The Yukon River in North America: photo, description

The Yukon River, the photo of which is located below, closes the five of the longest waterways of North America. Moreover, according to this indicator, it is located at 21 positions in the world. In translation from the language of local aborigines, its name means "Great River". The largest settlements built on it are Marshall, Circle, Railot Station, Fort Yukon and others.

general description

The Yukon River on the map of North America is located mainly in the north-western part. It flows through the territory of the USA and Canada. The American state of Alaska is visually divided by this waterway into two approximately equal parts. It originates in the territory of the Canadian province, called British Columbia. The mouth lies opposite the island of St. Lawrence, not far from Norton Bay. The total area of the basin, which is deep, narrow and long, exceeds the mark of 855 thousand square kilometers. The length of the Yukon is 3185 kilometers. It should be noted that this is the longest waterway that flows through Canada.

Opening

About this river to mankind, practically nothing was known until the beginning of the nineteenth century. Her first discoverer is Peter Korsakovsky from Russia. It is his detailed description of the estuary, dating back to 1819, is now considered the oldest. In addition, our compatriot, in a few years, founded a settlement here, called the Mikhailovsky Redoubt. After Alaska became the 49th US state, it was renamed St. Michael. Under this name the village is known and now. In 1843, the Russian naval officer L. Zagoskin described in detail the lower course of the aquatic artery.

The Yukon River is now very popular with tourists. Many of them prefer to travel on it by boat or canoe. In 1897, the local places were visited by the famous writer Jack London. He was so impressed by them that he spent more than six months here.

Flowing

The river source, as noted above, is in the north of British Columbia. They are considered to be the lake Athlin, which is located at an altitude of 731 meters above sea level. Together with several other lakes, a peculiar chain is created, the last link of which is Lake Marsh. A little north of it is the main administrative center of Northern Canada and the federal territory - the city of Whitehorse. Despite its importance, it is very small and has a population of 21 thousand inhabitants.

After the Yukon River goes around it, it rushes in a northwesterly direction and expands five kilometers, thereby forming Lake Laberge. The length of its basin is about fifty kilometers. Further, the water flow crosses the US border, after which it is in Alaska. Here the riverbed is in a mountainous area, so it is not surprising that the river is full of rapids. Immediately after the small town of Eagle, it goes to the flat terrain.

Near the Mountain village the Yukon Delta begins. The number of the local population does not even reach a mark of one thousand people. People here by American standards live very poorly. Behind this settlement the water stream is broken into many channels, after which it flows into the Bering Sea. It should be noted that the area between the rivers Yukon and Kuskokvim in Alaska is the greenest area.

Climate and water regime

Winter in the basin of the waterway lasts about nine months. At this time there are periods when the air temperature drops to fifty degrees below zero. In connection with such weather conditions, the region is characterized by a peculiar settlement. Most of the settlements here are small, and their population is half that of the gold rush period. Whatever it was, the Yukon River has great hydropower potential. Its interesting feature is that through it only four bridges are thrown.

The water artery has mainly snow feeding. For the period from June to July, it is time to flood. At this time, the water level here can rise by fifteen to twenty meters. The main left tributaries are Novita, Beaver and Birch, and the right ones are Tiislin, Stewart, Palley, Milositna, Klondike, Nadvizik and others. Starting from the second half of October and until the beginning of May, the period of ice standing lasts. In all the remaining time of the year the river is navigable. Ships can enter it to the thresholds of Whitehorse for a distance of about 3200 kilometers from the delta.

River inhabitants

Due to the prevalence of low temperatures, vegetation in the basin is not very diverse. The most developed fishery among locals from time immemorial was fishing. The situation has not changed in our time. The fact is that the Yukon River is a place where a lot of salmon come for spawning. In addition to it, other valuable species of fish are found in its waters, among which are whitefish, pike, grayling and nelma. As of today, fishing on the Yukon is officially authorized. The annual license for its implementation is 35 Canadian dollars. This does not apply to local Aboriginal people who have a lifelong right to free fishing in the local waters. As for the representatives of the fauna, on the banks of the river live beavers, black bears, snow sheep and foxes.

Golden fever

Since the end of the nineteenth century, the Yukon River in North America has gained worldwide fame. The fact is that in 1896, in the area of its course, the three gold miners discovered the first gold. A year later, several tons of this mineral were brought to San Francisco from here. After that, a massive rush began, and thousands of hunters for fortune rushed to the Yukon and Klondike rivers in search of quick profit. It was these people who became the founders of most of the towns and villages that have survived to this day. Many of them were very quickly enriched. Along with this, there were also those who forever disappeared in a snowy cold desert. In the late nineteenth century, the reserves of golden sand here dried up, and the excitement ended. In addition, gold in 1899 was found on Seward, so the majority of prospectors moved there. All that remains of the fever is only the memory and the steamship line on the Yukon.