THE  PORCUPINE  PLACER  MINING  DISTRICT,  ALASKA. 
By  Charles  W.  Wright. 
GENERAL   DESCRIPTION. 
The  placers  of  Porcupine  Creek  and  vicinity,  discoverd  in  1898| 
are  now  coming-  into  prominence  as  gold  producers.  Porcupine 
Creek,  a  stream  about  5  miles  in  length,  enters  Klehini  River  from 
the  south  12  miles  above  its  junction  with  the  Chilkat.  Geographic- 
ally it  lies  just  north  of  the  fifty-ninth  parallel  of  latitude  and  approxi- 
mately at  136°  20'  west  longitude.  The  camp  is  situated  at  the  mouth 
of  the  creek,  35  miles  in  a  straight  line  northwest  of  Haines  Mission, 
on  Lynn  Canal,  but  by  the  river  route  the  actual  traveling-  distance  is 
about  15  miles. 
The  surrounding  region  may  be  described  as  a  high  plateau,  dissected 
by  numerous  deep  and  narrow  valleys,  so  that  its  general  aspect  is 
rugged  and  mountainous.  The  average  elevation  of  the  summits 
is  about  5,000  feet  above  sea  level,  the  mountain  slopes  being  rounded 
and  glaciated,  with  no  abrupt  benches  or  terraces.  The  valley  of 
the  Klehini  is  a  flat-bottomed  gravel  flat,  averaging  one-fourth  mile  inf 
width.  The  creeks,  such  as  the  Porcupine,  are  characteristic  mountain 
streams,  cutting  deep  canyons  into  the  hillsides,  and  many  of  them  are| 
fed  by  glaciers. 
Of  the  creeks  tributary  to  Klehini  River,  Porcupine  Basin  contains 
the  only  deposits  of  gravel  which  have  proved  remunerative  up  to 
the  present,  time,  though  prospects  have  been  found  on  Glacier  Creek. 
3  miles  to  the  west,  on  the  Canadian  side  of  the  provisional  boundary. 
The  recent  boundary  decision  throws  Glacier  Creek  into  Alaskan 
territory,  and  this  will  probably  lead  to  the  early  development  of  its, 
placers  by  the  United  States  citizens  who  have  claimed  the  grounc 
for  several  years. 
This  gold  field  was  formerly  reached  by  the  Dalton  trail,  but  this 
is  now  seldom  used.     Most  of  the  freight  is  taken  up  the  Chilkat  ir 
Indian  canoes  to  a  cache  opposite  Wells,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Klehini 
and  thence  by  wagon  to  Porcupine  City,  a  distance  of  10  miles. 
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