Stikine River Provincial Park contains and protects a geological feature unparalleled in Canada. Nicknamed the "Grand Canyon" of the north, eighty kilometers of steep-walled canyon, composed of sedimentary and volcanic rock, has been carved through eons of river erosion. In the bottom of this sometimes 300 m deep chasm flows the wild and unnavigable Stikine River, which varies in width from 200 m to as little as 2 m at a point near its confluence with the Tanzilla River. Stikine River Provincial Park also creates a protected corridor between Spatsizi Plateau Wilderness Provincial Park to the east and Mount Edziza Provincial Park to the west.
Established Date: March 14, 1987
Park Size: 257,177 hectares
Any visitors wishing to fish/angle in BC Parks on the Highway 37 corridor should strongly consider obtaining a BC Freshwater Fishing Licence while they have access to internet and a printer. There are very limited opportunities to obtain a fishing licence on the Highway 37 corridor.
Wilderness camping is allowed, but few facilities are provided. Rustic campsites with fire rings, picnic tables, tenting areas, and pit toilets may be available at Fountain Rapids, Chapea Rapids, Beggerlay Canyon (all 3 are portage trails), and at canoe pull-out at the Highway 37 bridge. Please practice “leave-no-trace” camping and “pack out what you pack in”.
Several private guide outfitter camps exist within the park, cabin trespass and construction of new structures is prohibited.
No firewood available. If you have to make a fire, keep it minimal, make sure it is extinguished, please spread ashes and rocks about. Fires should be used sparingly, as they are among the most serious visual impacts in the backcountry. Always carry a stove; use it for most if not all of your cooking needs and only build a fire when it is safe and will not cause further damage or deplete wood supplies. Please check for campfire bans and the Fire Danger Rating for the area you are visiting before igniting a fire in the backcountry. Limited burning hours or campfire bans may be implemented. To preserve vegetation and ground cover, please don’t gather firewood from the area around your campsite or elsewhere in the park (this is a ticketable offence under the Park Act ). Dead wood is an important habitat element for many plants and animals and it adds organic matter to the soil.
Fish year-round for a variety of native species including Dolly Varden, Arctic grayling and rainbow trout, or try for Chinook salmon or steelhead (downstream of the grand canyon) during the late summer and fall. Anyone fishing or angling in British Columbia must have an appropriate licence.
Stikine River Provincial Park can be accessed via Highway 37 or along the scenic Telegraph Creek Road which leads southwest 110 km from Dease Lake to Telegraph Creek. Visitors should note that this road is steep and narrow in some places. The main canyon is located between the Highway 37 bridge and the Telegraph Creek townsite.
BC Parks honours Indigenous Peoples’ connection to the land and respects the importance of their diverse teachings, traditions, and practices within these territories. This park webpage may not adequately represent the full history of this park and the connection of Indigenous Peoples to this land. We are working in partnership with Indigenous Peoples to update our websites so that they better reflect the history and cultures of these special places.