East Branch North Fork Feather River

Last updated
East Branch North Fork Feather River
East Branch Feather River.JPG
View of East Branch from SR 70
Location
Country United States
State California
Region East Branch North Fork Feather Watershed
Physical characteristics
Source confluence Indian & Spanish creeks
  elevation2,893 ft (882 m) [1] [2]
Mouth North Fork Feather River
  coordinates
40°00′51″N121°13′32″W / 40.01417°N 121.22556°W / 40.01417; -121.22556 Coordinates: 40°00′51″N121°13′32″W / 40.01417°N 121.22556°W / 40.01417; -121.22556
  elevation
2,274 ft (693 m) [3]
Length18.1 mi (29.1 km) [4]
Basin size1,010 sq mi (2,600 km2) [5]
Discharge 
  location North Fork Feather River [6]
  average1,039 cu ft/s (29.4 m3/s) [7]
  minimum30.5 cu ft/s (0.86 m3/s)
  maximum88,800 cu ft/s (2,510 m3/s)

The East Branch North Fork Feather River is a left tributary of the North Fork Feather River in the northern Sierra Nevada, Plumas County, California. Primarily within the Plumas National Forest, its course extends from Paxton (north of Quincy) to Belden. [8]

Contents

Course

The East Branch is formed by the confluence of Indian Creek and Spanish Creek just upstream of Paxton. Indian Creek and Spanish Creek drain an extensive watershed along about 46 miles (74 km) of the Sierra Crest in eastern Plumas County, along its border with Lassen County. Indian Creek is 47 miles (76 km) long, but is 71 miles (114 km) long measured to the head of its tributary Last Chance Creek. Spanish Creek, the smaller of the two, is about 28 miles (45 km) long.

From the confluence, the East Branch winds west for 18.1 miles (29.1 km) [4] through a steep and narrow canyon until its confluence with the North Fork near Belden, about 60 miles (97 km) northeast of Oroville. The river canyon is an important transportation corridor, forming route for SR 70, which parallels the north bank of the river, and for the Union Pacific Railroad's Feather River Route on the south bank. The Feather River Route was originally constructed between 1906 and 1909 while the highway was built in the 1920s.

There are several large alluvial valleys in the East Branch watershed. Indian Creek flows through Indian Valley, which includes the communities of Greenville and Taylorsville. Spanish Creek flows through the American Valley, which includes Quincy, the county seat of Plumas County. [9] Settlers drained the valley's wet meadows for cattle and hay production, and its stream channels are deeply incised (beavers were nearly eliminated). [8] [10]

See also

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Middle Fork Feather River

The Middle Fork Feather River is a major river in Plumas and Butte Counties in the U.S. state of California. Nearly 100 miles (160 km) long, it drains about 1,062 square miles (2,750 km2) of the rugged northern Sierra Nevada range.

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Stony Creek (Sacramento River tributary)

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Red Clover Creek is a west-northwestward-flowing stream originating on Horton Ridge east of the Sierra Nevada crest in Plumas County, California, United States. It courses 27 miles (43 km) through Dotta Canyon and Red Clover Valley to its confluence with Last Chance Creek in Genesee Valley, just above its confluence with Indian Creek, which flows into the East Branch North Fork Feather River. The Red Clover Valley sits at an elevation of about 5,400 feet (1,600 m) and is located on the east side of the Sierra Nevada crest, approximately 60 miles (97 km) north of Truckee and 30 miles (48 km) east of Quincy.

Feather Headwaters

The Feather Headwaters is the watershed of the Feather River above Lake Oroville, totaling 3,450 sq mi (8,900 km2). Subdivided into 3 watersheds, the North Fork Feather Watershed is 1,090 sq mi (2,800 km2)—including the West Branch drainage of about 282.5 sq mi (732 km2), the East Branch North Fork Feather Watershed is 1,010 sq mi (2,600 km2), and the Middle Fork Feather Watershed is 1,350 sq mi (3,500 km2)—including the South Fork drainage of about 132 sq mi (340 km2). Headwaters drainage is impaired by the Palermo Canal at Oroville Dam, the Hendricks Canal at the West Branch Feather River, and the Miners Ranch Canal at the South Fork's Ponderosa Reservoir. Additionally, the Pacific Gas and Electric Company releases Upper Feather water into the Hyatt Generating-Pumping Plant for hydroelectric generation during daily peak demand.

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 61 miles (98 km) long and drains a mostly rural, mountainous watershed of 392 square miles (1,020 km2).

Upper North Fork Feather River Project

The Upper North Fork Feather River Project is a hydroelectric scheme in the Sierra Nevada of California, within Lassen and Plumas Counties. The project consists of three dams, five power plants, and multiple conduits and tunnels in the headwaters of the North Fork Feather River, a major tributary of the Feather—Sacramento River systems. The total installed capacity is 362.3 megawatts (MW), producing an annual average of 1,171.9 gigawatt hours (GWh). The project is also contracted for the delivery of irrigation water between March 31 and October 31 of each year. The project is owned and operated by Pacific Gas and Electric Company.

Indian Creek (Plumas County, California)

Indian Creek is a major stream in the northern Sierra Nevada of Plumas County, California and is part of the Feather River system. The creek is 47 miles (76 km) long, flowing through a series of small towns and farming valleys in a rural, mountainous area.

Spanish Creek (Plumas County, California)

Spanish Creek is a stream in the Sierra Nevada of Plumas County, California and is a tributary of the Feather River system. It flows east from headwaters in the Plumas National Forest, through Meadow Valley to Quincy where it traverses the American Valley. At the east end of the valley it turns north, flowing through a canyon towards Paxton where it joins with Indian Creek to form the East Branch North Fork Feather River.

Last Chance Creek (Plumas County, California) Stream in Plumas County, United States of America

Last Chance Creek is a major stream, 38 miles long, in Plumas County, California, United States and is part of the Feather River system. It originates near Meadow View Peak in the Diamond Mountains, part of the Sierra Nevada, in the Plumas National Forest about 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Doyle. It flows generally northwest through uninhabited National Forest lands then turns southwest, then due west at the confluence with Squaw Queen Creek. From there it flows west to join with Red Clover Creek, its main tributary, before emptying into Indian Creek east of Genesee. Indian Creek is a tributary of the East Branch of the North Fork Feather River.

Lights Creek

Lights Creek is a 19-mile (31 km) long stream in Plumas County, California and is a tributary of Indian Creek, part of the Feather River watershed.

References

  1. "USGS National Map Viewer". Archived from the original on 2012-04-05. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  2. "USGS Elevation Web Service Query". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on 2010-05-27. Retrieved 2010-02-19.[ verification needed ]
  3. "East Branch North Fork Feather River". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.
  4. 1 2 "National Hydrography Dataset via National Map Viewer". U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  5. "Boundary Descriptions and Names of Regions, Subregions, Accounting Units and Cataloging Units". USGS.gov. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
  6. Wills, Leah. "Upper Feather River Integrated Regional Water Management Plan" (PDF). Plumas County. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 September 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
  7. "USGS Gage #11403000 EB of NF Feather River near Rich Bar, CA". National Water Information System. U.S. Geological Survey. 1950–1982. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  8. 1 2 "Plumas National Forest map" . Retrieved 2010-08-22.
  9. Holly George, David Lile, Cheree Childers, Cindy Noble, Andrea Oilar, Katherine Haworth, Kristen Schmidt, and Gabe Miller (March 2007). "Upper Feather River Watershed (UFRW) Irrigation Discharge Management Program" (PDF). University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. George, Holly; et al. "Upper Feather River Watershed (UFRW) Irrigation Discharge Management Program" (PDF). University of California. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-06-12. Retrieved 2010-09-08. Two main watercourses, Spanish Creek and Greenhorn Creek, run through the [American] valley. They converge at the end of the valley and the combined flow merges further downstream with Indian Creek to form part of the East Branch of the North Fork of the Feather River. (p. 19)