Yukon, and the largest city in Northern Canada. It was incorporated in 1950 and is located at kilometre 1426 (Historic Mile 918) on the Alaska Highway in southern Yukon. Whitehorse's Downtown Whitehorse, downtown ...

Dawson City Dawson City, officially the City of Dawson, is a town in the Canadian territory of Yukon. It is inseparably linked to the Klondike Gold Rush (1896–99). Its population was 1,577 as of the 2021 census, making it the second-largest town in Yuko ...

was built in 1950. With the completion of the Pelly River bridge and the road to Dawson City, sternwheeler traffic on the Yukon River came to a halt. Fort Selkirk, located near the confluence of Pelly and Yukon Rivers, was virtually abandoned. The Government of Canada forced members of Selkirk First Nation to move from Fort Selkirk to Minto Landing before settling at Pelly Crossing. Today, the restored Fort Selkirk is a common stop for Yukon River travelers.

Geography

Pelly Crossing is located on the Pelly River, 155 miles south of Dawson City on the Klondike Highway.

Climate

Pelly Crossing has a severely continental

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, g ...

( Dfc) with short but warm summers, but with the vast majority of the year being dominated by the bitterly cold winters. During cold snaps temperatures approaching has been recorded. The weather is rather dry and summer nights remain cool.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultu ...

, Pelly Crossing had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Attractions

The local community is based on hunting, trapping, fishing and guiding. There is a school, curling rink, baseball field, swimming pool, and youth centre.

Sports

Every February, Pelly Crossing hosts a checkpoint for the long-distance

Yukon Quest The Yukon Quest, formally the Yukon Quest 1,000-mile International Sled Dog Race is a sled dog race scheduled every February since 1984 between Fairbanks, Alaska, and Whitehorse, Yukon. Because of the harsh winter conditions, difficult trail, and ...

sled dog race.

References

{{Coord, 62, 50, N, 136, 35, W, region:CA_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title Settlements in Yukon Northern Tutchone