Chilkat River

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title: "Chilkat River" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["rivers-of-haines-borough,-alaska", "rivers-of-alaska", "rivers-of-the-boundary-ranges", "rivers-of-british-columbia", "international-rivers-of-north-america", "tlingit"] description: "River in Canada and the United States" topic_path: "geography/united-kingdom" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilkat_River" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary River in Canada and the United States ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox river"]

Field	Value
name	Chilkat River
image	ChilkatRiver1.jpg
image_caption	A view up the Chilkat River valley from the Takshanuk Mountains
image_size	300
map_size	300
pushpin_map	USA Alaska
pushpin_map_size	300
pushpin_map_caption	Location of the mouth of the Chilkat River in Alaska
subdivision_type1	Countries
subdivision_name1	Canada, United States
subdivision_type2	Province
subdivision_name2	British Columbia
subdivision_type3	State
subdivision_name3	Alaska
length	52 mi
source1_location	Chilkat Glacier, Coast Mountains
source1_coordinates
mouth	Chilkat Inlet
mouth_location	1 mi southwest of Haines, Saint Elias Mountains
mouth_coordinates	{{cite web
title	Chilkat River
mouth_elevation	0 ft
::

| name = Chilkat River | name_native = | name_native_lang = | name_other = | name_etymology = | image = ChilkatRiver1.jpg | image_caption = A view up the Chilkat River valley from the Takshanuk Mountains | image_size = 300 | map = | map_size = 300 | map_caption = | pushpin_map = USA Alaska | pushpin_map_size = 300 | pushpin_map_caption= Location of the mouth of the Chilkat River in Alaska | subdivision_type1 = Countries | subdivision_name1 = Canada, United States | subdivision_type2 = Province | subdivision_name2 = British Columbia | subdivision_type3 = State | subdivision_name3 = Alaska | subdivision_type4 = | subdivision_name4 = | subdivision_type5 = | subdivision_name5 = | length = 52 mi | width_min = | width_avg = | width_max = | depth_min = | depth_avg = | depth_max = | discharge1_location= | discharge1_min = | discharge1_avg = | discharge1_max = | source1 = | source1_location = Chilkat Glacier, Coast Mountains | source1_coordinates= | source1_elevation = | mouth = Chilkat Inlet | mouth_location = 1 mi southwest of Haines, Saint Elias Mountains | mouth_coordinates = {{cite web | work = Geographic Names Information System| publisher = United States Geological Survey | date = January 1, 2000|url= | title =Chilkat River | accessdate = December 30, 2013}} | mouth_elevation = 0 ft | progression = | river_system = | basin_size = | tributaries_left = | tributaries_right = | custom_label = | custom_data = | extra = The Chilkat River is a river in British Columbia and southeastern Alaska that flows southward from the Coast Range to the Chilkat Inlet and ultimately Lynn Canal. It is 84 km long. It begins at Chilkat Glacier, in Alaska, flows west and south in British Columbia for 27 km, enters Alaska and continues southwest for another 60 km. 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, 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, where thousands of bald eagles 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.

Threats

The Chilkat was listed as one of America's Most Endangered Rivers in 2019 and again in 2023 due to threats from the Palmer Project, a proposed underground copper and zinc mine sited upstream from the Tlingit village of Klukwan. If built, the project is feared to result in pollution from acidic wastewater laced with heavy metals and hydrocarbons.

Tributaries

• Klehini River
• Tsirku River

References

References

1. {{cite bcgnis. 7996. Chilkat River
2. Bright, William. (2004). "Native American placenames of the United States". University of Oklahoma Press.
3. (18 April 2019). "Conservation group: Chilkat and Stikine among 10 most endangered rivers in US". KTOO.
4. (19 April 2023). "Looming mine development puts Southeast’s Chilkat-Klehini system on list of endangered rivers". Alaska Beacon.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::