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canoebase.com: Wilderness Canoe Tripping Yukon Territory - North/Black/Liard River In early July of 1997, four people in two canoes paddled the North River into the Black River into the Liard River, taking out at Upper Liard, near Watson Lake, Yukon Territory, Canada (there will someday be a link to a map on the main page, and maybe from here?). This is a very seldom canoed wilderness white water river run, accessible only by by float plane. We did a 160 mile trip (260 km) with 12 days on the water, three of them layover days during which we did not paddle downstream. The trip can be shortened and whitewater difficulty reduced, and this might also extend the season a bit by allowing a slightly later put-in. The whole run could be done in as little as 7 days, paddling about 25 miles (40 km) a day. We averaged less than 18 miles (29 km) a day on the days we did paddle, though our days on the Liard River were over 30 miles each day (50 km). The North River is 30 miles (50 km) of mostly very continuous, tight, technical class 2 to 3+ white water with at least two required portages. The rock dodging we did, and the wave bashing lower down, made us consider it about the limit for tandem loaded open canoe tripping. The Black River is bigger, with 30 miles (50 km) of flat, and white water to class 2+. The Liard is 93 miles (150 km) of all wide open, big-river flat water. The whole run is pretty, with lots of wildlife (including mosquitoes), some decent fishing in the upper reaches, and much solitude for the experienced whitewater wilderness canoeists out there. You will probably not see other canoes on this river system, though paddlers will probably see a few other people in the upper lakes region, and possibly a motor boat or two in the lowest parts of the Liard. The area is a 1,400 mile (2250 km), two day or longer drive from Seattle, Washington (closest large American city). The scenery is varied and good, though not super spectacular. Wide vistas, narrow mountain valleys, log jams, river canyons, and wide Liard flood plain. There is some (as of '98) relatively unobtrusive exploratory mine sampling activity in the upper reaches of the system, which could escalate in the future. Put-in elevation is 4,167 feet (1,270 meters), the take out is 2,000 feet (610 meters). Mountains, with snow, go to 7,000+ feet (2,135 meters). The paddling season put-in timing for North Lake is very short -- late June or (maybe) very early July -- as it requires snowmelt run off. We had some rain every day, mostly short, light thunder showers, but do expect some longer, harder precipitation. There will be freezing temps on clear nights in the high country, but we had lots of sun with many warm days (to 80+°F/27°C, 65°F/18°C average daytime) on our trip. Do remember that it could snow any day of the year there. The lakes are small and wind would not be a problem on them, but could be on the Liard River (it wasn't for us).
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