Kitsu Creek

Kitsu Creek
Mouth of Kitsu Creek
Location
Country	Canada
Province	British Columbia
District	Cassiar Land District
Physical characteristics
Source	Kitsu Peak
• location	Spectrum Range
• coordinates	57°26′15″N 130°42′27″W[3]
• elevation	2,105 m (6,906 ft)[2]
Mouth	Mess Creek
• coordinates	57°30′56″N 130°51′40″W[1][2]
• elevation	668 m (2,192 ft)[2]
Length	22.5 km (14.0 mi)[4]
Basin size	72.6 km^2 (28.0 sq mi)[5]
Discharge
• average	2.19 m^3/s (77 cu ft/s)[5]
Basin features
Topo map	NTS 104G10 Mount Edziza

Kitsu Creek is a tributary of Mess Creek and part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada.^[1][6] It flows generally northwest and north for roughly 22.5 km (14.0 mi)^[4] to join Mess Creek, a tributary of the Stikine River.

Kitsu Creek's mean annual discharge is estimated at 2.19 m³/s (77 cu ft/s). Its watershed covers 72.6 km² (28.0 sq mi) and is entirely in Mount Edziza Provincial Park. The watershed's land cover is classified as 42.5% barren, 28.7% conifer forest, 11.4% shrubland, 11.0% snow/glacier, 5.7% herbaceous, and small amounts of other cover.^[5]

The mouth of Kitsu Creek is located about 47 km (29 mi) south of Telegraph Creek, British Columbia, about 115 km (71 mi) southwest of Dease Lake, British Columbia, and about 228 km (142 mi) southeast of Juneau, Alaska.^[4]

Kitsu Creek is in Mount Edziza Provincial Park, which lies within the traditional territory of the Tahltan First Nation, of the Tahltan people.^[7][8]

Kitsu Creek was named in association with Kitsu Peak and Kitsu Plateau. The name comes from a Tahltan word for the Northern Lights.^[1]

Geography

Kitsu Creek originates on the north side of Kitsu Peak in the Spectrum Range about 30 km (19 mi) south of Mount Edziza. It flows northwest on the Kitsu Plateau, cascades down the Mess Creek Escarpment and then flows north to Mess Creek just north of Mess Lake. It is joined from the south by its one named tributary, Nagha Creek.^[9] Kitsu Creek's watershed is in the southern part of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex.^[2][10]

See also

• List of rivers of British Columbia

References

1. "Kitsu Creek". BC Geographical Names.
2. "Toporama (on-line map and search)". Atlas of Canada. Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
3. Derived from BCGNIS, topographic maps, and Toporama
4. Lengths and distances measured using BCGNIS coordinates, topographic maps, online map servers, and Toporama
5. "Northwest Water Tool". BC Water Tool. GeoBC, Integrated Land Management Bureau, Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, Government of British Columbia. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
6. "Kitsu Creek". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
7. "Our Territory". Tahltan Central Government. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
8. "Dah Ki Mi — "Our House"". Tahltan Band Council. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
9. "Nagha Creek". BC Geographical Names.
10. Mussio, Russell; Mussio, Wesley (2018). Northern BC Backroad Mapbook. Mussio Ventures. p. 99. ISBN 978-1-926806-87-7. Retrieved 28 September 2023.