Everything about The Kuskokwim River totally explained
The
Kuskokwim River is the 9th. largest river in the United States of America, ranked by average discharge volume at its mouth; 17th. largest by basin drainage area.
The
Kuskokwim River (
Kusquqvak in
Central Yup'ik) is a river, approximately 724 mi (1,165 km) long, in southwest
Alaska in the
United States. It provides the principal drainage for an area of the remote
Alaska Interior on the north and west side of the
Alaska Range, flowing southwest into
Kuskokwim Bay on the
Bering Sea. Except for its headwaters in the mountains, the river is broad and flat for its entire course, making it a useful transportation route for many types of watercraft. It is the longest free flowing river in the United States. It is also the longest river entirely within one state in the U.S., edging out the
Trinity River of Texas by 14 miles.
Kuskokwim in
Yupik is a bastardization of a Yup'ik word to English. A compound word means big slow moving 'thing'. Be clear that 'thing' is to be recognized as an object.
Origin
Eskimo name apparently obtained in
1818 by
Ustiugov (cnna) and published by Lt.
Sarichev (
1826, map 3),IRN, as "Ryka Kuskokvim."
Tanana Indian name for the stream was "Chin-ana", now obsolete except among the old Indians.
Location
Heading at the
confluence of
East Fork Kuskokwim River and
North Fork Kuskokwim River, 5 mi E of
Medra, and flowing SW to
Kuskokwim Bay and the
Bering Sea;
Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.
Description
It rises in several forks in central and south central Alaska. The North Fork (250 mi/400 km) rises in the
Kuskokwim Mountains approximately 200 mi (320 km) WSW of
Fairbanks and flows southwest in a broad valley. The South Fork (200 mi/320 km) rises in the southwestern end of the Alaska Range.west of
Mount Gerdine and flows NNW through the mountains, past
Nikolai, and receiving other headstreams that descends from the Alaska Range northwest of
Mount McKinley. The two forks join near
Medfra and flows southwest, past
McGrath, in a remote valley between the Kuskokwim Mountains to the north and the Alaska Range to the south.
In southwest Alaska in emerges from the Kuskokwim Mountains in a vast lake-studded
alluvial plain south of the
Yukon River, surrounded by vast
spruce forests. It passes a series of
Eskimo villages, including
Aniak, and approaches within 50 mi (80 km) of the Yukon before diverging southwest. Southwest of
Bethel, the largest community on the river, it broadens into a wide marshy delta that enters Kuskokwim Bay approximately 50 mi (80 km) SSW of Bethel. The lower river below Aniak is located within the
Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge.
It receives the
Big River from the south approximately 20 mi (32 km) southwest of Medfra. It receives the
Swift,
Stony, and
Holitna rivers from the south at the southern end of the Kuskokwim Mountains before emerging on the coastal plain. It receives the
Aniak River from the south at Aniak. Approximately 20 mi (32 km) upstream from Bethel it receives the
Kisaralik and
Kwethluk rivers from the south. It receives the
Eek River from the east at
Eek near its mouth on Kuskokwim Bay.
History
The principal economic activities along the river have historically been
fur trapping and fishing. Subsistence fishing for chinook
salmon provides a staple of the Eskimo diet along the river. The discovery of
gold along the upper river in
1898 led to the
Placer Gold Rush in the early
20th century. The total production of gold through
1959 was 640,084 troy ounces (19,909 kg). The primary route of the
Iditarod Trail crossed the upper river at McGrath.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Kuskokwim River'.
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