title: Kalama River
text: # Kalama River
  
  The Kalama River is a 45-mile (72 km) tributary of the Columbia River, in the U.S. state of Washington. It flows entirely within Cowlitz County, Washington. Calama River is an old variant name.
  
  Gabriel Franchere in 1811 wrote of the Indian village at the mouth of the Kalama River, adding that it was called Thlakalamah.
  
  ## Course
  
  The Kalama River originates in the Cascade Range just south of Mount St. Helens. It flows generally west, joining the Columbia River near Kalama, 73 miles (117 km) upstream of the larger river's mouth on the Pacific Ocean.
  
  