Chilkoot is a historical Tlingit village located on the Chilkoot River between Lutak Inlet to the south and Chilkoot Lake to the north, about 83 miles (134 km) north-northwest of Juneau and 12 miles (19 km) southwest of Skagway, Alaska. The former village site is now part of Chilkoot Lake State Recreation Site which is linked by 10 miles (16 km) of road to Haines. The upper Chilkoot River originates from a series of unnamed cirque glaciers on the southern flank of Mount Klukwah in the Coast Mountains. It flows southeast for 18 miles (29 km) to Chilkoot Lake. The lake, approximately 3.3 miles (5 km) long, is drained by the lower Chilkoot River, which runs for about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to Lutak Inlet, a branch of Chilkoot Inlet at the northern end of Lynn Canal. The name “Chilkoot” is believed to derive from the Tlingit phrase “chíl-li-koo-t,” meaning “without a cache.” This refers to the traditional practice of packing fish with snow, separated by layers of willow or alder branches. The term “Chilkat” means “with a cache,” reflecting how people along the Chilkat River stored food in storehouses. The northern Coast Mountains of southeastern Alaska and westernmost British Columbia are underlain by the Coast Plutonic Complex. This complex separates the Insular superterrane to the west from the Intermontane superterrane to the east. The Coast Shear Zone roughly aligns with the Chilkoot and Chilkat River valleys, juxtaposing the metamorphic rocks of the Insular superterrane to the west against the plutonic rocks to the east. The southwestern side of the Chilkoot River valley comprises predominantly unnamed, partially metamorphosed sedimentary and volcanic rocks, likely formed during the Permian, Devonian, and Silurian periods. Meanwhile, the northeastern side features mostly Cretaceous-age plutons and batholiths of diorite, gabbro, granodiorite, and tonalite.

The Chilkat Tlingit have lived in Klukwan since their formation as a tribe, possibly arriving several centuries before Russian and Spanish explorers discovered the area in the 1700s. Ethnographic evidence suggests a northward migration by water along the coast and inland passages from northern British Columbia, supplemented by people moving from the interior along river valleys to the sea. Chilkat territory included the shores of Lynn Canal and its tributaries, extending from Berners Bay northward to the Chilkat and Chilkoot Passes. The Chilkat people are divided into two groups: the Chilkat of the Chilkat River drainage, with Klukwan as their main village, and the L’uknax Adi clan, known as the Chilkoot, who traditionally inhabited the Chilkoot River and Lake area. The Chilkoot lived in four villages along Lutak Inlet, the Chilkoot River, and near present-day Haines. In 1880, Chilkoot village had about eight houses and numerous smokehouses, with a population of 127. The main industry for both the Chilkat and Chilkoot was trading. Their only trade routes to the interior were over the Chilkoot and Chilkat Passes, with each trip taking ten to thirty or more days, conducted two to three times a year. On rivers, they used canoes, but over mountains, they traveled with backpacks and used dogs as pack animals. The first journey was made in midwinter when the snow was hard, making travel more certain. This preliminary trip arranged for the crucial spring trade, when the winter catch of furs was taken. It occurred in April, before the eulachon arrived, as its oil was the greatest dietetic luxury for the coast people. Following the Alaska Purchase in 1867, miners and traders were closely followed by missionaries. The mid-19th-century discovery of gold in Alaska and Canada’s interiors pressured the Chilkat and Chilkoot to open routes to the gold fields. Most stopped fishing to freight over the passes to Dyea and Skagway. Initially, village chiefs refused, fearing disruption of their trade with the Athabascans of the interior. Chilkoot Village was virtually abandoned between 1881 and 1890 due to European diseases, lack of wage labor, and a mudslide or flood. Haines is now the population center for the Chilkoot Tlingit.

Sockeye, pink, chum, and coho salmon are found in the Chilkoot River. Historically, sockeye salmon were the most plentiful and desired due to their large size and suitability for smoking, drying, or canning. Fishing in the Chilkoot River was primarily conducted by gaffing or spearing salmon from platforms as the fish swam upstream to Chilkoot Lake. These platforms were often large boulders naturally scattered along the riverbed or small wooden walkways built to bridge the boulders. During winter, when the river was low, rocks were moved to form fish weirs, which in summer funneled salmon to areas where they could be easily gaffed or speared. Farther upstream, near the outlet of Chilkoot Lake, small gill nets or beach seines were used. Different fishing locations often yielded salmon best suited for specific processing methods, such as smoking, drying, or boiling. Commercial salmon fishing began in the early 1900s using fish traps and gill nets in the upper Lynn Canal area and at the mouths of streams. The Chilkoot people continue to fish for salmon from Lutak and Chilkoot Inlets, employing drift gill nets from boats and set gill nets from the shore for both subsistence and commercial purposes. The Chilkoot Lake State Recreation Site now occupies the former village on the southern shore of Chilkoot Lake. The park, set amidst Sitka spruce trees, covers 80 acres (32 ha) and offers camping sites, picnic shelters, and a boat launch. The river and lake provide some of the area’s best salmon fishing from mid-June to mid-October. Large numbers of brown bears frequent the river to feed on salmon, leading the road to the park to be nicknamed the “bear highway.” Read more here and here. Explore more of Chilkoot and Lutak Inlet here: