Teslin & Yukon River Cedar Canoe Voyage > Wilderness Area
The Teslin and Yukon River Corridor
Teslin
is derived from a Tlingit word “tes-lin-too” meaning long, narrow
water. The lake bearing the same name is very long and thin at 125 km
(78 miles) in length and an average of 3 km (2 miles) in width. The
Tlingit people of Teslin have traveled through this area for centuries.
Famous for trading, they brought goods from the coast to trade for furs
with the First Nations peoples of the interior. It is thought that they
first arrived as traders about 200-300 years ago and eventually
intermarried with the inland First Nations and settled permanently in
the area. Teslin Tlingit’s can trace their ancestry to the Alaskan
coastal areas of Juneau/Auk Bay. The Tlingit’s have maintained much of
their cultural practices and language. The Tlingit language is
completely unique in the Yukon. The remainder of Yukon
First Nation languages are of the Athapaskan family of languages.
The Teslin River flows north towards its confluence with the Yukon River from the northwest end of the lake. The Teslin River was one of the many routes advertised to the Klondike Gold fields during the Gold Rush of 1898. By traveling inland along the Stikine River from the coast of southeast Alaska, and then via an overland trail in what is now British Columbia, stampeders could access the south end of Teslin Lake, which like the Yukon River, provided easy travel by water the remainder of the way to the gold fields in Dawson City. Dilapidated sternwheelers, cabins, a gold dredge, and abandoned villages are reminders of this historical time and wait silently on the shore of the river waiting for someone new to explore them. You might be able to see evidence of old wood camps, mining efforts, and trading centers. Please respect these artifacts and do not touch or disturb them in any way. Let the others who come after you enjoy them also.
The Teslin River starts as a wide and slow river. It is crystal clear to start and you can watch the river bottom as you float down river. As it winds its way towards the confluence with the Yukon River you will have views of the Salmon Mountains. The river soon picks up sediment from the clay cliffs it cuts through and you can no longer track your progress on the river bottom. The Teslin has gentle, flat, moving water with occasional standing waves and very easy small rapids that may be not even noticeable in higher water. When the Teslin River merges with the Yukon River you will appreciate the Yukon’s stronger current and notice the brilliant aqua blue-green colour. The abandoned village of Hootalinqua lies at the confluence. It is worth the stop to see the relic of the steamship Evelyn.
The Yukon River is full of history, beauty and wilderness. It is the Yukon’s most popular river to paddle and explore. The river’s consistently swift current, yet lack of technical water make it accessible to paddlers of any age and skill level.
The word “Yukon” came from HBC trader John Bell. He named the river “Youcon”, a derivation from local First Nation languages meaning “the Greatest River” or “Big River”. The river is 1979 miles (3166 km) long from Marsh Lake to the Bering Sea according to the Geological Society of Canada. This fact is contested by others stating that the river’s total distance is as much as 2300 miles (3680 km) using the Pelly or Teslin River branches as its head waters. The Yukon is the 4th longest and 5th largest river by volume in North America.
The Yukon River watershed flows through many First Nation traditional territories. This large river valley provided plentiful plant, animal, and aquatic life for aboriginal peoples long before it provided a transportation route to the Klondike gold fields.
