Minam River

The Minam River is a tributary of the Wallowa River, 51 miles (82 km) long,[3] in northeastern Oregon in the United States. It drains a rugged wilderness area of the Wallowa Mountains northeast of La Grande.

Minam River
Minam River near its confluence with the Wallowa River
Location of the mouth of the Minam River in Oregon Minam River (the United States)
Location
Country	United States
State	Oregon
County	Union and Wallowa
Physical characteristics
Source	Eagle Cap Wilderness
• location	Wallowa–Whitman National Forest, Union County
• coordinates	45°10′07″N 117°21′28″W[1]
• elevation	7,684 ft (2,342 m)[2]
Mouth	Wallowa River
• location	Minam, Wallowa County
• coordinates	45°37′17″N 117°43′14″W[1]
• elevation	2,536 ft (773 m)[1]
Length	51 mi (82 km)[3]
Basin size	239 sq mi (620 km^2)[4]
Discharge
• average	455 cu ft/s (12.9 m^3/s)[5]
National Wild and Scenic River
Type	Wild
Designated	October 28, 1988

It rises in the Wallowas in the Eagle Cap Wilderness of the Wallowa–Whitman National Forest, just south of the Wallowa–Union border approximately 25 miles (40 km) southeast of La Grande at Blue Lake. It flows generally northwest through the mountains along the Wallowa–Union county line. It joins the Wallowa from the south at the community of Minam near Oregon Route 82.[6] Its headwaters include springs stemming from outflow from Minam Lake,[7] also the source of the Lostine River.[8]

From its headwaters to the Eagle Cap Wilderness boundary downstream of Cougar Creek, a distance of 39 miles (63 km), the Minam River was declared part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System in 1988. Accessible mainly by United States Forest Service trails, the river basin supports diverse wildlife, including wolverine, bighorn sheep, elk, American black bear, and cougar.[7]

The Minam, except for the lower 8 miles (13 km), where the surrounds have been heavily logged and otherwise altered, is largely pristine. It and the Wenaha River are the two largest rivers in Oregon that are nearly pristine.[5]

point	geolocation	USGS map
mouth at Wallowa River	45.621256°N 117.720478°W	Minam
GNIS point 2, RM 10.1	45.499866°N 117.685198°W	Mount Moriah
GNIS point 3	45.374586°N 117.652424°W	Mount Fanny
GNIS point 4	45.347364°N 117.626036°W	Jim White Ridge
GNIS point 5	45.249867°N 117.529373°W	China Cap
GNIS point 6, RM 33.8	45.210980°N 117.500761°W	Steamboat Lake
Blue Lake source RM 46	45.168485°N 117.357688°W	Eagle Cap

Tributaries

From source to mouth, the named tributaries of the Minam River are Pop and Trail creeks, which enter from the left; Lowry Gulch, left; Wild Sheep Creek, right; Granite Gulch, right; Elk Creek, left; and Last Chance Gulch, right. Then Cap, Rock, and Lackey creeks, all from the left; Pole Creek, right, Pot Creek, left; North Minam River, right, and Little Pot and Jerry creeks, left.[9]

Then Threemile, Garwood, Whoopee, Chaparral, Wallowa, Horseheaven, and Horse Basin creeks, all from the right; the Little Minam River, left; Faun Creek, right, and Lobo and Eagle creeks, left. Then Murphy, Trout, Cougar, Gunderson, and Squaw creeks, all from the right.[9]

See also

• List of longest streams of Oregon
• List of rivers of Oregon
• List of National Wild and Scenic Rivers

References

1. "Minam River". Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). United States Geological Survey. November 28, 1980. Retrieved September 28, 2011.
2. Source elevation derived from Google Earth search using GNIS source coordinates.
3. "The National Map: National Hydrography Dataset". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on April 5, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2011.
4. "Minam River Spring Chinook Population" (PDF). Northwest Fisheries Science Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
5. Palmer, Tim (2014). Field Guide to Oregon Rivers. Corvallis: Oregon State University Press. pp. 289–90. ISBN 978-0-87071-627-0.
6. Oregon Atlas & Gazetteer. Freeport, Maine: DeLorme Mapping. 1991. p. 87. ISBN 0-89933-235-8.
7. "National Wild and Scenic Rivers: Minam River, Oregon". United States Forest Service. August 18, 2011. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
8. "Lostine River, Oregon". National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2012.
9. "United States Topographic Map". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved December 23, 2015 – via Acme Mapper.

External links

• Grande Ronde Model Watershed