Skykomish River
| Skykomish River | ||
 Skykomish River highlighted in the Snohomish River basin |
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| Data | ||
| Water code | US : 1525899 | |
| location | Washington (USA) | |
| River system | Snohomish River | |
| Drain over | Snohomish River → Pacific Ocean | |
| origin | The confluence of the North Fork and South Fork Skykomish Rivers 47 ° 48 ′ 47 ″ N , 121 ° 34 ′ 41 ″ W |
|
| Source height | 142 m | |
| Union | with the Snoqualmie River to the Snohomish River Coordinates: 47 ° 49 '18 " N , 122 ° 1' 50" W 47 ° 49 '18 " N , 122 ° 1' 50" W |
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| Mouth height | 5 m | |
| Height difference | 137 m | |
| Bottom slope | 2.9 ‰ | |
| length | 47 km | |
| Catchment area | 2160 km² | |
| Right tributaries | Wallace River , Sultan River | |
| Medium-sized cities | Monroe | |
| Small towns | sultan | |
 The Skykomish River near Monroe |
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 The "Loggers' bridge" over the Skykomish River (1910). |
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| North Fork Skykomish River | ||
| Water code | US : 1523843 | |
| River system | Snohomish River | |
| source | in the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness 47 ° 59 ′ 5 ″ N , 121 ° 9 ′ 43 ″ W |
|
| Union | with the South Fork Skykomish River to Skykomish River 47 ° 48 ′ 46 ″ N , 121 ° 34 ′ 44 ″ W |
|
| Mouth height |
142 m
|
|
| South Fork Skykomish River | ||
| Water code | US : 1526250 | |
| River system | Snohomish River | |
| origin | Confluence of the Tye and Foss Rivers 47 ° 42 ′ 18 ″ N , 121 ° 18 ′ 23 ″ W |
|
| Union | with the North Fork Skykomish River to Skykomish River 47 ° 48 ′ 46 ″ N , 121 ° 34 ′ 43 ″ W |
|
| Mouth height |
142 m
|
|
| Right tributaries | Beckler River | |
The Skykomish River is a river in the US state of Washington .
It drains the western side of the Cascade Range in the southeastern part of Snohomish County and in the northeast corner of King County . The river arises 2 km west of Index with the confluence of the South Fork and the North Fork Skykomish River and flows from there towards Puget Sound . The Sultan River and the Wallace River flow into it at Sultan . At Monroe it then forms the Snohomish River with the Snoqualmie River . The Snohomish River then flows along the river valley into Port Gardner Bay at Possession Sound (part of Puget Sound).
The main stream of the river is 47 km long. With the South Fork and the Tye River , its headwaters, it is 100 km long. The catchment area is 2160 km².
The US Highway 2 and the BNSF Railway follow the course of the Skykomish River, the South Fork, and the Tye Rivers to Stevens Pass and the Cascade Tunnel .
The Skykomish River is sometimes called "Sky River" or "The Sky".
According to Fred Beckey , the two headwaters are about the same size, and neither is clearly the main course of the Skykomish River. The real source of the South Fork, however, in terms of runoff, is the Rapid River , a tributary of the Beckler River , which in turn is a tributary of the South Fork.
The name Skykomish comes from / sq'íxʷəbš / , which in the northern Lushootseed means something like "people living upstream", from / q'íxʷ / , "upstream". It is the name of a southern coastal Salish group.
North Fork Skykomish River
The headwaters of the North Fork lies in the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness , near Dishpan Gap, along the Pacific Crest Trail . It flows as a small river from the northern slopes of Skykomish Peak. Although it does not protect the river itself, the Wild Sky Wilderness protects the tributaries and the forests adjacent to the North Fork. The river generally flows southwest, from its source to its mouth. Just before it takes up Goblin Creek, the river flows through a short but impressive canyon in which it falls down the Deer Falls . Shortly afterwards the river flows through an even shorter but winding and interestingly shaped canyon at Bear Creek Falls .
North Fork tributaries:
- Pass Creek: flows to Cady Pass .
- Quartz Creek: comes from Monte Cristo Peak , flows to Curry Gap.
- Goblin Creek: comes from Monte Cristo Peak.
- West Cady Creek
- Troublesome Creek: comes, through Blance Lake, from Monte Cristo Peak to flow into the North Fork just before Bear Creek Falls .
- Silver Creek: Rises near Silvertip Mountain and Poodle Dog Pass, flows through Mineral City and flows into the North Fork just before Gelena (early route to the Monte Cristo mining area; Mineral City and Galena were mining towns).
- Salmon Creek: flows into the North Form just after Galena.
South Fork Skykomish River
The South Fork begins east of Skykomish at the confluence of the Tye Rivers and the Foss Rivers . From this point the river flows in a north-westerly direction. Near the eastern boundary of Skykomish, the Beckler River and, from the west, the Miller River flows into the South Fork. Just before it joins the North Fork, it falls down Eagle Falls , then Canyon Falls and Sunset Falls .
South Fork tributaries:
- Beckler River : flows into the South Fork shortly after its source.
- Miller River : flows in the from the Miller River into the South Fork.
- Money Creek: flows into the South Fork near Grotto.
- Index Creek: flows into the South Fork near Baring .
- Barclay Creek
history
In the 1890s, the Great Northern Railway was built along the Skykomish River, South Fork, and Tye Rivers to cross the Cascades over Stevens Pass . Today the route belongs to the BNSF Railway and is known as the Burlington Northern Railroad from 1970-1995. The Stevens Pass is named after the great northern surveyor John Frank Stevens . Two railway tunnels, both called Cascade Tunnels , were built at Stevens Pass. The first was built just north of the pass. It was replaced in 1929 by the new Cascade Tunnel, which, at 12.6 km, was the longest rail tunnel in North America for nearly 60 years and is still the longest in the United States. The new Cascade Tunnel is a few kilometers south of the Stevens Pass. Its western entrance is near the confluence of Tunnel Creek and Tye Rivers. A small amount of water flows into the Tye River from both tunnels. A memorial near Scenic by the Tye River describes the history of the area and the railroad. The memorial was erected near the site of one of the greatest railroad tragedies in American history.
Renaturation
The Skykomish River is used for rafting and kayaking . It has class III to IV + rapids .
water falls
in the North Fork Skykomish River:
in the South Fork Skykomish River:
Web links
See also
Individual evidence
- ^ North Fork Skykomish River in the Geographic Names Information System of the United States Geological Survey
- ↑ Skykomish River in the Geographic Names Information System of the United States Geological Survey
- ^ National Hydrography Dataset . United States Geological Survey. Retrieved September 4, 2010. ArcExplorer GIS data viewer.
- ↑ Watershed Boundary Dataset . USDA , NRCS , National Cartography & Geospatial Center. Retrieved September 4, 2010. ArcExplorer GIS data viewer.
- ↑ Fred Beckey : Cascade Alpine Guide : Climbing and High Routes: Stevens Pass to Rainy Pass , 3rd. Edition, The Mountaineers , 2003, ISBN 0-89886-423-2 , p. 23.
- ^ William Bright : Native American placenames of the United States . University of Oklahoma Press, 2004, ISBN 978-0-8061-3598-4 , p. 453 (Retrieved April 11, 2011).
- ^ Brian Solomon: Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway . MBI Publishing, 2005, ISBN 978-0-7603-2108-9 , p. 83.
- ↑ Iron Goat Trail . Volunteers for Outdoor Washington. Retrieved July 18, 2009.