Canyon Creek, Alaska

Summertime in Alaska cannot be beat. The weather from June through August is warm and relatively dry. There are seldom any heavy downpours, however, light drizzle does occur. This summer is forecast to be one of the drier summers.

If you are planning to prospect in the Kenai Peninsula it is always a good idea to bring a large tarp along to hang up over your camp area. It keeps the tent and everything around it dry. The picture below was a camp setup on Canyon Creek.

Getting across rivers and large streams is

easily accomplished by stringing a cable between trees on each side of the stream. A pulley is placed on the cable and a small 2 x 4 is hung from the cable with a rope. The passenger straddles the 2 x 4 and pulls his/her body across similar to what I am doing in the picture below.

To make things easier I have strung a 3/4" rope (white) below the cable making it easier to grap hold of and it also eliminates getting one's fingers pinched by the pulley. In addition, I place a small pulley on each end of the cable and loop a 3/8" rope (yellow) through them connecting each end to the pulley. That way regardless of which side of the stream the 2x4 is left on, it can be pulled back. This arrangement also allows one to help pull another across. It can also be used to transport equipment and supplies across by placing a person on each side of the stream.

In the picture above, you can see the other end of the cable and ropes just above the 6" tripe dredge. There where no strong trees on that side of the canyon so the cable was pinned into bedrock.

A picture of me standing on the edge of the Canyon which gave Canyon Creek its name. Near the center of the picture, 150 feet below, is a 5" dredge anchored along the edge of the stream.

The picture below was taken later in the year after the water cleared up. It was taken from the same vantage point looking in the direction I am facing in the picture above. In the upper right-hand corner of the picture below you can see the cable and rope going across the stream.

Farther downstream other miners operate a 5" suction dredge. Bedrock is shallow in most stretches of Canyon Creek. This is a particularly good location because bedrock is rough slabs of slate which readily traps gold.

Below is a picture of my 6" suction dredge operating on a small stream called Diane. This stream cascades 150 feet into Canyon Creek. It flows across old bench gravels which contain flake gold with occasional small nuggets. Diane Creek is about 12" deep with about 6 - 12 inches of gravel over bedrock. This is easy work.

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Last Update: 3/3/2007

Web Author: Rich Lampright