The Entiat River is a tributary of the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

, joining the Columbia near Entiat. The

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...

(USGS) lists two variant names for the Entiat River: ''En-ti-at-kwa River'' and ''Entiatqua River''. The river's name is derived from the Columbia-Moses (

Salishan The Salishan languages ( ), also known as the Salish languages ( ), are a family of languages found in the Pacific Northwest in North America, namely the Canadian province of British Columbia and the American states of Washington, Oregon, Ida ...

) term /nt'yátk^w/ t'iátk^w meaning "place of grassy water"; another source states that it was called ''Enteatqua'' which means "Rapid Water" or "Rushing Water." The name, spelled "Entiat", was selected for the river in 1958 by the Chelan County Public Utility District. The Entiat River is located entirely within Chelan County, in

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

state in the United States. Over 90% of the

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

of the Entiat River and its tributaries is publicly owned property, mostly the

Wenatchee National Forest Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and most populous city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and has increased to 35,508 as of 2020. Located in the north-central part of the stat ...

. A large number of place names in the Entiat River basin were given by Albert H. Sylvester.

Course

The Entiat River's headwaters lie in the

Glacier Peak Wilderness Glacier Peak Wilderness is a , , wilderness area located within portions of Chelan County, Washington, Chelan, Snohomish County, Washington, Snohomish, and Skagit County, Washington, Skagit counties in the North Cascades of Washington (state), ...

of the

. Its main source comes from the slopes of Mount Maude and Seven Fingered Jack, and Entiat Glacier. From there the river flows east through Entiat Meadows before turning south. It flows south and southeast between the

Entiat Mountains The Entiat Mountains, or Entiat Range, is a mountain range in the U.S. state of Washington (U.S. state), Washington. Located west of the Columbia River, north of the Wenatchee River, and south of the Entiat River, the range is part of the North Ca ...

on the west and the Chelan Mountains on the east. Downstream from the main river's confluence with the North Fork Entiat River, the Entiat River falls over Entiat Falls. It collects the waters of many small tributary creeks, including the Mad River, Larch Lakes River, Cow Creek, and Myrtle Lake. In its final miles, the Entiat River turns east to join the Columbia River at Columbia

river mile A river mile is a measure of distance in miles along a river from its river mouth, mouth. River mile numbers begin at zero and increase further upstream. The corresponding metric unit using kilometre, kilometers is the river kilometer. They are an ...

483.7, just south of the small city of Entiat. At this point the Columbia River is a reservoir created by Rocky Reach Dam. The reservoir's name is Lake Entiat. Fern Lake is located at the headwaters of the North Fork Entiat. Entiat Glacier, located in a cirque on the eastern side of Mount Maude and Seven Fingered Jack, is the headwaters of the Entiat River.

Flora and fauna

The Entiat River supports populations of

Chinook salmon The Chinook salmon (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') is the largest and most valuable species of Oncorhynchus, Pacific salmon. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other vernacular names for the species include king salmon, quinn ...

steelhead trout Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or Columbia River redband trout (''O. m. gairdneri'', also called redband steelhead). Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacif ...

bull trout The bull trout (''Salvelinus confluentus'') is a char of the family Salmonidae native to northwestern North America. Historically, ''S. confluentus'' has been known as the " Dolly Varden" (''S. malma''), but was reclassified as a separate speci ...

and Lamprey. The populations are relatively small due to the scarcity of juvenile-rearing habitat in the lower Entiat River, However, due to the Entiat National Fish Hatchery (USFWS) there is a robust Summer Chinook fishery.

References

Sources

* "Washington Road & Recreation Atlas". Benchmark Maps, 2000.
Entiat River Basin
Washington Department of Ecology {{authority control Rivers of Washington (state) Tributaries of the Columbia River Rivers of Chelan County, Washington

Course

Flora and fauna

See also

References

Sources