The Chilko River; Chilcotin River; Fraser River; British Columbia, Canada: Chilko Lake Best of BC Rivers

The headwaters of the Chilcotin and the Chilko Rivers lie in the Coast Mountains near the southeast corner of Tweedsmuir Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada. The rivers become runable for rafting in the sub-alpine regions, then descend to the Chilcotin Plateau's sprawling grasslands and arid canyons.

The Chilko River

The Chilko River’s headwaters lie atChilko Lake nestled in the Coastal Mountains which form the western boundary of the Chilcotin region, separating the rain forests and fjords from the plateau dotted by lakes, streams and rolling grasslands.

Chilko River, a turquoise blue-green ribbon cuts its way through rugged terrain as it rushes to join the Chilcotin River and finally the mighty Fraser River. Dropping 20 metres per kilometre (1,500 feet in 15 miles), the Chilko River winds its way toward Lava Canyon, a 19 km (12 mi.) section of the river, known for thrilling whitewater.

Chilko Lake
Chilko Lake is located in Ts'yl-os Provincial Park. Eighty kilometers long (50 miles) and fed by glaciers, Chilko Lake is the largest natural, high-elevation freshwater lake in North America. The lake hosts the third-largest chinook/sockeye salmon run, from August through October.

The Chilcotin River

The Chilcotin River is rated among one of the best and most challenging in North America for whitewater rafting. Some of the most spectacular scenery is found near the Chilcotin's confluence with the Fraser River, south of Riske Creek. While an esteemed kayaking and rafting locale, because of its isolated location, the Chilcotin sees relatively few rafters and whitewater kayakers.

The Chilcotin River, with headwaters in the wilderness region near the Ilgachuz Range, winds its way through mountains, open valleys, grasslands and canyons as it hurries to meet the Fraser. As it rushes along, the Chilanko and Chilco Rivers join in, making it another excellent rafting river in British Columbia.

Farwell Canyon, on the Chilcotin River was once the site of a native village. A bridge spans the spectacular canyon, carved through limestone and sandstone, creating water-carved formations on the rock walls. Ancient hoodoo rock formations and native pictographs can be found on the cliff south of the bridge.

From the high alpine to the desert canyons, the Chilcotin offers exciting rapids, eddies, rocks, narrow spots, standing waves and boulder gardens. With interesting and abundant wildlife, rafters can find many photo opportunities as they paddle the continuous whitewater on the Chilcotin River.

The Fraser River in British Columbia

The Fraser River is British Columbia's longest river and the fifth longest river in Canada. With its headwaters originating in the Rocky Mountains at Mount Robson, the Fraser River stretches for 1,368 kilometres (848 miles) ultimately flowing into the Pacific Ocean and is a prime destination for whitewater rafters in search of paddling adventures.

The Fraser River was visited by Sir Alexander Mackenzie, the Canadian explorer, who followed its upper course on his expedition (1793) to the Pacific Ocean and takes its name from Simon Fraser, the Canadian explorer and fur trader, who followed (1808) the river to its mouth, establishing fur-trading posts along the way. The river valley was the domain of the fur traders until the gold rush of 1858.

The Fraser River is the chief spawning grounds in North America for the Pacific salmon. The river starts as a meandering flow but quickly changes into a rushing torrent as it accumulates silt and hydrolic volume as other rivers and streams feed it. The Fraser River rises in the Rocky Mountains, at Yellowhead Pass, near the British Columbia–Alta border and flows northwest through the Rocky Mountain Trench to Prince George, and later south and west to the Strait of Georgia at Vancouver. The primary tributaries of the Fraser are the Nechako, Quesnel, Chilcotin, and Thompson rivers. The Fraser River Canyon, which begins at Yale, is both scenic and impressive with the canyon’s walls rising more than 3,000 feet (914 metres) and the waters of the river passing through the 90 foot gorge at Hell’s Gate.

Nahanni River Adventures, Nahanni offers exceptional expeditions by raft and canoe on the great rivers from Alaska to Nunavut including: South Nahanni River, Tatshenshini River, Alsek River, Firth River, Snake River, Wind River, Stikine River, Burnside River, Coppermine River, Horton River, Mountain River, Yukon River, Taku River, Gataga River and Sea Kayaking and whale watching at Point Adolphus, Alaska, over-looking Glacier Bay National Park.

Our expeditions encompass Nahanni National Park (South Nahanni River), Kluane National Park (Alsek River), Ivvavik National Park (Firth River), Glacier Bay National Park (Alsek River), Herschel Island Territorial Park (Firth River).

Nahanni River Adventures operates in Alaska (United States of America), Yukon Territory, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and British Columbia (Canada).

Nahanni.com is the online presence of the company, Nahanni River Adventures Ltd.

Nahanni River Adventures works with the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society to ensure the environmental integrity of our wild places.

Neil Hartling, founder of Nahanni River Adventures, is also the author of: Nahanni, River of Gold...River of Dreams. Alaska to Nunavut - The Great Rivers. Nahanni River Guide. These books may all be purchased through Nahanni.com.

Common misspellings of the name are Nahani, Nahannie, Nahanie, Nahoni, Nahonni.
Nahanni River Adventures.