Mess Creek

Mess Creek
Mess Creek is located in British Columbia
Mess Creek
Mouth of Mess Creek
Location
CountryCanada
ProvinceBritish Columbia
DistrictCassiar Land District
Physical characteristics
SourceUnnamed lake
 • locationBoundary Ranges
 • coordinates57°07′42″N 130°56′12″W / 57.12833°N 130.93667°W / 57.12833; -130.93667[1]
 • elevation1,022 m (3,353 ft)[1]
MouthStikine River
 • coordinates
57°53′25″N 131°12′29″W / 57.89028°N 131.20806°W / 57.89028; -131.20806[1]
 • elevation
170 m (560 ft)[1]
Length110 km (68 mi)[1]
Basin size2,330 km2 (900 sq mi)[2]
Discharge 
 • average59.3 m3/s (2,090 cu ft/s)[2]
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftSchaft Creek, Tudadela Creek
 • rightCrayke Creek, Dagaichess Creek, Elwyn Creek, Kitsu Creek, Raspberry Creek, Tadekho Creek, Taweh Creek
Topo mapNTS 104G15 Buckley Lake
NTS 104G14 Telegraph Creek
NTS 104G7 Mess Lake

Mess Creek, formerly known as Mestua, is a tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada.[3] It flows north and northwest for about 110 km (68 mi), through a lake and a gorge to join the Stikine River, which in turn flows southwest across the Canada–United States border into Alaska where it empties into various straits of the Inside Passage.[1][4] The northern half of Mess Creek forms a western boundary of Mount Edziza Provincial Park which lies within the traditional territory of the Tahltan people.[5][6]

Mess Creek's watershed covers 2,330 km2 (900 sq mi) and its estimated mean annual discharge is 59.3 m3/s (2,090 cu ft/s).[2] The mouth of Mess Creek is located about 3 km (1.9 mi) southwest of Telegraph Creek, about 73 km (45 mi) west of Iskut and about 94 km (58 mi) southwest of Dease Lake in Cassiar Land District.[3][1] Mess Creek's watershed's land cover is classified as 38.7% conifer forest, 25% barren, 15.9% shrubland, 10% snow/glacier, 8.3% herbaceous and small amounts of other cover.[2]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Elevation, length and coordinates derived from Google Earth and the Canadian Geographical Names Database
  2. ^ a b c d "Northwest Water Tool". BC Water Tool. GeoBC, Integrated Land Management Bureau, Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, Government of British Columbia. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  3. ^ a b "Mess Creek". BC Geographical Names. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  4. ^ "Stikine River". BC Geographical Names. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  5. ^ "A 502" (Topographic map). Telegraph Creek, Cassiar Land District, British Columbia (3 ed.). 1:250,000. 104 G (in English and French). Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. 1989. Archived from the original on 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
  6. ^ Markey, Sean; Halseth, Greg; Manson, Don (2012). Investing in Place: Economic Renewal in Northern British Columbia. University of British Columbia Press. p. 242. ISBN 978-0-7748-2293-0.