How long is the American River in Northern California?
American River
The American River (Río de los Americanos during the period before 1847 ruled by Mexico) is a 120-mile-long river in California that runs from the Sierra Nevada mountain range to its confluence with the Sacramento River in the Sacramento Valley. Via the Sacramento River, it is part of the San Francisco Bay watershed. This river is fed by the melting snowpack of the Sierra Nevada and its many headwaters and tributaries, including the North Fork American River, the Middle Fork American River, and the South Fork American River.
Alamosa River
The Alamosa River is a river in the southern part of the U.S. state of Colorado. It is about long, flowing roughly east through the San Luis Valley. Its watershed comprises about .
East Fork Carson River
The East Fork Carson River is the largest tributary of the Carson River, flowing through California and Nevada in the western United States. The north-flowing river is long and drains a mostly rural, mountainous watershed of .
Smith River, California
Smith River (formerly, Smith River Corners, Smith's River Valley, Smiths River, and Smith's River) (Tolowa: kaa-nvsh, natlh-mii~-nee-dash ) is a census-designated place in Del Norte County, California, United States, at the very northwestern corner of the state near the border with Oregon. It is located north-northeast of Crescent City, east of the mouth of the Smith River, at an elevation of 52 feet (16 m). As of 2010, the population was 866. The ZIP Code is 95567. Its area code is 707. It is bordered by the Smith River National Recreation Area. Smith River is the headquarters of the Tolowa Dee-ni' Nation, a federally recognized tribe of Tolowa people.
American River
Spanish explorer Gabriel Moraga named the river "Rio de las Llagas" (River of Sorrows) when he passed through the area in the early 1800s, perhaps due to hostile relations with local native peoples. Another member of the expedition recorded the name as "Rio de los Lagos" (River of the Lakes) which may or may not have been an error, as in those times the area of the Central Valley surrounding the American River was home to vast marshes, which would have given the river the appearance of a series of lakes.
American River
The American River watershed crosses multiple climate zones due to the large range in elevations. The climate of the lower American River valley is Mediterranean and temperate grassland. Sacramento County in particular, where the main stem American River is located, is known for its cool winters and hot summers, with low average precipitation. The North, Middle and South Forks originate in alpine zones along the Sierra Crest and flow through subalpine, montane and temperate coniferous forests. In the foothills, oak woodland and grassland are dominant.
Truckee River
The Truckee River is a river in the U.S. states of California and Nevada. The river flows northeasterly and is long. The Truckee is the sole outlet of Lake Tahoe and drains part of the high Sierra Nevada, emptying into Pyramid Lake in the Great Basin. Its waters are an important source of irrigation along its valley and adjacent valleys.
Central Valley Project
The American River Division is located in north-central California, on the east side of the Great Central Valley. Its structures use the water of the American River, which drains off the Sierra Nevada and flows into the Sacramento River. The division is further divided into three units: the Folsom, Sly Park and Auburn-Folsom South. The American River Division stores water in the American River watershed, to both provide water supply for local settlements, and supply it to the rest of the system. The dams also are an important flood control measure. Hydroelectricity is generated at Folsom and Nimbus dams, and marketed to the Western Area Power Administration.
California Trail
The Truckee Trail (established 1844 by the Stephens-Townsend-Murphy Party) over the Sierra Nevada took about to cross Forty Mile Desert but it did have a hot springs in about the middle that could be consumed if given time to cool. After hitting the Truckee River just as it turned almost due north towards Pyramid Lake near today's Wadsworth, Nevada, the emigrants had crossed the dreaded Forty Mile Desert. The emigrants blessed the Truckee's cool and sweet tasting water, fresh grass and the cool shade from the first trees (cottonwoods) the emigrants had seen in hundreds of miles. The travelers often rested themselves and their animals for a few days before proceeding. Real shade, grass for their animals and no more bitter, soapy-tasting Humboldt River water were much appreciated. The Truckee Trail followed the Truckee River past present day Reno, Nevada (then called Big Meadows) and went west until they encountered Truckee River Canyon near the present Nevada-California border. This canyon was one of the paths across the Carson Range of mountains. This steep, narrow, rock and cold water filled canyon could be traversed by wagons but required about 27 crossings of the cold Truckee River and much prying and shoving to get wagons and teams over the rocks to proceed up the canyon.
Santa Ana River
The Santa Ana River is the largest river entirely within Southern California in the United States. It rises in the San Bernardino Mountains and flows for most of its length through San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, before cutting through the northern Santa Ana Mountains via Santa Ana Canyon and flowing southwest through urban Orange County to drain into the Pacific Ocean. The Santa Ana River is long, and its drainage basin is in size.
Rancho Rio de los Americanos
Rancho Rio de los Americanos was a Mexican land grant in present-day Sacramento County, California given in 1844 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to William Leidesdorff (1810–1848). The grant takes its name from Río de los Americanos, the name of the American River during the Mexican-rule era. The grant originally consisted of 8 square leagues and extended from the eastern border of John Sutter's New Helvetia (east of Sacramento) 4 leagues along the south bank of the American River, to the eastern end of present day Folsom, and included present-day cities of Rancho Cordova and Folsom.
American River
In 1839, Swiss immigrant John Sutter established the New Helvetia settlement on the American River, near the present-day location of central Sacramento. In 1848, following the Mexican–American War, California was ceded to the United States in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Just weeks later, James W. Marshall, an employee of Sutter, discovered gold on the South Fork, starting the California Gold Rush.
Red River of the North
Several urban areas have developed on both sides of the Red River, including those of Fargo-Moorhead and Grand Forks-East Grand Forks in states of North Dakota and Minnesota, respectively, in the United States and Winnipeg in Canada. The Red is about long, of which about are in the United States and about are in Canada. The river falls on its trip to Lake Winnipeg, where it spreads into the vast deltaic wetland known as Netley Marsh.
Americas
The Colorado River drains much of the Southern Rockies and parts of the Great Basin and Range Province. The river flows approximately into the Gulf of California, during which over time it has carved out natural phenomena such as the Grand Canyon and created phenomena such as the Salton Sea. The Columbia is a large river, long, in central western North America and is the most powerful river on the West Coast of the Americas. In the far northwest of North America, the Yukon drains much of the Alaskan peninsula and flows from parts of Yukon and the Northwest Territory to the Pacific. Draining to the Arctic Ocean of Canada, the Mackenzie River drains waters from the Arctic Great Lakes of Arctic Canada, as opposed to the Saint-Lawrence River that drains the Great Lakes of Southern Canada into the Atlantic Ocean. The Mackenzie River is the largest in Canada and drains .
Los Angeles River
On July 23, 2013, the nonprofit group River LA, formerly known as the Los Angeles River Revitalization Corporation, announced a goal of completing a continuous 51-mile (82 km) greenway and bike path along the river by the end of the decade. The path is envisioned to be the central focus of a linear recreational park as well as providing an alternative transportation path through Los Angeles. The announcement by the nonprofit group precedes the expected August 30 release of a feasibility study being prepared by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps have the ultimate decision-making power over the river and its future revitalization. On September 13, 2013 the Army Corps of Engineers recommended a $453 million plan to restore nearly 600 acres of wildlife habitat – much of that located between Griffith Park and Lincoln Heights – as the best option to restore the river’s ecosystem while preserving the flood protection provided by the concrete encasement.
Western United States
The Colorado River is a major source of water in the Southwest and many dams, such as the Hoover Dam, form reservoirs along it. So much water is drawn for drinking water throughout the West and irrigation in California that in most years, water from the Colorado River no longer reaches the Gulf of California. The Columbia River, the largest river in volume flowing into the Pacific Ocean from North America, and its tributary, the Snake River, water the Pacific Northwest. The Platte runs through Nebraska and was known for being a mile (2 km) wide but only a half-inch (1 cm) deep. The Rio Grande forms the border between Texas and Mexico before turning due north and splitting New Mexico in half.
California Wash (Nevada)
California Wash is an arroyo tributary to the Muddy River, in Clark County, Nevada. Its mouth is at its confluence with the Muddy River over a mile southwest of Moapa and a mile and a half west of Glendale, Nevada. Its source is at an elevation of 3320 feet at the southwestern end of the Muddy Mountains, at . From there it drains northeastward to its mouth on the Muddy River.
Rio Alamar
Rio Alamar or Arroyo de Alamar is a river mainly in northern Baja California, Mexico with a small portion in California, United States. The stream is formed by the confluence of Cottonwood Creek and Tecate Creek a short distance north of the Mexico–United States border. It flows generally west for about through the San Ysidro Mountains and the Tijuana urban area before joining with the Arroyo de las Palmas in central Tijuana, to form the Tijuana River.
North River (North Carolina)
The North River is a tidal river, approximately 18 miles (29 km) long, in eastern North Carolina, the United States. North River is located north of Beaufort, NC located in Carteret County.North River & Laurel Road Fire Inc.
Guadalupe River (California)
The Guadalupe River is the southernmost major U.S. river with a Chinook salmon run (see Habitat and Wildlife section below). Much of the river is surrounded by parks. The river's Los Alamitos and Guadalupe Creek tributaries are, in turn, fed by smaller streams flowing from Almaden Quicksilver County Park, home to former mercury mines dating back to when the area was governed by Mexico. The Guadalupe River watershed carries precipitation from the slopes of Loma Prieta and Mount Umunhum, the two major peaks of the Sierra Azul, the historical Spanish name ("Blue Mountains") for that half of the Santa Cruz Mountains south of California Highway 17. Two of the Guadalupe River's major tributaries, Los Gatos Creek and Guadalupe Creek have their sources in the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve on the western and eastern flanks of the Sierra Azul.
Canadian River
The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .
American River (Washington)
From its source at American Lake, it flows north for several miles, picking up its tributary the Rainier Fork American River, which flows east down from the vicinity of Chinook Pass. State Route 410 crossing Chinook Pass from Mount Rainier National Park, then follows the Rainier Fork and the American River valleys.
California Trail
As found by about 1844, the trail at "parting of the ways" (Idaho) from the Snake River leads along the Raft River about southwest to the head of the Raft River and the City of Rocks (now called: City of Rocks National Reserve). The Hudspeth Cutoff and the Salt Lake Cutoff all rejoined the California Trail near the City of Rocks (For maps see NPS map California Trail:). The trail then continued west over Granite Pass, which involved a steep, treacherous descent. West of Granite Pass, the trail was in the Great Basin drainage. Rainfall in the Great Basin either flowed to the Humboldt River, sank into the ground or evaporated. The trail then jogged northwest until it reached Goose Creek where it headed southwest, nicking the far northwest corner of Utah and on into the future state of Nevada. The trail then headed southwest, down Goose Creek for about until it hit Thousand Springs Valley's creeks and springs. The trail followed Thousand Springs Valley until it intercepted West Brush Creek and Willow Creek, which run into the Humboldt River. This about trail through Idaho and Nevada connecting the Snake River to the Humboldt River passed enough springs and creeks to provide the necessary feed and water for the California bound emigrants. The trail hit the Humboldt River in northeastern Nevada near present-day Wells, Nevada. Another branch of the trail went through Bishops Canyon and intercepted the trail about west of Wells.() Humboldt Wells had good water and grass. The distance from City of Rocks to Wells was about .
Americano Creek
Two permanent Coast Miwok villages were located on the Estero Americano: one named "Uli-yomi" at the head of the estero, and another named "Awachi" at its mouth. The earliest Spanish maps show the creek and its estuary as "Estero Americano". At the time of the Russian colony at Fort Ross, the Americano Creek was known as the "Avacha River". To counter the Russian settlement General Vallejo sent three "Americanos", Edward McIntosh, James Black (1810–1870), and James Dawson, to settle just southeast of Bodega Bay. These three men came to California as sailors with Captain John B.R. Cooper, brother-in-law of General Vallejo. Black settled upon what is now known as Rancho Cañada de Jonive, while Dawson and McIntosh settled upon Rancho Estero Americano. Rancho Cañada de Pogolimi was a Mexican land grant given in 1844 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to María Antonia Cazares, widow of James Dawson.
Santa Ana River Trail
The Santa Ana River Trail is a multi-use trail complex that runs alongside the Santa Ana River in southern California. The trail stretches from the Pacific Ocean at Huntington Beach along the Santa Ana River to the Orange–Riverside county line. Planned extensions of the trail reach to Big Bear Lake in San Bernardino County. When completed, it will be the longest multi-use trail in Southern California, at approximately . In 1989, the "Los Angeles Times" described the path as "a veritable freeway for bicycles".
2017 California floods
The American River east of Sacramento reached record flows, although property damage was limited due to flood protection provided by Folsom Dam. The maximum flood release of was the highest since 1997. The popular recreation areas at the American River Parkway and Discovery Park were flooded for four months.
Altamaha River
It is reportedly the third-largest contributor of fresh water to the Atlantic Ocean from North America. Including its longest tributary (the Ocmulgee) in length calculations, as is standard USGS practice, its length of places it seventh on the list of U.S. rivers entirely within one state, behind only four Alaskan rivers, the Sacramento-Pit River in California, and the Trinity River in Texas. The beginning of the Colorado River of Texas is just within New Mexico. The long Mobile-Alabama-Coosa River system, mostly in Alabama, originates a short distance within Georgia.
Salinas River (California)
The Salinas River is the longest river of the central coast of California, running and draining 4,160 square miles. It flows north-northwest and drains the Salinas Valley that slices through the central California Coast Ranges south of Monterey Bay. The river begins in southern San Luis Obispo County, originating in the Los Machos Hills of the Los Padres National Forest. From there, the river flows north into Monterey County, eventually making its way to connect with the Monterey Bay, part of the Pacific Ocean, approximately 5 miles south of Moss Landing. The river is a wildlife corridor, and provides the principal source of water from its reservoirs and tributaries for the farms and vineyards of the valley.
Tijuana River
The Tijuana River () is an intermittent river, 120 mi (195 km) long, near the Pacific coast of northern Baja California state in northwestern Mexico and Southern California in the western United States.
Smith River (California)
The Smith River (Tolowa: ) is a river flowing from the Klamath Mountains to the Pacific Ocean in Del Norte County in extreme northwestern California, on the West Coast of the United States. It is about 25.1 miles (40.4 km) long, all within Del Norte County, and it flows through the Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest, Six Rivers National Forest, and Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park.
Altar Valley
On maps of Arizona, in the Altar Valley region, the United States-Mexico border changes direction to the northwest to end at the Colorado River at Yuma, Arizona. This change in border direction mostly follows a water divide change, separating drainage basins from each country; there are minor regional exceptions along the border to Yuma and the California border. Southern Arizona's desert waters flow north-northwest mostly ultimately ending at the Gila River which starts in extreme southwestern New Mexico and ends at Yuma, bordering California. Mexico's border drainage is into the Gran Desierto de Altar, with two rivers of northern Sonora draining to the southwest into the northern Gulf of California. These two areas of southwest Arizona and northwest Sorona are most inhospitable and dangerous in summer months. (The Barry M. Goldwater Air Force Range uses the Arizona region because of its remoteness and yeartime usage abilities by flight.)
Middle Fork American River
The Middle Fork American River is one of the three main branches of the American River in Northern California. The river flows from its headwaters in the Sierra Nevada, in a generally southwest direction, to join the North Fork American River near Auburn.
American River
The Maidu, Miwok, Nisenan, and Wintun peoples inhabited the American River in Sacramento for at least 5,000 years before Spaniards and Americans settled the region, although human habitation in Northern California is believed to date back as much as 12,000 years. They utilized the vast amount of resources of the American River for shelter, clothes, baskets, and other goods before Europeans arrived in the late 18th century. The Nisenan called the river "Kum Mayo", meaning "roundhouse river".
Colorado River
Today, between 36 and 40 million people depend on the Colorado River's water for agricultural, industrial and domestic needs. Southern Nevada Water Authority called the Colorado River one of the "most controlled, controversial and litigated rivers in the world". Over 29 major dams and hundreds of miles of canals serve to supply thirsty cities, provide irrigation water to some 4 million acres (1.6 million hectares), and meet peaking power demands in the Southwest, generating more than 12 billion kWh of hydroelectricity each year. Often called "America's Nile", the Colorado is so carefully managed – with basin reservoirs capable of holding four times the river's annual flow – that each drop of its water is used an average of 17 times in a single year.
California megapolitan areas
California is linked by the 5 Freeway, the 101 Freeway, the 99 Freeway and PCH which start in the U.S.-Mexico border, Los Angeles, near Bakersfield and southern Orange County respectively, and terminate at the Oregon border (between Yreka and Ashland), the Oregon border (between Crescent City and Brookings), Red Bluff, and in northern Mendocino County respectively. The California High-Speed Rail, the first true high-speed rail network in the Americas, will connect Sacramento and the Bay Area to Los Angeles and San Diego with high-speed trains capable of 220 mph (350 km/h) linking San Francisco and Los Angeles in two and a half hours. Construction began in August 2010 with the construction of the new San Francisco Transbay Terminal. As of the 2010 Census, the combined population of all of California's metropolitan regions is nearly 28.9 million (excluding San Diego, Reno, and Las Vegas), about 9.37% of the total US population, while the entire state of California had an estimated population of 44.2 million in 2017.
National City, California
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of . of it is land and of it (20.17%) is water. National City is bounded by San Diego to the north and northeast, Bonita to the southeast, and Chula Vista to the south across the Sweetwater River. San Diego Bay lies to the immediate west of the city. Also, within the boundaries of National City on the eastern side of town is the unincorporated area of San Diego County known as Lincoln Acres.
National City is 15 minutes away from the US–Mexico Border (Tijuana).
South Fork Clearwater River
The river is formed by the confluence of the American River and Red River in the Nez Perce National Forest at an elevation of . The roughly American River rises at and flows generally south to the confluence, while the northwest flowing Red River, rising at , is about long. The American River is sometimes considered part of the main stem. From the confluence the South Fork flows west through a canyon followed by Idaho State Highway 14, receiving the Crooked River from the left and Newsome Creek from the right before reaching Golden, where it receives Tenmile Creek from the left. Further west the river receives Johns Creek from the left, Meadow Creek from the right and Mill Creek from the left, and the gorge deepens to a maximum of some as the river swings north near Grangeville. From there the river flows generally north, past Harpster and Stites, before reaching its mouth on the Clearwater at Kooskia, at an elevation of .
Sacramento River
As the river continues south it approaches the Sacramento metro area, the largest population center in the watershed. Sacramento International Airport is located on the east bank of the river near Fremont. Near downtown Sacramento it receives the American River from the east, then passes under the historic Tower Bridge and Interstate 80. The California State Capitol sits less than half a mile (0.8 km) east of the river where the Tower Bridge crosses it. Shortly downstream, the Port of Sacramento is located on the west side of the Sacramento, connected to the river by a lock. The Sacramento River Deep Water Ship Channel provides access to the port from the Pacific, bypassing about of the winding lower Sacramento. The channel runs parallel to the Sacramento several miles to the west, and also forms the eastern boundary of the Yolo Bypass. The manually operated Sacramento Weir, located across from downtown Sacramento on the west side of the river, serves to relieve floodwater pressure from the American River by allowing it to drain west into the Yolo Bypass instead of continuing down the Sacramento River.
Downstream of Sacramento, the river enters the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta, a vast tidal estuary and inverted river delta of over which receives the entire run-off of the Central Valley, a region covering a third of California. The Sacramento is by far the largest contributor of fresh water to the Delta; in an average year, it accounts for more than 80 percent of the fresh water inflow. At Walnut Grove, the manmade Delta Cross Channel connects the Sacramento to the Mokelumne River channel, allowing a portion of the water to be pumped south toward Clifton Court Forebay, the receiving reservoir for the main CVP and State Water Project aqueducts which irrigate millions of acres and supply water to over 23 million people in the San Joaquin Valley, the San Francisco Bay Area and Greater Los Angeles. Although river levels are tidally influenced here and occasionally as far north as Verona, the water stays fresh in all but the driest years. Saltwater intrusion from the Pacific Ocean was one of the main reasons for the construction of the federal Central Valley Project (CVP), whose dams maintain a minimum flow in the Sacramento to keep seawater at bay.
California State Route 111
A nearly 40 mile (64 km) length of the highway dotted with date and citrus groves follows both the old Southern Pacific "Sunset Route" (now the main Union Pacific line between Los Angeles and Yuma, Arizona) and the eastern shore of the Salton Sea. Though some small settlements and a California state park line the shore, the area is eerily empty due to the sea's rapidly declining water quality. The small town of North Shore is all but abandoned as a tourist destination, though more than 3,400 residents were counted at the 2010 census.
Santa Margarita River
The Santa Margarita River which with the addition of what is now Temecula Creek, was formerly known as the Temecula River, is a short intermittent river on the Pacific coast of southern California in the United States, approximately long. One of the last free-flowing rivers in southern California, it drains an arid region at the southern end of the Santa Ana Mountains, in the Peninsular Ranges between Los Angeles and San Diego.
North American Cordillera
California's Central Valley is a large, flat valley that dominates the central portion of California, stretching inland and parallel to the Pacific Ocean coast. Its northern half is referred to as the Sacramento Valley, and its southern half as the San Joaquin Valley. The two halves meet at the huge Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers, which along with their tributaries drain the majority of the valley. The Central Valley covers an area of approximately , making it slightly smaller than the state of West Virginia and about 13.7% of California's total area. The Central Valley is wide, with the Sierra Nevada to the east and the Coast Ranges to the west.
American River 50 Mile Endurance Run
The American River 50 Mile Endurance Run, or AR50, is a 50-mile (80.47 kilometer) ultramarathon beginning in Sacramento, California and ending in Auburn, California. The event is held annually in April.
Rubicon River (California)
The Rubicon River is a major tributary of the Middle Fork American River in the Sierra Nevada of Northern California, west of Lake Tahoe. Its length is with a watershed of about . The river's headwaters are in the Crystal Range of the Sierra Nevada, within the Eldorado National Forest's Desolation Wilderness. Historically, the Rubicon River was known as the South Fork of the Middle Fork of the American River.
South Fork American River
The river begins at Nebelhorn near Johnson Pass about south of Lake Tahoe. From there it flows west for , past the towns of Kyburz, Pollock Pines and Coloma, before emptying into Folsom Lake, the reservoir formed by the Folsom Dam. The North Fork American River also flows into the lake, and the combined rivers form the American River proper, which flows from the dam southwest to a confluence with the Sacramento River.
North Fork American River
Below the dam, the river bends south, passing under the Foresthill Bridge, the highest bridge in California, then receives the Middle Fork American River, its largest tributary, from the left. The valley widens as the river flows south past Auburn, soon emptying into the north arm of Folsom Lake, a reservoir formed in 1955 by the Folsom Dam. Its waters mingle with that of the South Fork American River to form the American River, a tributary of the Sacramento River.
Colorado River
Completed in 1938 some above Yuma, Imperial Dam diverts nearly all of the Colorado's flow into two irrigation canals. The All-American Canal, built as a permanent replacement for the Alamo Canal, is so named because it lies completely within the U.S., unlike its ill–fated predecessor. With a capacity of over , the All-American is the largest irrigation canal in the world, supplying water to of California's Imperial Valley. Because the valley's warm and sunny climate lends to a year-round growing season in addition to the large water supply furnished by the Colorado, the Imperial Valley is now one of the most productive agricultural regions in North America. In 1957, the USBR completed a second canal, the Gila Gravity Main Canal, to irrigate about in southwestern Arizona with Colorado River water as part of the Gila Project.
The Lower Basin states also sought to develop the Colorado for municipal supplies. Central Arizona initially relied on the Gila River and its tributaries through projects such as the Theodore Roosevelt and Coolidge Dams – completed in 1911 and 1928, respectively. Roosevelt was the first large dam constructed by the USBR and provided the water needed to start large-scale agricultural and urban development in the region. The Colorado River Aqueduct, which delivers water nearly from near Parker Dam to 10 million people in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, was completed in 1941. The San Diego Aqueduct branch, whose initial phase was complete by 1947, furnishes water to nearly 3 million people in San Diego and its suburbs. The Las Vegas Valley of Nevada experienced rapid growth in part due to Hoover Dam construction, and Las Vegas had tapped a pipeline into Lake Mead by 1937. Nevada officials, believing that groundwater resources in the southern part of the state were sufficient for future growth, were more concerned with securing a large amount of the dam's power supply than water from the Colorado; thus they settled for the smallest allocation of all the states in the Colorado River Compact.
California Trail
At the end of the Humboldt River, where it disappeared into the alkaline Humboldt Sink, travelers had to cross the deadly Forty Mile Desert before finding either the Truckee River or Carson River in the Carson Range and Sierra Nevada mountains that were the last major obstacles before entering Northern California.
Hodge Decision
The American River is the second largest tributary of the Sacramento River and is divided into three sections, Lower Fork; Middle Fork; Upper Fork. Together, these sections span 120 miles from the crest of the Sierra Nevada, through the foothills, and converges with the Sacramento River in Sacramento, California. The Lower Fork of the American River begins at the outlet of Folsom Lake and flows westward until its confluence with the Sacramento River. The drainage basin of the American River is approximately 1,900 square miles. There are several activities popular to the American River including: whitewater rafting, fishing, boating. In addition, the river also acts as a source of hydroelectric power, municipal water, and flood control from Folsom Dam. Several water agencies in Sacramento divert water from the American River via surface water diversions and groundwater wells in order to supply enough water for its customers. These diversions have resulted in several negative implications on the Lower American River fishery. Therefore, the Hodge Decision was concocted in order to protect the river's salmon and steelhead populations and preserve natural river morphology.
California
The Klamath and Trinity Rivers drain a large area in far northwestern California. The Eel River and Salinas River each drain portions of the California coast, north and south of San Francisco Bay, respectively. The Mojave River is the primary watercourse in the Mojave Desert, and the Santa Ana River drains much of the Transverse Ranges as it bisects Southern California. The Colorado River forms the state's southeast border with Arizona.
Virgin River
The Virgin River is a tributary of the Colorado River in the U.S. states of Utah, Nevada, and Arizona. The river is about long. It was designated Utah's first wild and scenic river in 2009, during the centennial celebration of Zion National Park.
Americas
With coastal mountains and interior plains, the Americas have several large river basins that drain the continents. The largest river basin in North America is that of the Mississippi, covering the second largest watershed on the planet. The Mississippi-Missouri river system drains most of 31 states of the U.S., most of the Great Plains, and large areas between the Rocky and Appalachian mountains. This river is the fourth longest in the world and tenth most powerful in the world.
Gulf of California
The Gulf of California (also known as the Sea of Cortez, Sea of Cortés or Vermilion Sea; locally known in the Spanish language as Mar de Cortés or Mar Bermejo or Golfo de California) is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland. It is bordered by the states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, and Sinaloa with a coastline of approximately . Rivers which flow into the Gulf of California include the Colorado, Fuerte, Mayo, Sinaloa, Sonora, and the Yaqui. The gulf's surface area is about . Depth soundings in the gulf have ranged from fording depth at the estuary near Yuma, Arizona, to in excess of in the deepest parts.
2011–2017 California drought
In February 2014, the Californian drought reached for the first time in the 54-year history of the State Water Project to shortages of water supplies. The California Department of Water Resources planned to reduce water allocations to farmland by 50%. California's 38 million residents experienced 13 consecutive months of drought. This is particularly an issue for the state's 44.7 billion dollar agricultural industry, which produces nearly half of all U.S.-grown fruits, nuts, and vegetables. This is after the LADWP expected to increase the pumping of aquifers to about a year (City of Los Angeles and County of Inyo 1991) but the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has reported that a sustainable pumping rate is a third lower, at around a year (Danskin 1998).
Tahoe Rim Trail
The Tahoe Rim Trail is a 165-mile (266 km) long-distance hiking trail that forms a loop around the Lake Tahoe Basin in the Sierra Nevada and Carson ranges of California and Nevada in the United States. The trail ranges in elevation from 6,240 feet (1,900 m) at the outlet of Lake Tahoe to 10,338 feet (3,151 m) at Relay Peak in Nevada. About 50 miles (80 km) of trail above the lake's west shore are also part of the much longer Pacific Crest Trail. Additionally, 96 Miles of the trail along the east and south sides of the Lake Tahoe basin are designated as a National Recreation Trail.
History of California 1900–present
The Colorado River Aqueduct, or CRA, is a water conveyance in Southern California, operated by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD). The aqueduct impounds water from the Colorado River at Lake Havasu on the California–Arizona border. This water is then transferred west by pumping stations, reservoirs, and canals across the Mojave and Colorado deserts to the east side of the Santa Ana Mountains. It is one of the primary sources of drinking water for Southern California.
Big River (California)
The Big River is a river in Mendocino County, California, that flows from the northern California Coast Range to the Pacific Ocean at Mendocino, Mendocino County, California. From the mouth, brackish waters extend 8 miles (13 km) upstream, forming the longest undeveloped estuary in the state.
United States
The coastal plain of the Atlantic seaboard gives way further inland to deciduous forests and the rolling hills of the Piedmont. The Appalachian Mountains divide the eastern seaboard from the Great Lakes and the grasslands of the Midwest. The Mississippi–Missouri River, the world's fourth longest river system, runs mainly north–south through the heart of the country. The flat, fertile prairie of the Great Plains stretches to the west, interrupted by a highland region in the southeast.
The Rocky Mountains, at the western edge of the Great Plains, extend north to south across the country, reaching altitudes higher than in Colorado. Farther west are the rocky Great Basin and deserts such as the Chihuahua and Mojave. The Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges run close to the Pacific coast, both ranges reaching altitudes higher than . The lowest and highest points in the contiguous United States are in the state of California, and only about apart. At an elevation of , Alaska's Denali (Mount McKinley) is the highest peak in the country and North America. Active volcanoes are common throughout Alaska's Alexander and Aleutian Islands, and Hawaii consists of volcanic islands. The supervolcano underlying Yellowstone National Park in the Rockies is the continent's largest volcanic feature. The United States has the most ecoregions out of any country in the world.
Kings River (California)
The Kings River passes Rodgers Crossing and receives the North Fork from the right near Balch Camp. The North Fork is about long and flows mainly through the Sierra National Forest. It is dammed at Wishon Reservoir, which serves as the lower reservoir for the Helms Pumped Storage Plant, one of the biggest pumped-storage hydroelectric plants in California. The North Fork passes through several other hydro plants before it joins with the Kings River. The main Kings then flows into Pine Flat Lake, the large reservoir created by Pine Flat Dam, which can store up to of water. Constructed in 1954, Pine Flat Dam provides flood control, irrigation and hydroelectricity for the southern San Joaquin Valley.
American River
During the 1820s, Jedediah Smith led an expedition to the American River with the goal of finding a safe route across the Sierra Nevada. After a failed attempt to cross the mountains via the South Fork of the American River, Smith's group managed to cross via Ebbetts Pass on the headwaters of the Stanislaus River, becoming the first non-Native Americans to do so. In Smith's honor the Spanish settlers and Native Americans named the river "Rio de los Americanos", "American River". During this time, Alta California was part of New Spain; however in 1822, Mexico gained its independence from Spain and took control of California.
Cardwell v. American Bridge Co.
The American River is a tributary of the Sacramento River in California. It is entirely within the state, and navigable for small steamboats and barges from its mouth on the Sacramento River to the town of Folsom, a distance of . From its confluence with the Sacramento River, vessels starting upon it can proceed to San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean, and thence to adjoining states and foreign countries. It is therefore a navigable water of the United States and, as such, is under the control of the general government in the exercise of its power to regulate foreign and interstate commerce so far as may be necessary to insure its free navigation.
Santa Ana River
As of 2000, about 4.8 million people lived in the Santa Ana River watershed. Most of the population is concentrated close to the river in urban centers such as San Bernardino, Riverside, Anaheim and Santa Ana. The Inland Empire still has large areas dedicated to agriculture and ranching, although it is rapidly urbanizing. In Orange County, nearly all the valley lands are urbanized. Some major bodies of water in the watershed include Irvine Lake, Lake Mathews, Lake Perris, Diamond Valley Lake, Lake Skinner, and Big Bear Lake. All of these are water supply reservoirs constructed by county or state water agencies, and with the exception of Big Bear, much of the water is imported from other parts of California due to the arid local climate. Diamond Valley Lake, with a storage capacity of , is the largest and most recently constructed. Lake Elsinore is the only major natural lake in the watershed. 
The Santa Ana River watershed shares boundaries with many adjacent river basins. In the northwest is the San Gabriel River, which empties into the Pacific at Long Beach. In Orange County, the San Diego Creek, Aliso Creek, and San Juan Creek watersheds border the Santa Ana watershed on the south. Further south, in San Diego County, the watershed is bordered by those of San Mateo Creek, the Santa Margarita River, and the San Luis Rey River. On the east the watershed shares borders with those of the Whitewater River and the Coachella Valley, flowing into the Salton Sea, and on the north with the Mojave River, which flows into the endorheic basin of the Mojave Desert.
Trinity River (California)
As the 1950s began, demand on the Colorado River – which forms the border of California and Arizona and provided most of Southern California's water – was moving toward unsustainable levels. The Bureau of Reclamation restarted its surveys of the Trinity River basin as part of a larger proposal to move water from northern to southern parts of the state, and compensate for the shortages on the Colorado. The United Western Investigation, in 1951, proposed the damming of nearly every river in the North Coast region of California, chiefly the Trinity, Klamath and Eel. The Ah Pah Dam would have flooded the canyons of the Klamath and Trinity Rivers to form the largest reservoir in California. These grandiose plans culminated in the Pacific Southwest Water Plan of 1964, which sought to comprehensively link the water systems of California and the rest of the Colorado River Basin. One of the key projects was an aqueduct to transport North Coast water to the Imperial Valley, reducing its reliance on water from the Colorado River. However, with the exception of the upper Trinity River project, none of these dam and diversion projects were ever realized.
The Trinity River project was first drafted on October 1, 1951 and authorized by Congress on January 2, 1953, as the Trinity River Division of the Central Valley Project. In 1955 Congress authorized an annual diversion of of water (56 percent of total flow) from the Trinity River, stating that the water could be exported "without detrimental effect on the fishery resources" of the Trinity. In 1957 the Bureau of Reclamation revised the export volume to . Construction of Trinity Dam started in 1956 and was completed on December 23, 1963. The reservoir was originally named "Clair Engle Lake" to commemorate United States Senator Clair Engle, who played a crucial role in shepherding the Trinity bill through Congress; however, the name proved unpopular with locals, and it was changed to Trinity Lake in 1997.
Eel River (California)
The Eel River drains an area of , the third largest watershed entirely in California, after those of the San Joaquin River and the Salinas River. The Colorado, Sacramento, and Klamath River systems are larger, but their drainage areas extend into neighboring states as well. The Eel River system extends into five California counties – Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, and Trinity. The main stem traverses four counties, excepting Glenn. The majority of the watershed is located within Mendocino and Humboldt Counties.
North Canadian River
The North Canadian River is a tributary of the Canadian River, approximately long, that flows through New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma in the United States.
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande ( or ; , or simply Río Bravo) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwest United States and northern Mexico. The Rio Grande begins in south-central Colorado in the United States and flows to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way, it forms part of the Mexico–United States border. According to the International Boundary and Water Commission, its total length was in the late 1980s, though course shifts occasionally result in length changes. Depending on how it is measured, the Rio Grande is either the fourth- or fifth-longest river system in North America.
Droughts in California
In the coastal and southern parts of the state, and much of the Sacramento River system, the primary threat is rain floods in the November–April wet season. Oceanic "atmospheric river" or Pineapple Express storms can generate massive precipitation in a short period (often up to 50 percent of the total annual rainfall in just a few storms). This requires a certain safety margin to be maintained in reservoirs, which are often not allowed to capacity until late April or May. Shasta Lake, California's largest reservoir, is limited to approximately 71 percent of capacity in the winter in order to control rain flooding. Levees along Northern California rivers, such as the Sacramento and American rivers, are quite generously sized in order to pass large volumes of floodwater.
American River Parkway
The American River Parkway is a parkway that runs along the American River throughout Sacramento County, California and consists of many smaller parks and boat launching points. It can be accessed by various exits off U.S. Route 50 in Sacramento County.
Colorado River
At the lower end of Grand Canyon, the Colorado widens into Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the continental United States, formed by Hoover Dam on the border of Arizona and Nevada. Situated southeast of metropolitan Las Vegas, the dam is an integral component for management of the Colorado River, controlling floods and storing water for farms and cities in the lower Colorado River basin. Below the dam the river passes under the Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge – which at nearly above the water is the highest concrete arch bridge in the Western Hemisphere – and then turns due south towards Mexico, defining the Arizona–Nevada and Arizona–California borders.
After leaving the confines of the Black Canyon, the river emerges from the Colorado Plateau into the Lower Colorado River Valley (LCRV), a desert region dependent on irrigation agriculture and tourism and also home to several major Indian reservations. The river widens here to a broad, moderately deep waterway averaging wide and reaching up to across, with depths ranging from . Before channelization of the Colorado in the 20th century, the lower river was subject to frequent course changes caused by seasonal flow variations. Joseph C. Ives, who surveyed the lower river in 1861, wrote that "the shifting of the channel, the banks, the islands, the bars is so continual and rapid that a detailed description, derived from the experiences of one trip, would be found incorrect, not only during the subsequent year, but perhaps in the course of a week, or even a day."
North Fork, California
North Fork is located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada at an elevation of 2638 feet (804 m). According to the 2000 U.S. Census the population of the 93643 zip code area was 3,360 with a median age of 44.8 years. The community is inside area code 559. It is part of the Madera–Chowchilla Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The geographic center or midpoint of the state of California is located between North Fork and Italian Bar. The point is about driving distance from the United States Forest Service office in North Fork. The location is marked by a sign and a survey marker. NAD83 coordinates for the exact center of California are The Fresno County line is less than one mile (1.6 km), (straight-line distance), from the site's survey marker. The site is also marked on the United States Forest Service road map of Sierra National Forest, which can be purchased at the North Fork USFS office. The actual site has wooden stairs leading up the hillside about 50 feet from the road. The marker is not wheelchair accessible.
Kings River (California)
Inhabited for thousands of years by the Yokuts and other native groups, the Kings River basin once fed a vast network of seasonal wetlands around Tulare Lake that supported millions of waterfowl, fish, and game animals, in turn providing sustenance for indigenous peoples. Tulare Lake was once the largest freshwater lake in the western U.S., at the middle of an endorheic basin also fed by the Kaweah, Tule and Kern Rivers. The river was named by Gabriel Moraga, the commander of a Spanish military expedition in 1806, but it was not until California became a U.S. state in 1850 that many Europeans arrived and settled along the Kings River, driving out the area's original inhabitants. Logging and livestock grazing inflicted significant environmental damage on the upper parts of the river system, before the federal government moved to establish national parks and preserves there.
San Gabriel River (California)
The San Gabriel River basin drains a total of and is located between the watersheds of the Los Angeles River to the west, the Santa Ana River to the east, and the Mojave Desert to the north. The watershed is divided into three distinct sections. The northern third, located within the Angeles National Forest of the San Gabriel Mountains, is steep and mountainous; it receives the most precipitation of any part of the basin – per year – and as a result is the source of nearly all the natural runoff. Elevations reach up to at Mount San Antonio (Mount Baldy), the highest point of the range. During the winter, many elevations above are covered in snow.
Northern California
Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties its main population centers include the San Francisco Bay Area (anchored by the cities of San Jose, San Francisco, and Oakland), the Greater Sacramento area (anchored by the state capital Sacramento), and the Metropolitan Fresno area (anchored by the city of Fresno). Northern California also contains redwood forests, along with the Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite Valley and part of Lake Tahoe, Mount Shasta (the second-highest peak in the Cascade Range after Mount Rainier in Washington), and most of the Central Valley, one of the world's most productive agricultural regions.
Alexander Howison Murray Jr.
In another letter dated June 8, 1987, he called on fellow citizens to rally support for a South Fork American River (SOFAR) project. (The South Fork American River is a major tributary of the American River in El Dorado County, California, that drains a watershed on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada east of Sacramento. The river begins in pristine Desolation Wilderness and flows through the Sierra Nevada foothills. The river at Coloma was the site of James Marshall's discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill on January 24, 1848, which started the California Gold Rush.)
Middle Fork Feather River
The Middle Fork is recognized by the US Government for its untamed beauty and is designated a National Wild and Scenic River for 77.6 miles of its length. The 32.9 mile stretch inaccessible to roads is home to some of the best wild trout fishing in California.
East Branch North Fork Feather River
The American Valley is a Sierra Nevada landform along Spanish Creek, a source tributary of the East Branch North Fork Feather River. Tributaries of Spanish Creek in the valley include Greenhorn Creek, and the valley has an elevation of ~ and population of ~6,500 (Quincy population is 1,950). Settlers drained the valley's wet meadows for cattle and hay production, and its stream channels are deeply incised (beavers were nearly eliminated).
American Canyon, California
American Canyon is bounded geographically by the Napa River to the west, the foothills of the Sulfur Springs Mountains to the east, Vallejo and Solano County to the south and vineyards and the Napa County Airport (IATA airport code APC) to the north. American Canyon Creek, a tributary of the Napa River, runs through the city.
Colorado River Aqueduct
The Colorado River Aqueduct, or CRA, is a water conveyance in Southern California in the United States, operated by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD). The aqueduct impounds water from the Colorado River at Lake Havasu on the California-Arizona border west across the Mojave and Colorado deserts to the east side of the Santa Ana Mountains. It is one of the primary sources of drinking water for Southern California.
Kaweah River
The Kaweah River is a river draining the southern Sierra Nevada in Tulare County, California in the United States. Fed primarily by high elevation snowmelt along the Great Western Divide, the Kaweah begins as four forks in Sequoia National Park, where the watershed is noted for its alpine scenery and its dense concentrations of giant sequoias, the largest trees on Earth. It then flows in a southwest direction to Lake Kaweah – the only major reservoir on the river – and into the San Joaquin Valley, where it diverges into multiple channels across an alluvial plain around Visalia. With its Middle Fork headwaters starting at almost above sea level, the river has a vertical drop of nearly on its short run to the San Joaquin Valley, making it one of the steepest river drainages in the United States. Although the main stem of the Kaweah is only long, its total length including headwaters and lower branches is nearly .
Los Angeles County, California
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which is land and (15%) is water. Los Angeles County borders of coast on the Pacific Ocean and encompasses mountain ranges, valleys, forests, islands, lakes, rivers, and desert. The Los Angeles River, Rio Hondo, the San Gabriel River and the Santa Clara River flow in Los Angeles County, while the primary mountain ranges are the Santa Monica Mountains and the San Gabriel Mountains. The western extent of the Mojave Desert begins in the Antelope Valley, in the northeastern part of the county.
Northern California
The first twenty years of the 19th century continued the colonization of the northern California coast by Spain. By 1820, Spanish influence extended inland approximately 25 to from the missions. Outside of this zone, perhaps 200,000 to 250,000 Native Americans continued to lead traditional lives. The Adams-Onís Treaty, signed in 1819 between Spain and the young United States, set the northern boundary of the Spanish claims at the 42nd parallel, effectively creating today's northern boundary of northern California.
Agriculture in the Southwestern United States
The three main watersheds of the southwest United States are the Colorado River Basin, the Great Basin, and the Rio Grande Basin. The Colorado River Basin includes parts of California, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming. The Colorado River is the largest river in the Southwest United States. The Great Basin watershed includes parts of southern California, most of Utah, the northwest half of Nevada, and parts of Oregon and Idaho. The Rio Grande Basin includes most of New Mexico, some of western Texas, and a small portion of Colorado.
Geography of California
California is a U.S. state on the western coast of North America. Covering an area of , California is geographically diverse. The Sierra Nevada, the fertile farmlands of the Central Valley, and the arid Mojave Desert of the south are some of the major geographic features of this U.S. state. It is home to some of the world's most exceptional trees: the tallest (coast redwood), most massive (Giant Sequoia), and oldest (bristlecone pine). It is also home to both the highest (Mount Whitney) and lowest (Death Valley) points in the 48 contiguous states.
The state is generally divided into Northern and Southern California, although the boundary between the two is not well defined. San Francisco is decidedly a Northern California city and Los Angeles likewise a Southern California one, but areas in between do not often share their confidence in geographic identity. The US Geological Survey defines the geographic center of the state at a point near North Fork, California.
Ten Mile River (California)
The Ten Mile River mainstem begins at the confluence of North Fork Ten Mile River and Middle Fork Ten Mile River, flows southwest then northwest to the Pacific Ocean south of Westport. The North Fork Ten Mile River begins at elevation . The Middle Fork Ten Mile River begins at elevation on the north side of Sherwood Peak. The middle and north forks of the river are each long, and the river extends for seven more miles from their confluence to its mouth at the Pacific Ocean. The watershed drains approximately 120 square miles (310 km) and is neighbored to the south by the Noyo River watershed and to the east and north by the South Fork Eel River watershed.
American River
Eight hydroelectric plants on the South Fork are operated by Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) as the Upper American River Project. These plants are fed by a series of reservoirs including Loon Lake, Ice House Reservoir and Union Valley Reservoir. With the exception of Folsom Lake, Union Valley is the largest in the American River watershed, storing of water. The Upper American River Project produces 1.8 billion kilowatt hours in an average year, enough for about 20 percent of Sacramento's electricity needs. The SMUD plants are run on a peaking basis, although recreational boating and environmental flow requirements constrain their operation slightly.
American River
The lower American River has been one of seven California rivers to achieve the designation "Recreational River" under both the California Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (1972) and the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (1980). This status provides state and national recognition to protect the river's outstanding scenic, fish and wildlife, historic, cultural, and recreational values.
California Aqueduct
When it was open, the California Aqueduct Bikeway was the longest of the paved paths in the Los Angeles area, at long from Quail Lake near Gorman through the desert to Silverwood Lake in the San Bernardino Mountains. This path was closed in 1988 due to bicyclist safety and liability issues. It is expected to remain closed indefinitely due to the continued liability issues and an increased focus on security, especially after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Two major river systems drain and define the two parts of the Central Valley. Their impact on the California Aqueduct is both direct and indirect. The Sacramento River, along with its tributaries the Feather River and American River, flows southwards through the Sacramento Valley for about . In the San Joaquin Valley, the San Joaquin River flows roughly northwest for , picking up tributaries such as the Merced River, Tuolumne River, Stanislaus River and Mokelumne River.
Arkansas River
At 1,469 miles (2,364 km), it is the sixth-longest river in the United States, the second-longest tributary in the Mississippi–Missouri system, and the 45th longest river in the world. Its origin is in the Rocky Mountains in Lake County, Colorado, near Leadville. In 1859, placer gold discovered in the Leadville area brought thousands seeking to strike it rich, but the easily recovered placer gold was quickly exhausted. The Arkansas River's mouth is at Napoleon, Arkansas, and its drainage basin covers nearly 170,000 sq mi (440,300 km²). In terms of volume, the river is much smaller than the Missouri and Ohio Rivers, with a mean discharge of about .
Cardwell v. American Bridge Co.
The defendant was a corporation organized under the laws of California, and pursuant to the authority conferred by an act of its legislature, has constructed a bridge over the American River, of wide and long, and was used as a roadway across the river. Its floor is about above lowest water and about above highest water, was without a draw or opening for the passage of vessels. Steamboats and other craft were therefore obstructed by it in the navigation of the river.
Mad River (California)
The Mad River drains approximately of the Coast Range Geomorphic Province and empties into the Pacific Ocean north of Humboldt Bay in Humboldt County, California. The basin is about in length and averages six miles (10 km) wide. Elevations range from sea level at the mouth to along the western ridge to in the headwaters. Principal tributaries to the Mad River include South Fork Mad River, North Fork Mad River, Barry Creek, Pilot Creek, Deer Creek, Bug Creek, Graham Creek, Grace Flat, Blue Slide Creek, Boulder Creek, Maple Creek, Canõn Creek, Lindsey Creek, and Mill (Hall) Creek.
Floods in California
Significant flooding affected parts of California in January 2017. The Russian River rose three feet above flood stage, overspreading about 500 houses with water. Dams were opened to relieve pressure from built-up floodwaters, with the Sacramento Weir being opened for the first time in eleven years. Numerous areas in Northern California closed roads to flood and mudslide conditions, with U.S. Route 395 temporarily closed heading in both directions. Over 570,000 customers of the Pacific Gas and Electric Company lost power in Northern and Central California during the event. Over 3,000 people in the Guerneville area were evacuated.
El Sur Ranch
In 1990, the California Department of Water Resources filed a complaint with the California State Water Resources Control Board stating that the El Sur Ranch's wells were drawing water from the underflow of the Big Sur River, and Hill was required to apply for a Water Right Permit. Hill has supplied studies that contradict the state's findings, and has been engaged in ongoing litigation and negotiations with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. He is seeking a permit to use a maximum of 1,615 acre-feet per year, based on a 20-year rolling average of 1,200 acre-feet per year. The California Department of Parks and Recreation, the California Department of Fish and Game, and the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance claim the water Hill is diverting is reducing the flow of the Big Sur River and harming the threatened steelhead habitat.
Course of the Colorado River
The Colorado River is a major river of the western United States and northwest Mexico in North America. Its headwaters are in the Rocky Mountains where La Poudre Pass Lake is its source. Located in north central Colorado it flows southwest through the Colorado Plateau country of western Colorado, southeastern Utah and northwestern Arizona where it flows through the Grand Canyon. It turns south near Las Vegas, Nevada, forming the Arizona–Nevada border in Lake Mead and the Arizona–California border a few miles below Davis Dam between Laughlin, Nevada and Needles, California California before entering Mexico in the Colorado Desert. Most of its waters are diverted into the Imperial Valley of Southern California. In Mexico its course forms the boundary between Sonora and Baja California before entering the Gulf of California. This article describes most of the major features along the river.
Pollock Pines, California
The area encompassing Pollock Pines is in a heavily timbered mountain region situated along the ridge top on the south side of the South Fork of the American River. It is approximately 15 miles east of Placerville and 60 miles east of Sacramento on Highway 50. It includes the area from the American River on the north to Jenkinson Lake and the Mormon Emigrant Trail on the south
Aqueduct (water supply)
In modern times, the largest aqueducts of all have been built in the United States to supply the country's biggest cities. The Catskill Aqueduct carries water to New York City over a distance of 120 miles (190 km), but is dwarfed by aqueducts in the far west of the country, most notably the Colorado River Aqueduct, which supplies the Los Angeles area with water from the Colorado River nearly 400 km to the east and the 701.5 mi (1,129 km) California Aqueduct, which runs from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to Lake Perris. The Central Arizona Project is the largest and most expensive aqueduct constructed in the United States. It stretches 336 miles from its source near Parker, Arizona to the metropolitan areas of Phoenix and Tucson. An aqueduct in New Zealand, "the Oamaru Borough Race" was constructed in the late 19th century to deliver water (and water-power) about 50 km from the Waitaki River at Kurow to the coastal town of Oamaru.
Course of the Colorado River
The Colorado River meets the Mexico–United States border at the Northern International Boundary (NIB), where the Morelos Dam diverts nearly the entire remaining flow into the Reforma Canal and the Tijuana Aqueduct. Most of this water is used for irrigation in the Mexicali Valley, one of Mexico's most fertile agricultural regions. Below the Morelos Dam the Colorado forms the international border for a short distance, between Baja California and Arizona, before reaching the Southern International Boundary at San Luis Rio Colorado, where it crosses entirely into Mexico.
For the remainder of its course to the Gulf, the river forms the boundary between Baja California (west) and Sonora (east). "River", however, is a misnomer as the Colorado is dry or small stream most of the year, due to its flow being almost completely exhausted by upstream diversions. The river bed will occasionally contain water, though, due either to monsoon storms over the Gila River Basin, or more rarely due to a particularly heavy snowmelt in the Rocky Mountains. Since the filling of Lake Powell in the 1960s the latter has only occurred four times – the unusually wet years of 1983 through 1986. In May 2014, an agreement between the US and Mexican governments known as Minute 319 enabled the intentional release of water into the Colorado River bed for the first time, with the goal of revitalizing the ecosystem of the Colorado River Delta.
Prior to the mid 20th century, the Colorado River Delta provided a rich estuarine marshland; while today it is now essentially desiccated, the river is still an important salt-water estuary resource. The estuary of the Colorado River was subjected to a major tidal bore that has almost disappeared with the drastic reduction in the freshwater flow following the irrigation diversions of the Colorado River, and to a lesser extent because of some dredging of the estuary channel. The first historical record of the tidal bore was that of the Croatian missionary in Spanish service Father Ferdinand Konščak on 18 July 1746. During spring tide conditions, the tidal bore formed in the estuary about Montague Island and propagated upstream. It was called locally 'El Burro' or 'burro'. Today the tidal bore is rarely seen although there are still some anecdotal observations.
American River
The North Fork and its tributaries provides one of the most biologically diverse habitats in North America. The North Fork features scenic multi-use trails along forested ridgetops and riparian corridors. It flows freely as a designated National Wild and Scenic Rivers System river until reaching the North Fork Dam, which was built to contain mining debris. This dam creates the small Lake Clementine just north of the Foresthill Bridge and upstream of the confluence with the Middle Fork American River at Auburn. Below the confluence, the North Fork continues several miles until reaching Folsom Lake. Both the North Fork and Middle Fork feature archaeological and historic sites of ancient Native American culture and 1850s Gold Rush habitation.
North Fork Eel River
The North Fork Eel River is the smallest of four major tributaries of the Eel River in northwestern California in the United States. It drains a rugged wilderness area of about in the California Coast Ranges, and flows through national forests for much of its length. Very few people inhabit the relatively pristine watershed of the river; there are no operational stream gauges and only one bridge (Mina Road) that crosses the river, near the boundary between Trinity and Mendocino Counties.
American River
The Middle Fork is long. It originates a mere from the source of the North Fork on the south face of Granite Chief, between the summit and Emigrant Pass. It is characterized by somewhat broader steep canyons interspersed with reservoirs, waterfalls, and quiet riparian areas. The Middle Fork is used extensively for both motorized and non-motorized recreation, including fishing, white water adventuring, bicycling (mountain and road), horseback riding, trail running and hiking. It contains areas used for hydroelectric generation, mining, and agricultural timber cultivation and harvesting.
The Middle Fork features part of the Auburn State Recreation Area. The Western States Trail hosts multiple annual endurance events, including the Tevis Cup equestrian trail ride, and the world-famous Western States 100- Mile Trail Run, both beginning at Squaw Valley and leading to Auburn via remote wilderness trails.
Water in California
The Colorado River is the source of per year for California. Six other states along the river's watershed (Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona) and Mexico, share allocated portions of river water. The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, or MWD, holds priority water rights on the Colorado. It sells water to 95 percent of the South Coast region. Lake Mead, formed by Hoover Dam, is the primary reservoir in the Colorado River basin. The Colorado River Aqueduct begins downstream from Hoover Dam, and can carry annually.
Water resources in Mexico
The largest river on the Pacific coast is the Balsas River (24 BCM/year) and the largest river on the Atlantic Coast is the Grijalva–Usumacinta flowing from Guatemala to Mexico (115 BCM.year). The longest river (2018 km) and also the river with the largest basin (226,000 km²) is the Rio Bravo, called Rio Grande in the United States.
Imperial County, California
The Colorado River streams through the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately long, draining a part of the arid regions on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The natural course of the river flows from north of Grand Lake, Colorado, into the Gulf of California. For many months out of the year, however, no water actually flows from the United States to the gulf, due to human use. The river is a popular destination for water sports, including fishing, boating, water skiing, and jet skiing.