Hyland River & Selwyn Mountains Adventure > Wilderness Area
Selwyn Mountains
The Selwyn Mountains run in a northwesterly direction straddling the Yukon-NWT border. The southern section straddles the border from Macmillan Pass as far south as the South Nahanni River. The northern section falls mostly within the NWT. The Selwyns are a gentler mountain system of glacially formed ridges, peaks, high alpine plateaus and u-shaped valley bottoms. The high plateaus make the Selwyns inviting to hikers because of the large expanses of treeless terrain, which is not too steep for travel. The highest peak in the Selwyns is Keele Peak, at 2952 m (9685 ft). There are glacial fields in the Itsi and Rouge Ranges of the central Selwyns. These mountains are mostly comprised of sedimentary rocks of sandstone, shale and limestone, with the odd granitic intrusion. The Selwyns are home to both grizzly and black bears along with Dall sheep, moose, caribou, and wolves. If we are lucky we may see some of these magnificent creatures and most certainly will see signs that they inhabit this terrain.
The Hyland River
The Hyland River is one of only a handful of Yukon rivers that can call themselves children of the mighty Liard River. From its headwaters in the Logan and Selwyn Mountains, the upper reaches of the Hyland, above our put-in, is a spirited and technical river. As the river grows in size it slows and has sections of beautiful stress-free paddling, interspersed with shorter sections of exciting class II whitewater.
The river owes its name to Robert Hyland, and English prospector and trader who was the first recorded non-First Nation person to ascend the river in 1874. Robert Hyland lived out his life in the region, developing trading posts in direct competition with the Hudson Bay Company at Lower Post, Cassiar, and Dease Lake. He was known as a creative businessman: at one time printing his own money and having local miners and First Nations use it as currency at his trading posts.
The Liard basin, in which the highland flows, is known for its deep winter snowfalls, and richer, thicker vegetation cause by deeper soils and higher levels of precipitation. The biggest trees in the Yukon occur here in the Liard watershed.
We start our voyage just below the most advanced whitewater. In the upper reaches of the river, closer to the alpine, we may be lucky enough to spot a grizzly bear, a herd of mountain caribou or even wild sheep on the steeper terrain. As we descend the river we will stop on islands that are home to giant spruces (by Yukon standards). Many of these islands have not burned in a forest fire for a long time because of the protection of the river, allowing their trees to grow to an unusual size for this latitude. Wolves and moose populations are healthy in the Liard basin so we may hear or see signs of these magnificent creatures. Wolf tracks on the river’s gravel bars are a frequent sighting on the Hyland. The lower reaches of the Hyland flow into northern British Columbia, and shortly thereafter we will end our journey where the river reaches the Alaska Highway, a 20-minute drive southeast of the town of Watson Lake. Here, if we are lucky, we may see the Liard River bison herd, British Columbia’s only remaining population of wood bison, a distinct forest-dwelling species that often can be seen grazing along the margins of the Alaska Highway.
If we had continued down the river we would have first paddled into the Liard River, known for its massive sections of whitewater and then eventually into the much more tranquil Mackenzie River, heading north to the Arctic Ocean. Perhaps another time!
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