Kuskokwim River

Bank of the Kuskokwim River at Aniak

History and catchment area of ​​the Kuskokwim River

Template: Infobox River / BILD_fehlt

Template: Infobox River / BILD_fehlt

Template: Infobox River / BILD_fehlt

The 1165 km long Kuskokwim River is a major river in southwestern Alaska.

The river is formed about eight kilometers east of Medra by the confluence of the North Fork Kuskokwim River and East Fork Kuskokwim River, on the northern flank of the in- central Alaska Alaska Range, drained large parts of the north of this mountain range located inland and empties on the west coast in the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta, one of the largest river delta systems of the Earth, in the Bering Sea. With the exception of the headwaters of the river 's course is flat and wide. It is the longest river dams regulated by any in the United States.

Other arms of the Kuskokwim River source to be taken less kilometers effluent of its formation on him Middle Fork Kuskokwim River and South Fork Kuskokwim River. The Middle Fork flows too close to the mouth of the right of the Windy Fork Middle Fork Kuskokwim River and left the Big River.

The main route of the Iditarod Trail follows the South Fork of the Kuskokwim from the Alaska Range and crosses the river at McGrath.

Name

The designation of Alaska Natives for the River in 1818 brought by Ustiugow in experience and published in 1826 by Lieutenant Sarichew of the Imperial Russian Navy as Ryka Kuskokvim. The name of the Tanana for the river was Chin- ana, but he is now on the way out and is only used by ancient Indians.

In the language of the Central Alaskan Yup'ik is called the river Kusquqvak. The name refers to a large, slow-moving "thing."

Hydrology

The Kuskokwim River is a river discharge of 1900 m³ / s ninth of the rivers in the United States and with a catchment area of ​​124,000 km ², nearly 10% of the land area of Alaska, on the seventeenth. He is also the longest river in the United States, which runs entirely within the State, followed by the Trinity River in Texas, which is about 23 km shorter.

Course

The river has its origin in several waters in the central and south-central Alaska. The 400 km long North Fork rises in the Kuskokwim Mountains, about 320 km west- southwest of Fairbanks and flows in a wide valley to the southwest. The approximately 320 -km-long South Fork rises in the southwest end of the Alaska Range west of Mount Gerdine and flows in a north - northwesterly direction through the mountains, to Nikolai over. Here, the southern arm receives inflows that will flow from the Alaska Range northwest of Mount McKinley. Both arms unite near Medfra and then flows in a southwesterly direction to McGrath over, in a remote valley with the Kuskokwim Mountains to the north and the Alaska Range in the south.

In southwestern Alaska, the flow from the Kuskokwim Mountains steps out onto a Schmemmlandebene south of the Yukon River, which is covered by spruce forests. The river passes through a series of Inuit settlements, including Aniak and approaches to up to 80 km to the Yukon River before it swings to the southwest. South-west of Bethel, the largest settlement on the course of the river, the river expands into a marshy delta and flows about 80 km south- southwest of Bethel in the Kuskokwim. The course of the river is below Aniak within the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge.

Tributaries

The river has a number of important tributaries, mostly from the south Among them are the Big River, which flows about 30 km southwest of Medfra. At the southern end of the Kuskokwim Mountains also Swift, Stony River and Holitna unite with the river before it emerges into the coastal plain. He takes in Aniak Aniak River on the well. About 30 km upstream from Bethel and Kwethluk River flow Kisaralik. From the east of the Eek River flows to the Kuskokwim River, Eek.