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Boise River

The Boise River is a 102-mile-long (164 km)[2] tributary of the Snake River in the Northwestern United States. It drains a rugged portion of the Sawtooth Range in southwestern Idaho northeast of Boise, as well as part of the western Snake River Plain. The watershed encompasses approximately 4,100 square miles (11,000 km2) of highly diverse habitats, including alpine canyons, forest, rangeland, agricultural lands, and urban areas.

Boise River
Floating on the river through Boise in 2004
The Boise River watershed
Location
CountryUnited States
StateIdaho
Physical characteristics
SourceSawtooth Range
 • locationIdaho
 • coordinates43°42′48″N 115°38′9″W / 43.71333°N 115.63583°W / 43.71333; -115.63583[1]
 • elevation3,497 ft (1,066 m)
MouthSnake River
 • location
Idaho
 • coordinates
43°49′15″N 117°1′34″W / 43.82083°N 117.02611°W / 43.82083; -117.02611[1]
 • elevation
2,100 ft (640 m)
Length102 mi (164 km)[2]
Basin size4,100 sq mi (11,000 km2)
Discharge 
 • locationParma, about 3.8 mi (6.1 km) from the mouth
 • average1,587 cu ft/s (44.9 m3/s)
 • minimum66 cu ft/s (1.9 m3/s)
 • maximum9,140 cu ft/s (259 m3/s)

Description edit

The Boise River rises in three separate forks in the Sawtooth Range at elevations exceeding 10,000 feet (3,050 m), and is formed by the confluence of its North and Middle forks. The North Fork, 50 miles (80 km) long,[2] rises in the Sawtooth Wilderness Area, along the BoiseElmore county line, 60 miles (100 km) northeast of Boise. It flows generally southwest through the remote mountains in the Boise National Forest. The Middle Fork, approximately 52 miles (84 km) in length,[2] rises within 12 miles (19 km) of the North Fork in the southern Sawtooth Wilderness Area in northeastern Elmore County. It flows west-southwest near the town of Atlanta, joining the North Fork to form the Boise River, approximately 15 miles (24 km) southeast of Idaho City. The main stream flows southwest into Arrowrock Reservoir, joining the South Fork from the Anderson Ranch Dam.

 
Lucky Peak Dam,
northeast of Boise

The 101-mile-long (163 km)[2] South Fork rises in northern Camas County in the Smoky Mountains and Soldier Mountains of the Sawtooth National Forest north of Fairfield, 65 miles (105 km) east of Boise. It flows generally southwest, descending through a basalt canyon to fill the Anderson Ranch Reservoir, then turns northwest in central Elmore County. It joins the main stream as the southern arm of Arrowrock Reservoir, 20 miles (32 km) east of Boise.

 
Boise River

Downstream from its confluence with the South Fork, the river flows generally west, adds the major tributary of Mores Creek along Highway 21, and passes through Lucky Peak Dam to emerge from the foothills southeast of Boise. It passes over several irrigation diversion dams above the city, the first and largest is the century-old Boise River Diversion Dam for the concrete New York Canal, which terminates at Lake Lowell (a.k.a. Deer Flat Reservoir) southwest of Nampa in Canyon County.[3] The next diversion is for the Ridenbaugh Canal (1878)[4][5] at Eckert Diversion Dam, immediately above Barber Park, five miles (8 km) from downtown Boise.[6] Wooded through the city, the river is lined by an extensive recreational greenbelt. It flows west across the western end of the Snake River Plain in the Treasure Valley and becomes a braided stream with a wide floodplain as it crosses northern Canyon County to the Snake River. At an approximate elevation of 2,100 feet (640 m), it enters the Snake River, the Idaho-Oregon border, west of Parma and three miles (5 km) south of Nyssa, Oregon.

 
Boise Irrigation Project, 1910
Photo by Walter Lubken.

History edit

The river was called "Reed's River" in the early 19th century, named after Pacific Fur Company employee John Reed, who explored parts of the river throughout 1813 and 1814. The river is diverted to canals for irrigation on the plain west of what is now Boise. The dams that form the mountain reservoirs were constructed as part of the Bureau of Reclamation's "Boise Project" to provide agricultural irrigation, hydroelectricity, drinking water, and flood control to Boise and the Treasure Valley.[7]

The major projects' initial completion dates were:

The Boise River was proposed for 50 years for a dam at Twin Springs, culminating in a 1966 Project Travois proposal, which would have used nuclear explosives to either create large amounts of rockfill aggregate for dam construction, or to induce a landslide that would have much the same effect. Project Travois was a component of Project Plowshare. The project was abandoned in 1968 after concerns were raised about radiological contamination, and the seismic safety of downstream dams.[8][9]

Recreation edit

The river is a popular destination for floating, specifically on the Boise greenbelt. Tubers and floaters launch at Barber Park[10] and land at Ann Morrison Park, between major irrigation diversion dams.[11] Several minor diversion weirs are passed as well as several bridges on the 6-mile (10 km) trip.[6] Water skiing is popular above the dam at the Lucky Peak Reservoir.[citation needed]

On the lower (warmwater) course of the river, low summer flows and poorer water quality from agricultural runoff limit fishery production. This section of river supports a fair fishery for largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and channel catfish. Upstream from Star, the river is a coldwater stream and supports a greater variety of fish. The most prevalent species on this section is mountain whitefish, as well as hatchery-reared rainbow trout, wild rainbow trout, and fingerling brown trout. Upstream from Lucky Peak and Arrowrock reservoirs, the river and its tributaries contain excellent populations of wild rainbow trout, mountain whitefish, and bull trout. This is especially true immediately downstream from the outflow of Anderson Ranch reservoir, where the South Fork takes on the characteristics of a classic "tailwater" for over 5 miles (8 km) from the put-in below the dam to Cow Creek Bridge.[citation needed]

Fishing edit

The Boise River is also popular for fishing, mostly for rainbow trout and, in the winter, steelhead. Spin-fishermen use roostertail spinners and bait such as worms and Powerbait, while fly fishermen use a variety of flies mimicking the abundant aquatic and terrestrial insects present in the watershed, as well as streamers.[citation needed]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Boise River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. ^ a b c d e U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. . Archived from the original on 2012-03-29., accessed May 3, 2011
  3. ^ . www.usbr.gov. Archived from the original on 2012-10-16.
  4. ^ "Lifeblood of the Treasure Valley". Idaho Press-Tribune. April 1, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  5. ^ (PDF). Idaho State Historical Society. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 6, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  6. ^ a b (PDF). City of Boise. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 10, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  7. ^ . Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  8. ^ Beck, Colleen M.; Edwards, Susan R.; King, Maureen L. (2011-09-01). "Project Travois". The Off-Site Plowshare and Vela Uniform Programs: Assessing Potential Environmental Liabilities through an Examination of Proposed Nuclear Projects,High Explosive Experiments, and High Explosive Construction Activities (Report). Vol. 1. pp. 3-263–3-270. doi:10.2172/1046575.
  9. ^ Yoman, John (May 1970). "Summary of Nuclear-Excavation Applications". Symposium on Engineering with Nuclear Explosives (PDF) (Report). pp. 267–268.
  10. ^ . Ada County. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  11. ^ . City of Boise. Archived from the original on August 14, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.

External links edit

  • Idaho Department of Water Resources: Boise River 2019-11-19 at the Wayback Machine
  • Idaho State University: Boise River
  • USGS stream gage, Boise River at Glenwood Bridge near Boise
  • USGS: water quality and biological trends on the lower Boise River
  • - tea cup diagram, current data

boise, river, mile, long, tributary, snake, river, northwestern, united, states, drains, rugged, portion, sawtooth, range, southwestern, idaho, northeast, boise, well, part, western, snake, river, plain, watershed, encompasses, approximately, square, miles, hi. The Boise River is a 102 mile long 164 km 2 tributary of the Snake River in the Northwestern United States It drains a rugged portion of the Sawtooth Range in southwestern Idaho northeast of Boise as well as part of the western Snake River Plain The watershed encompasses approximately 4 100 square miles 11 000 km2 of highly diverse habitats including alpine canyons forest rangeland agricultural lands and urban areas Boise RiverFloating on the river through Boise in 2004The Boise River watershedLocationCountryUnited StatesStateIdahoPhysical characteristicsSourceSawtooth Range locationIdaho coordinates43 42 48 N 115 38 9 W 43 71333 N 115 63583 W 43 71333 115 63583 1 elevation3 497 ft 1 066 m MouthSnake River locationIdaho coordinates43 49 15 N 117 1 34 W 43 82083 N 117 02611 W 43 82083 117 02611 1 elevation2 100 ft 640 m Length102 mi 164 km 2 Basin size4 100 sq mi 11 000 km2 Discharge locationParma about 3 8 mi 6 1 km from the mouth average1 587 cu ft s 44 9 m3 s minimum66 cu ft s 1 9 m3 s maximum9 140 cu ft s 259 m3 s Contents 1 Description 2 History 3 Recreation 4 Fishing 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksDescription editThe Boise River rises in three separate forks in the Sawtooth Range at elevations exceeding 10 000 feet 3 050 m and is formed by the confluence of its North and Middle forks The North Fork 50 miles 80 km long 2 rises in the Sawtooth Wilderness Area along the Boise Elmore county line 60 miles 100 km northeast of Boise It flows generally southwest through the remote mountains in the Boise National Forest The Middle Fork approximately 52 miles 84 km in length 2 rises within 12 miles 19 km of the North Fork in the southern Sawtooth Wilderness Area in northeastern Elmore County It flows west southwest near the town of Atlanta joining the North Fork to form the Boise River approximately 15 miles 24 km southeast of Idaho City The main stream flows southwest into Arrowrock Reservoir joining the South Fork from the Anderson Ranch Dam nbsp Lucky Peak Dam northeast of BoiseThe 101 mile long 163 km 2 South Fork rises in northern Camas County in the Smoky Mountains and Soldier Mountains of the Sawtooth National Forest north of Fairfield 65 miles 105 km east of Boise It flows generally southwest descending through a basalt canyon to fill the Anderson Ranch Reservoir then turns northwest in central Elmore County It joins the main stream as the southern arm of Arrowrock Reservoir 20 miles 32 km east of Boise nbsp Boise RiverDownstream from its confluence with the South Fork the river flows generally west adds the major tributary of Mores Creek along Highway 21 and passes through Lucky Peak Dam to emerge from the foothills southeast of Boise It passes over several irrigation diversion dams above the city the first and largest is the century old Boise River Diversion Dam for the concrete New York Canal which terminates at Lake Lowell a k a Deer Flat Reservoir southwest of Nampa in Canyon County 3 The next diversion is for the Ridenbaugh Canal 1878 4 5 at Eckert Diversion Dam immediately above Barber Park five miles 8 km from downtown Boise 6 Wooded through the city the river is lined by an extensive recreational greenbelt It flows west across the western end of the Snake River Plain in the Treasure Valley and becomes a braided stream with a wide floodplain as it crosses northern Canyon County to the Snake River At an approximate elevation of 2 100 feet 640 m it enters the Snake River the Idaho Oregon border west of Parma and three miles 5 km south of Nyssa Oregon nbsp Boise Irrigation Project 1910Photo by Walter Lubken History editThe river was called Reed s River in the early 19th century named after Pacific Fur Company employee John Reed who explored parts of the river throughout 1813 and 1814 The river is diverted to canals for irrigation on the plain west of what is now Boise The dams that form the mountain reservoirs were constructed as part of the Bureau of Reclamation s Boise Project to provide agricultural irrigation hydroelectricity drinking water and flood control to Boise and the Treasure Valley 7 The major projects initial completion dates were 1909 Boise River Diversion Dam amp New York Canal 1915 Arrowrock Dam 1950 Anderson Ranch Dam S Fork 1955 Lucky Peak Dam U S Army Corps of Engineers The Boise River was proposed for 50 years for a dam at Twin Springs culminating in a 1966 Project Travois proposal which would have used nuclear explosives to either create large amounts of rockfill aggregate for dam construction or to induce a landslide that would have much the same effect Project Travois was a component of Project Plowshare The project was abandoned in 1968 after concerns were raised about radiological contamination and the seismic safety of downstream dams 8 9 Recreation editThe river is a popular destination for floating specifically on the Boise greenbelt Tubers and floaters launch at Barber Park 10 and land at Ann Morrison Park between major irrigation diversion dams 11 Several minor diversion weirs are passed as well as several bridges on the 6 mile 10 km trip 6 Water skiing is popular above the dam at the Lucky Peak Reservoir citation needed On the lower warmwater course of the river low summer flows and poorer water quality from agricultural runoff limit fishery production This section of river supports a fair fishery for largemouth bass smallmouth bass and channel catfish Upstream from Star the river is a coldwater stream and supports a greater variety of fish The most prevalent species on this section is mountain whitefish as well as hatchery reared rainbow trout wild rainbow trout and fingerling brown trout Upstream from Lucky Peak and Arrowrock reservoirs the river and its tributaries contain excellent populations of wild rainbow trout mountain whitefish and bull trout This is especially true immediately downstream from the outflow of Anderson Ranch reservoir where the South Fork takes on the characteristics of a classic tailwater for over 5 miles 8 km from the put in below the dam to Cow Creek Bridge citation needed Fishing editThe Boise River is also popular for fishing mostly for rainbow trout and in the winter steelhead Spin fishermen use roostertail spinners and bait such as worms and Powerbait while fly fishermen use a variety of flies mimicking the abundant aquatic and terrestrial insects present in the watershed as well as streamers citation needed See also edit nbsp Idaho portalList of rivers of Idaho List of longest streams of IdahoReferences edit a b Boise River Geographic Names Information System United States Geological Survey United States Department of the Interior a b c d e U S Geological Survey National Hydrography Dataset high resolution flowline data The National Map Archived from the original on 2012 03 29 accessed May 3 2011 Boise River Diversion Dam www usbr gov Archived from the original on 2012 10 16 Lifeblood of the Treasure Valley Idaho Press Tribune April 1 2012 Retrieved August 12 2012 Reference Series 171 Early irrigation canals pre project ventures PDF Idaho State Historical Society Archived from the original PDF on May 6 2012 Retrieved August 12 2012 a b Map Floater rest stops PDF City of Boise Archived from the original PDF on July 10 2012 Retrieved August 12 2012 USBR Boise Project Archived from the original on December 8 2015 Retrieved August 12 2012 Beck Colleen M Edwards Susan R King Maureen L 2011 09 01 Project Travois The Off Site Plowshare and Vela Uniform Programs Assessing Potential Environmental Liabilities through an Examination of Proposed Nuclear Projects High Explosive Experiments and High Explosive Construction Activities Report Vol 1 pp 3 263 3 270 doi 10 2172 1046575 Yoman John May 1970 Summary of Nuclear Excavation Applications Symposium on Engineering with Nuclear Explosives PDF Report pp 267 268 Barber Park Float the river Ada County Archived from the original on September 10 2012 Retrieved August 12 2012 Float the Boise River City of Boise Archived from the original on August 14 2012 Retrieved August 12 2012 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Boise River Idaho Department of Water Resources Boise River Archived 2019 11 19 at the Wayback Machine Idaho State University Boise River USGS stream gage Boise River at Glenwood Bridge near Boise USGS water quality and biological trends on the lower Boise River USBR Boise Project USBR Major storage reservoirs in the Boise amp Payette River basins tea cup diagram current data Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Boise River amp oldid 1195357261, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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