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Grand Canyon of the Stikine seen from above (Sentinel-2)

Canada Canada Canyon

Grand Canyon of the Stikine

851 m of rock, cut by the Stikine River.

See the cutWhen to go

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data), CC BY 4.0, with relief shading from Copernicus WorldDEM-30

The cut

851 metres, to scale.

A slice through Grand Canyon of the Stikine where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.

1,102 m1,434 m851 m20 km rim to rim5.0 kmvertical scale × 1.71,102 m1,434 m851 m20 km rim to rim5.0 kmvertical scale × 3.0

Standing on the floor, to scale: Great Pyramid · 139 m · Empire State · 443 m

Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is. On one side the ground was still rising 12 km out: the true rim is further away and the canyon deeper.

851m

Depth

measured on the 30 m relief model

20.0km

Rim to rim

measured on the 30 m relief model

30°

Steepest wall

average over 300 m, from the relief

252m

Floor altitude

Rim to floor

8 °C warmer at the bottom.

In July the afternoon reaches 21 °C on the floor, against 13 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are from June to August. The rim freezes at night from October to May. The wettest months are from July to September.

rim · 1,434 mfloor · 252 m
  1. -4°-12°Jan
  2. -2°-10°Feb
  3. 1°-7°Mar
  4. 6°-2°Apr
  5. 13°6°May
  6. 19°11°Jun
  7. 21°13°Jul
  8. 20°12°Aug
  9. 14°7°Sep
  10. 7°0°Oct
  11. -1°-9°Nov
  12. -5°-12°Dec
Hike: Jun–AugFrost on the rim: Oct–MayWettest: Jul–Sep

Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.

Valley in British Columbia, Canada

Grand Canyon of the Stikine is a canyon in Canada, cut by the Stikine River. The relief model measures 851 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 1,183 m to the higher one. Rim to rim it is 20 km wide where the cut was taken.

Read more on Wikipedia

Getting there.

Plan the visit

Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

The river

The Stikine River runs highest from May to July.

The Stikine River carries about 300 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from May to July, fed by melting snow. It is lowest from December to March.

  1. 93 m³/sJan
  2. 38 m³/sFeb
  3. 113 m³/sMar
  4. 368 m³/sApr
  5. 876 m³/sMay
  6. 918 m³/sJun
  7. 813 m³/sJul
  8. 545 m³/sAug
  9. 510 m³/sSep
  10. 440 m³/sOct
  11. 334 m³/sNov
  12. 173 m³/sDec

From about 38 m³/s in the lowest month to 918 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 21,215 km².

Follow the Stikine River from source to mouth on Riveryas

Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.

From the sky.

The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.

Grand Canyon of the Stikine seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 6 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 24 × 24 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Around the canyon.

    • viewpoints within 5 km
    • marked hiking routes within 4 km
    • via ferrata routes within 4 km
    • climbing crags within 3 km
    • footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 km
    • rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
    • swimming spots within 3 km
    • named waterfalls within 4 km
    • caves within 3 km
    • car parks within 3 km
    • information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
    • bus stops within 2 km
    • campsites within 8 km
    • hotels and guesthouses within 8 km
    • restaurants and cafés within 4 km

    Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

    In our other atlases

    What else is around Grand Canyon of the Stikine.

    The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.

    Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.

    Month by month

    The weather, at the floor and at the rim.

    JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
    Afternoon · floor-4-21613192120147-1-5
    Afternoon · rim-12-10-7-2611131270-9-12
    Night · rim-19-20-17-10-3143-2-8-16-19
    Rain (mm)6544423855781029795837157
    Rainy days161314121519211920201816
    Sun hours/day2.04.57.19.29.58.07.26.44.63.01.71.5
    Snow on the ground (cm)68828564153118173250
    Afternoon · floorAfternoon · rimNight · rimRain (mm)Sun hours/day
    Jan-4-12-19652.0
    Feb-2-10-20444.5
    Mar1-7-17427.1
    Apr6-2-10389.2
    May136-3559.5
    Jun19111788.0
    Jul211341027.2
    Aug20123976.4
    Sep147-2954.6
    Oct70-8833.0
    Nov-1-9-16711.7
    Dec-5-12-19571.5

    Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (252 m) and the rim (1,434 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.

    Recent years

    Wet years, dry years.

    Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.

    JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
    202064%138%115%137%88%159%129%198%51%74%111%83%
    202169%132%187%130%147%103%94%159%146%76%102%103%
    2022122%169%95%114%75%86%117%85%58%75%47%74%
    202373%164%60%141%96%128%117%77%107%85%107%78%
    202497%70%61%123%133%124%146%70%91%82%96%93%
    202565%58%69%130%111%117%86%109%60%71%69%144%

    130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month

    Compare with the neighbours.

    Grand Canyon of the Stikine

    Canada

    • 851 mDepth
    • 20 kmRim to rim
    • —Length
    • 30°Steepest wall

    Beggerlay Canyon

    Canada · 66 km

    • 949 mDepth
    • 16 kmRim to rim
    • —Length
    • 33°Steepest wall

    See the guide

    Klootchman Canyon

    Canada · 85 km

    • 1,863 mDepth
    • 15 kmRim to rim
    • —Length
    • 39°Steepest wall

    See the guide

    Hagwilget Canyon

    Canada · 365 km

    • 1,421 mDepth
    • 21 kmRim to rim
    • —Length
    • 35°Steepest wall

    See the guide

    Where these figures come from

    Name, type, published depth and lengthWikidata (Q5594375) · CC0
    The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D modelCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
    River flow and basinHydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0
    ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020
    Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
    ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons
    Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearbyCoastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas

    Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

    The family

    Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?

    Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.

    beachesCoastyaFind your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit
    lakesLakeyasEvery lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit
    mountainsPeakyasEvery summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit
    waterfallsCascadyasEvery waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit
    islandsIslandyasEvery island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit riversRiveryasEvery river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit
    canyonsCanyonyasEvery canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.You are here