Yekooche First Nation is based 75 kilometers northwest of Fort St. James, British Columbia at the north end of Stuart Lake on Yekooche reserves (about 380 hectares in size).[1] It is known in English as Portage due to its location along the portage route between Babine Lake and Stuart Lake.
Yekooche is a small community reserve. As of March 2019, there are 236 band members, 98 of whom live on the Yekooche reserves.[2] Yekooche territory adjoins or encompasses Babine, Cunningham and Whitefish Lakes. These locales are used to hunt and to gather winter food for families.
The people of Yekooche are Dakelh and speak the Stuart Lake dialect of the Carrier language. Due to their proximity to Lake Babine territory, they have traditionally been bilingual in Babine-Witsuwit'en.