- Koyukuk River
The Koyukuk River is a principal
tributary of theYukon River , approximately 500 mi (805 km) long, in northernAlaska in theUnited States .It drains an area north of the Yukon on the southern side of the
Brooks Range . The river is named for theKoyukon people.It rises in several forks above the
Arctic Circle in theEndicott Mountains , near coord|67|58|N|151|15|W|.The
North Fork of the Koyukuk River rises inGates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve . The combined river flows generally southwest, past Bettles, in a broadening valley ofspruce forests amid small lakes and marshes. It joins the Yukon from the north at Koyukuk.Its
tributaries include the Glacier, Alatna and John rivers. The area around itsconfluence with the Yukon is a largefloodplain protected as part ofKoyukuk National Wildlife Refuge .The valley of the river is a
habitat forbear andmoose and is a destination for game hunting.Fact|date=December 2007History
Lt. Henry Allen and Private
Fred Fickett of theUnited States Army ascended and explored the river in 1885. The discovery ofgold deposits on the Middle Fork in 1893 led to agold rush in 1898 with the establishment of trading posts and mining camps, including Bettles, on the upper river. In 1929, Robert Marshall explored theNorth Fork of the Koyukuk River and gave the nameGates of the Arctic to the high Brooks Range along the river.In 1980 the
United States Congress designated 100 mi (164 km) of theNorth Fork of the Koyukuk River in the Brooks Range as the Koyukuk Wild and Scenic River.In 1994 floods on the river swept away three villages, forcing the wholesale relocation of the population.
ee also
*
List of Alaska rivers
*List of National Wild and Scenic Rivers External links
* [http://www.nps.gov/gaar/Expanded/key_values/wild_and_scenic_rivers/koyukuk.htm NPS: Koyukuk Wild and Scenic River]
* [http://refuges.fws.gov/profiles/index.cfm?id=75615 Koyukuk National Wildlife Refuge]
* [http://www.ptialaska.net/~rcoghill/flood.html Koyukuk River Floods in Alaska]
* [http://www.nps.gov/gaar/Expanded/key_values/cultural_resources/history.htm History in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve]
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