The
Skeena River is the second longest river entirely within
British Columbia,
Canada (after the
Fraser River). The Skeena is an important transportation artery, particularly for the
Tsimshian and the
Gitxsan—whose names mean "inside the Skeena River" and "people of the Skeena River" respectively, and also during the
Omineca Gold Rush when
steamboat services ran from the sea to
Hazelton, which was the jumping-off point for the trails to the goldfields. The river and its basin sustain a wide variety of fish, wildlife, vegetation and communities native to the area depend on the health of the river.