Pelly
Pelly is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- 62.44°, -134.06°
About Pelly
The Pelly River (Ts'ekínyäk Chú) is a river in Canada, and is a headstream of the Yukon River. The river originates west of the Mackenzie Mountains and flows 530 km (330 mi) through south-central Yukon. The Pelly has two main tributaries, the Ross and Macmillan rivers.
The Selkirk First Nation (Hucha Hudan people) name for the river is Ts'enkínyäk Chú, meaning 'water running between the mountains'. The river was later named by Robert Campbell in honour of Sir John Henry Pelly, governor of the Hudson's Bay Company. The restored Hudson's Bay Company trading post of Fort Selkirk is at the juncture of the Pelly and Yukon Rivers.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Pelly River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Pelly in Depth
Course
The Pelly rises in glaciers on the western slopes of the Selwyn Mountains above 1,400 m (4,600 ft) in elevation, close to the Yukon-Northwest Territories boundary. It flows south and west through a wide valley, receiving many small tributaries from the east. It passes the Pelly Lakes, out of which flows the Woodside River, and there it turns to the west. The Pelly then assumes a northwesterly course through the Tintina Trench. It flows northwest to receive the Ross River at the town of Ross River where there is a cable ferry. Paralleling the Robert Campbell Highway, it then merges with the Lapie River from the left and passes the community of Faro which can be reached by a bridge. After Faro, it runs south of Rose Mountain and receives the Glenlyon River from the left.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Pelly River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Pelly: Key Facts
| Length | 608 km |
|---|---|
| Drainage basin | 49,000 km² |
| Mouth | Yukon River |
| Drainage system | Yukon River Basin |
| Tributaries | Ross River, Macmillan River, Glenlyon River, Earn River, Tay River, Needlerock Creek, Mica Creek, Tummel River |
Facts from Wikidata Q1898456 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Pelly: Quick Answers
- Where is Pelly?
- Pelly is located in Canada, at 62.4367° N, 134.0628° W.
- Are there dams on the Pelly?
- No dam on the Pelly is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.