This article treats the river in California. For other uses see Feather River (disambiguation)

The Feather River is a principal tributary of the Sacramento River, 170 miles (270 km) in length, in Northern California in the United States. Feather River may refer to The Feather River in California in the United States, a principal tributary of the Sacramento River The Sacramento River is the longest River entirely within the U Northern California is the northern portion of the US state of California. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the It drains part of the northern Sierra Nevada and a small portion of the middle of the Sacramento Valley. The Sierra Nevada ( Spanish for "Snowy Range" is a Mountain range located in the U The Sacramento Valley is the portion of the California Central Valley that lies to the north of the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta in the U The river has a rich history of gold mining in the 19th century. Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 It provides water to central and southern California as being the main source of water for the California State Water Project. The California State Water Project, commonly known as the SWP is the world's largest publicly built and operated water and power development and conveyance system

Description

The river rises in three separate forks in the Sierra Nevada which unite as arms of the Lake Oroville reservoir in the foothills 5 mi (8 km) northeast of Oroville in eastern Butte County. Lake Oroville is a large man-made reservoir lake in central Northern California in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Oroville is the County seat of Butte County California. The city-limits Population was 13004 at the 2000 census; and as of 2007 the population Butte County is a County located in the Central Valley of the U The combined stream flows generally south across the Sacramento Valley, east of the Sutter Buttes, past Oroville and Yuba City-Marysville and joining the Sacramento River from the north approximately 20 mi (30 km) NNW of Sacramento. The Sacramento Valley is the portion of the California Central Valley that lies to the north of the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta in the U The Sutter Buttes, also known as the Marysville Buttes or Histum Yani ( Maidu) are a small circular complex of eroded volcanic Lava domes Oroville is the County seat of Butte County California. The city-limits Population was 13004 at the 2000 census; and as of 2007 the population Yuba City is a Northern California city founded in 1849 It is the County seat of Sutter County, California, United States Marysville is the County seat of Yuba County, California, United States.

It receives the Yuba River from the east at Yuba City and the Bear River from the east 15 mi (25 km) south of Yuba City. The Yuba River is an important River in California and a major Tributary of the Feather River, which is a tributary of the Sacramento River

North Fork

Buzzard Springs, partial source of the North Fork Feather River, near Rice Creek and with Lassen Peak in the background. Lassen Peak (also known as Mount Lassen) is the southernmost active Volcano in the Cascade Range.

The North Fork rises in Cold Boiling Lake and Rice Creek in Lassen Volcanic National Park, and Buzzard Springs to the south of the Park. The North Fork Feather River is one of three branches of the Feather River system in northern California Lassen Volcanic National Park is a United States National Park in north eastern California. It flows southeast through the Lake Almanor reservoir, then southwest through the Sierra Nevada, receiving the East Branch North Fork from the east near Belden. Lake Almanor is a large artificial Lake in northwestern Plumas County, in northeastern California. Belden is a Census-designated place (CDP in Plumas County, California, United States. It flows southeast into Butte County, becoming the northern arm of Lake Oroville. Lake Oroville is a large man-made reservoir lake in central Northern California in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada.

East Branch North Fork

The East Branch North Fork has it headwaters in eastern Plumas County, south of Honey Lake, as Last Chance Creek. The creek flows westward through the Plumas National Forest, through Indian Valley, becoming Indian Creek and the East Branch North Fork. Plumas National Forest is a United States National Forest located in northern California. It flows east past Twain and joins the North Fork near Belden. Twain is a Census-designated place (CDP in Plumas County, California, United States.

Middle Fork

The Middle Fork rises in southeastern Plumas County in the Sierra Valley southeast of Beckwourth, combining the short North Branch and the Sierra Branch. Sierra Valley is a large mountain valley located east of the crest of California 's Sierra Nevada mountain range in Plumas and Sierra Counties Beckwourth is a Census-designated place (CDP in Plumas County, California, United States. in an inverted delta. An inverted river delta is special category of River delta in which the narrow end of the delta emerges on the seafront and the wide end is located further inland so that with It flows generally northwest through the Sierra Nevada, past Blairsden, then WSW through the Plumas National Forest to become the middle arm of Lake Oroville. Blairsden is a Census-designated place (CDP in Plumas County, California, United States. Before construction of the Oroville Dam, it joined the South Fork approximately 1 mi (2 km) from the confluence of the North and South forks.

Feather River Crossing at Milsap Bar, Butte County

South Fork

The South Fork rises in the mountains along the Plumas-Sierra county line and flows west southwest, becoming the south arm of Lake Oroville. Lake Oroville is a large man-made reservoir lake in central Northern California in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. It formerly received the Middle Fork approximately 1 mile (2 km) upstream from its confluence with the North Fork.

The Feather River Route

Main article: Feather River Route

The Western Pacific Railroad operated a railroad through the Feather River canyon. The Feather River Route is a rail line that was built and operated by the Western Pacific Railroad. The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I Railroad in the United States. This route was selected because it leads to a low pass over the Sierra Nevada mountains. The Sierra Nevada ( Spanish for "Snowy Range" is a Mountain range located in the U The Western Pacific California Zephyr trains used this route and had a feather in their logo to represent the river. The California Zephyr is a 2438-mile (3924-km long Passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Midwestern and Western United

Ecology

The riparian area of the Feather River supports a rich biodiversity of native flora and fauna. "Riparian" redirects here For the legal doctrine see " Riparian water rights. Biodiversity is the variation of Life forms within a given Ecosystem, Biome or for the entire Earth. In Botany, flora ( Plural: floras or florae has two meanings The first meaning flora of an area or of time period, refers to all Fauna is all of the Animal life of any particular region or time The Sierra Nevada reaches have considerable wild river features and steep gradients. The Sierra Nevada ( Spanish for "Snowy Range" is a Mountain range located in the U In lower reaches, after joining of the forks, there is also significant habitat; near Yuba City, for example, there are extents of the river with numerous valley oak trees with understory of wild grape. Yuba City is a Northern California city founded in 1849 It is the County seat of Sutter County, California, United States The Valley oak (Quercus lobata is the largest of North American oaks

References

External links

• The Feather River Anthology (1966) by Kenneth E. Boulding
• Feather River Canyon
• Feather River CRM watershed map