Grand Canyon of the Stikine

The canyon begins in the vicinity of the 130th west line of longitude, south of Tsenaglode Lake. The first road bridge across the Stikine was built in the 1970s as part of the Stewart–Cassiar Highway (BC Highway 37). The bridge is situated just upstream of the start of the canyon section. An earlier pole-bridge had been constructed across the river in the area of Telegraph Creek, built by the Tahltan people from scavenged wire and other abandoned material left by the crews of the Collins Overland Telegraph project in the 1860s. The canyon section comes to an end (or eases off) at the community of Telegraph Creek. The canyon is steep-walled and was formed by the Stikine River cutting through layers of sedimentary and volcanic rock. The canyon is deep in places. The Stikine River flowing through it varies in width from to close to the point where the Tanzilla River enters, a spot known to kayakers as the "Tanzilla Slot". It was originally created in 1836 during a turbulent storm. Some call it "The big red" due to its color and size. == Hydroelectric plans ==

In 1980, BC Hydro began to study the feasibility of building a five-dam project in the Grand Canyon, but the plan was vehemently opposed by conservation and indigenous groups and led to a long struggle over the fate of the river. The Stikine River Provincial Park (formerly the Stikine River Provincial Recreation Area) was created in 2001, at 257,177 ha in size, to protect this stretch of the river. == Descents by boat ==

The Grand Canyon of the Stikine is described by the kayaker Doug Ammons as "one of the most challenging [kayak] runs anybody has ever found on this planet". Its whitewater contains numerous grade V+ rapids. The canyon is attempted almost every fall as a rite of passage by the world's best expedition kayakers. It is approached as an expedition with descents normally taking around three days to complete, although a few kayakers have completed the run in a single day. The first one day descent of the river was completed in 2005 by Daniel DeLaVergne, John Grace, Tommy Hilleke, and Tobin MacDermott. Most attempts on the canyon are made in early fall when the water level is low. At that time of year the flow is between 4,000 and 13,000 cubic feet per second, with the level varying by as much as in a day. For much of the length of the canyon vertical cliffs make it difficult or impossible to climb out should an exit be required. In 1990, the complete river was paddled for the first time without a helicopter. Rob Lesser returned to lead a group on the first self-supported trip through the canyon. Four days later, Phil DeReimer, Hayden Glatte, and Bryan Tooley completed the second self-supported trip. Their trip marked the first descent by a group without Lesser and his considerable knowledge, proving that it was possible to complete the river without scouting from a helicopter first. ==See also==