The lake has a ‘Recreation Site’ at its southern end near the outlet to the Chilkoot River, which is set amidst the Sitka spruce trees.

This village is now a camping area developed by the State Parks and Outdoor Recreation Division of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources.

[2][7] The Lake, approached from the park area, offers one of the best red salmon fishing locations in Southeast Alaska.

[8] The Chilkoot Lake is marked on the quadrant map of the Skagway B 2 USGS in the Heines County at an altitude of 30 feet (9 m).

The Upper reach of the river from its mouth at the lake up to the glacier head is about 16 miles (26 km) and the land is with the State.

The river in its first 1⁄8 mi (200 m) has formed a pool, and then flows through a number of rapids strewn with boulders in some stretches and the remaining part is flat but with rocky bed.

A healthy upper watershed 5 by 1.5 miles (8 by 2 km) covers the Chilkoot Lake is considered essential to propagate sockeye, coho, hooligan, bears, moose and many other species of wild life.

Tlingit clans "historically owned areas of economic production that were most often also places of importance in the Spiritual geography of the region".

The Chilkoot band at one time stored fish packed in snow between alder or willow branches, instead of in storehouses.

Another factor for desertion of the village is attributed to the cannery industries that got established in the area for processing salmons that were fished from the lake and the river, in Haines and other places in the late 19th and early 20th century; the last Tlingit reportedly left the place in the early 1940s and most of the families now live in Haines.

[16] The road from the Lutak Inlet to the outlet of the lake was extended and improved over a period from 1953 to 1956 by the Alaska Road Commission; the intended purpose was to have access to the recreation area, for quality fishing and access to small boats to the river shores for extracting timber from the area for commercial purposes.

At the head of the lake, there were springs which formed a pool of about 125 feet (40 m) diameter, considered a good location for spawning of red salmons.

[23] According to the studies carried out by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, 25% spawn of sockeye is from the sensitive habitat of the upper watershed above the Chilkoot Lake.

These studies also indicated that anadromous fish, coho, Dolly Varden, and an occasional chum salmon were found above the Chilkoot Lake in the spawning and rearing grounds.

The site is spread over an area of 80 acres (32 ha) and has camping grounds, picnic shelters and also a boat launching facility.

During winter the lake appears bowl-shaped and is surrounded by white, snow-covered mountains, tucked in a valley and is free from icy winds.

The main security precaution to be observed by kayakers is not disturb the bears, which may be seen hunting for fish on the shore line.