Beaver River (Utah)

Last updated
Beaver River (Utah)
Sevierrivermap.png
Map of the Sevier River system, including the Beaver River
Location
CountryUnited States
StateUtah
Physical characteristics
SourceConfluence of South and East Forks
 - location Tushar Mountains, Beaver County
 - coordinates 38°16′57″N112°26′50″W / 38.28250°N 112.44722°W / 38.28250; -112.44722 [1]
 - elevation7,142 ft (2,177 m)
Mouth Sevier River
 - location
near Delta, Millard County
 - coordinates
39°09′11″N112°50′06″W / 39.15306°N 112.83500°W / 39.15306; -112.83500 Coordinates: 39°09′11″N112°50′06″W / 39.15306°N 112.83500°W / 39.15306; -112.83500 [1]
 - elevation
4,557 ft (1,389 m)
Length110 mi (180 km) [2]
Basin size2,466 sq mi (6,390 km2) [3]
Discharge 
 - location Beaver [4]
 - average51.5 cu ft/s (1.46 m3/s) [5]
 - minimum7.2 cu ft/s (0.20 m3/s)
 - maximum1,080 cu ft/s (31 m3/s)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 - leftSouth Fork Beaver River, South Creek (Beaver River)
 - rightEast Fork Beaver River, North Creek (Beaver River), Indian Creek (Beaver River), Cove Creek

The Beaver River is a river in western Utah, 110 miles (180 km) long, that drains to Sevier Lake via the Sevier River. [2]

Utah A state of the United States of America

Utah is a state in the western United States. It became the 45th state admitted to the U.S. on January 4, 1896. Utah is the 13th-largest by area, 31st-most-populous, and 10th-least-densely populated of the 50 United States. Utah has a population of more than 3 million according to the Census estimate for July 1, 2016. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two areas: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which contains approximately 2.5 million people; and Washington County in Southern Utah, with over 160,000 residents. Utah is bordered by Colorado to the east, Wyoming to the northeast, Idaho to the north, Arizona to the south, and Nevada to the west. It also touches a corner of New Mexico in the southeast.

Sevier Lake

Sevier Lake is an intermittent and endorheic lake which lies in the lowest part of the Sevier Desert, Millard County, Utah. Like Great Salt Lake and Utah Lake, it is a remnant of Pleistocene Lake Bonneville. Sevier Lake is fed primarily by the Beaver and Sevier rivers, and the additional inflow is from the lake's watershed that is part of the Escalante–Sevier hydrologic subregion. The lake has been mostly dry throughout recorded history and is a source of wind-blown dust.

Sevier River river in the United States of America

The Sevier River is a 385-mile (620 km)-long river in the Great Basin of southwestern Utah in the United States. Originating west of Bryce Canyon National Park, the river flows north through a chain of high farming valleys and steep canyons along the west side of the Sevier Plateau, before turning southwest and terminating in the endorheic basin of Sevier Lake in the Sevier Desert. It is used extensively for irrigation along its course, with the consequence that Sevier Lake is usually dry.

Contents

Description

The river starts in the Tushar Mountains, in eastern Beaver County near the town of Beaver, and flows for about 30 miles (48 km) west as a perennial stream, through the Beaver Valley to the Escalante Desert, where it turns north. The river then continues north for about 80 miles (130 km) as an ephemeral wash, past Milford into Millard County. Once it reaches the Sevier Desert south of Delta it turns west, joining the Sevier River and emptying into the intermittent, endorheic Sevier Lake. [2] [6]

Tushar Mountains

The Tushar Mountains are the third highest mountain range in Utah after the Uinta Mountains and the La Sal Range. Located in the Fishlake National Forest, Delano Peak, 12,174 ft  NAVD 88, is the highest point in both Beaver and Piute counties and has a prominence of 4,689 ft. Delano Peak is named for Columbus Delano (1809–1896), Secretary of the Interior during the Grant administration. The Tushars receive an ample amount of snow annually even though they are situated within the rainshadow of the Sierra Mountain Range located in California and the Snake Range located in Nevada.

Beaver County, Utah County in the United States

Beaver County is a county located in west central Utah, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,629. Its county seat and largest city is Beaver. The county was named for the abundance of beavers in the area.

Beaver, Utah Place in Utah, United States

Beaver is a city in eastern Beaver County, Utah, United States. It is also serves as the county seat. The population was 3,112 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Beaver County.

The Beaver River watershed drains about 2,466 square miles (6,390 km2), [3] most of it desert. The human population is about 3500, mostly concentrated in the town of Beaver. The river is dammed for irrigation in its upper reaches by Rocky Ford Dam, forming Minersville Reservoir. A total of 84,000 acres (34,000 ha) are farmed in the basin. [7]

Minersville Reservoir is a reservoir in Beaver County, Utah, United States.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 "Beaver River". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey. 1979-12-31. Retrieved 2015-01-02.
  2. 1 2 3 Hahl, D.C.; Mundorff, J.C. (1968). "An Appraisal of the Quality of Surface Water in the Beaver River Basin, 1964" (PDF). State of Utah Department of Natural Resources, Technical Publication No. 19. Utah Division of Water Rights. Retrieved 2015-01-02.
  3. 1 2 "Boundary Descriptions and Names of Regions, Subregions, Accounting Units and Cataloging Units". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2015-01-02.
  4. "USGS Gage #10234500 on the Beaver River near Beaver, UT" (PDF). National Water Information System. United States Geological Survey. 1915–2013. Retrieved 2015-01-02.
  5. "USGS Gage #10234500 on the Beaver River near Beaver, UT" (PDF). National Water Information System. United States Geological Survey. 1915–2013. Retrieved 2015-01-02.
  6. USGS Topo Maps for United States (Map). Cartography by United States Geological Survey. ACME Mapper. Retrieved 2015-01-02.
  7. "Beaver River Watershed" (PDF). Improving Utah’s Water Quality. Utah State University. November 2012. Retrieved 2015-01-02.

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