Chandalar River

Chandalar River
East Fork of the Chandalar River, at Arctic Village
Chandalar River is located in Alaska
Chandalar River
Location of the mouth of the Chandalar River in Alaska
Native nameT'eedrinjik (Gwichʼin)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateAlaska
Census AreaYukon–Koyukuk
Physical characteristics
Sourceconfluence of the river's north and middle forks
 • locationsoutheastern Brooks Range, 23 miles (37 km) south-southeast of Chandalar
 • coordinates67°10′13″N 148°17′50″W / 67.17028°N 148.29722°W / 67.17028; -148.29722[1]
 • elevation1,203 ft (367 m)[2]
MouthYukon River
 • location
20 miles (32 km) northwest of Fort Yukon, Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge
 • coordinates
66°36′33″N 146°00′09″W / 66.60917°N 146.00250°W / 66.60917; -146.00250[1]
 • elevation
387 ft (118 m)[1]
Length100 mi (160 km)[1]
Basin size9,330 sq mi (24,200 km2)[3][4]
Discharge 
 • locationnear Venetie[3][5]
 • average5,007 cu ft/s (141.8 m3/s)[3][5]
 • maximum62,800 cu ft/s (1,780 m3/s)

The Chandalar River (T'eedriinjik[6] in Gwich'in) is a 100-mile (160 km) tributary of the Yukon River in the U.S. state of Alaska.[1] Its French name was "Gens de Large" or "nomadic people" which when written in English from its local pronunciation evolved into "Chandalar."[7] Its peak flow, recorded by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) between 1964 and 1974 at a stream gauge at Venetie, was 62,800 cubic feet per second (1,780 m3/s) on June 9, 1968.[3]

The Chandalar River main stem begins at the confluence of the North Fork Chandalar River and the Middle Fork Chandalar River and flows generally southeast through the state's northern interior southeast of the Philip Smith Mountains of the Brooks Range.[8] The Chandalar enters the Yukon River 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Fort Yukon.[1]

In 2015 the Chandalar became federally recognized by the United States Board on Geographic Names as their indigenous Gwichʼin names Teedriinjik River meaning "shimmering river" and Ch'idriinjik River meaning "heart river". The names had been in use for over a thousand years by the Athabaskans.[9]

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Chandalar River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. January 1, 2000. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  2. ^ Derived by entering source coordinates in Google Earth.
  3. ^ a b c d "Peak Streamflow for Alaska: USGS 15389500 Chandalar River near Venetie". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  4. ^ Upstream of Venetie
  5. ^ a b "USGS Surface-Water Annual Statistics for Alaska: USGS 15389500 Chandalar River near Venetie". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved November 1, 2013. For water years 1964–73.
  6. ^ Holton, Gary (July 16, 2013). "Alaska Native Language Archive: Alaska Place Names". University of Alaska Fairbanks. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  7. ^ "Chandalar River". Alaska Guide. Retrieved 2024-05-31.
  8. ^ Alaska Atlas & Gazetteer (7th ed.). Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. 2010. pp. 136–37. ISBN 978-0-89933-289-5.
  9. ^ Shalev, Asaf (2016-05-31). "Feds recognize Native names of major Alaska river system". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved 2023-08-10.