Williamson River (Oregon)

Williamson River
Upstream view within the Williamson River Indian Mission in Chiloquin
Name origin: Robert S. Williamson, who conducted Pacific Railroad Surveys in central Oregon[1]
Country	United States
State	Oregon
County	Klamath
Source	near Bottle Spring
- location	Winema National Forest
- elevation	5,100 ft (1,554 m) [2]
- coordinates	[3]
Mouth	Upper Klamath Lake
- location	near Modoc Point
- elevation	4,147 ft (1,264 m) [3]
- coordinates	[3]
Length	100 mi (161 km) [4]
Basin	3,000 sq mi (7,770 km2) [5]
Discharge	for near Chiloquin, 10.3 miles (16.6 km) from the mouth
- average	1,032 cu ft/s (29 m3/s) [6]
- max	17,100 cu ft/s (484 m3/s)
- min	285 cu ft/s (8 m3/s)
The Williamson, Sprague, and Klamath rivers
Location of the mouth of Williamson River in Oregon

The Williamson River southwest of Chiloquin

The Williamson River of south-central Oregon in the United States is about 100 miles (160 km) long.^[7] It drains about 3,000 square miles (7,800 km²) east of the Cascade Range.^[5] Together with its principal tributary, the Sprague River, it provides over half the inflow to Upper Klamath Lake,^[5] the largest freshwater lake in Oregon.^[8] The lake's outlet is the Link River, which flows into Lake Ewauna and the Klamath River.^[8]

The Williamson rises from a large spring in central Klamath County, on the north side of Fuego Mountain, in the Winema National Forest, about 40 miles (64 km) northeast of Klamath Falls. It flows in a large arc north through the mountains, then west, then southwest through Klamath Marsh and the Klamath Marsh National Wildlife Refuge. Downstream of the refuge, the river flows roughly parallel to U.S. Route 97, receiving Spring Creek from the wikt:right bank at Collier Memorial State Park, about 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Chiloquin. At Chiloquin, it receives the Sprague River from the wikt:left bank at about river mile (RM) 11 or river kilometer (RK) 18. The Williamson enters the northern end of Upper Klamath Lake near Modoc Point, about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Klamath Falls.^[9]

At lower elevations along big streams, the Williamson watershed supports irrigated pastures and other farmlands. Livestock grazing occurs in many locations in the basin. Forests, often cut for timber, cover about 81 percent of the basin and farms account for 6 percent, while range, wetlands, water, and urban areas cover a combined 13 percent. Precipitation in the basin, which lies in the rain shadow of the Cascade Range, averages 23 inches (580 mm) a year along the Williamson above its confluence with the Sprague and about 20 inches (510 mm) along the Sprague.^[5]

The Williamson is known for especially large wild Great Basin redband trout, which move into the river to spawn and to escape Upper Klamath Lake when it gets warm. Three-year-old fish "commonly reach 20 inches or better."^[4] Smaller numbers of brown trout also thrive in the Williamson, especially below Spring Creek. Lost River suckers also populate the river but are protected and cannot be caught and kept legally. Smaller rainbow trout and brook trout live in the river above Klamath Marsh. Much of the land along the river is privately owned, and public access is limited.^[4]

Since 2003, mollusks, and aquatic plants.^[10]

See also

• List of longest streams of Oregon

References

Klamath River States and counties Oregon Klamath Lake Jackson California Siskiyou Modoc Humboldt Trinity Del Norte Significant cities Klamath Falls Happy Camp Weitchpec Orleans Klamath Glen Klamath Major tributaries Williamson River Sprague River Lost River Butte Creek Shasta River Scott River Salmon River Trinity River Geography Upper Klamath Lake Lower Klamath Lake Tule Lake Klamath Basin Trinity Lake Mount Shasta Klamath Mountains Trinity Alps Cascade Range Six Rivers National Forest Klamath National Forest Lava Beds National Monument Native American tribes Hupa Karuk Klamath Modoc Yurok History California Gold Rush Hudson's Bay Company Klamath County Klamath Diversion Klamath Indian Reservation Klamath Reclamation Project Modoc War Siskiyou Trail Dams and infrastructure Link River Dam Keno Dam J.C. Boyle Dam Copco Dam #1 Copco Dam #2 Iron Gate Dam California State Route 96 California State Route 169