Yukon River - Bridges

Bridges

Despite its length, there are only four vehicle-carrying bridges across the river:

• The Lewes Bridge, north of Marsh Lake on the Alaska Highway;
• The Robert Campbell Bridge, which connects the Whitehorse suburb of Riverdale to the downtown area,
• The Yukon River Bridge in Carmacks, on the Klondike Highway; and
• The E. L. Patton Yukon River Bridge, north of Fairbanks on the Dalton Highway.

A car ferry crosses the river at Dawson City in the summer; it is replaced by an ice bridge over the frozen river during the winter. Plans to build a permanent bridge were announced in March 2004, although they are currently on hold because bids came in much higher than budgeted.

There are also two pedestrian-only bridges in Whitehorse, as well as a dam across the river and a hydroelectric generating station. The construction of the dam flooded the White Horse Rapids, which gave the city its name, and created Schwatka Lake.

The river flows into several parklands and refuges including:

• Innoko National Wildlife Refuge
• Nowitna National Wildlife Refuge
• Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve
• Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge
• Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge