West Walker River
West Walker River | |
---|---|
Sierra Nevada | |
• location | California |
• coordinates | 38°08′24″N 119°30′28″W / 38.14000°N 119.50778°W[1] |
• elevation | 9,640 ft (2,940 m) |
Mouth | Walker River |
• location | Yerington, Nevada |
• coordinates | 38°53′35″N 119°10′44″W / 38.89306°N 119.17889°W[1] |
• elevation | 4,442 ft (1,354 m) |
Length | 95 mi (153 km) |
Basin size | 964 sq mi (2,500 km2) |
Discharge | |
• location | Hudson, Nevada |
• average | 195 cu ft/s (5.5 m3/s) |
• minimum | 10 cu ft/s (0.28 m3/s) |
• maximum | 11,240 cu ft/s (318 m3/s) |
The West Walker River is a tributary of the
It rises from snowmelt in the Sierras of northwestern Mono County, north of Yosemite National Park approximately 20 miles (32 km) south-southwest of Walker in the snowfields on the northeast faces of Tower Peak and Forsyth Peak on the Sierra crest in the Toiyabe National Forest.[4] It flows north, along the west side of the Sweetwater Mountains, emerging into the Antelope Valley, a ranching region around Walker. It flows north past Coleville and Topaz and enters southern Douglas County, Nevada southwest of Carson City. In Nevada it flows northeast, joining the East Walker River from the west 7 mi (11.3 km) south of Yerington to form the Walker River.
The river is heavily used for irrigation in the ranching valleys along its lower course. Its waters are diverted along its upper course to form Topaz Lake along the California-Nevada border. It receives the Little Walker River from the south near its source in the mountains.
See also
- List of rivers in the Great Basin
Notes
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: West Walker River
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed March 17, 2011
- ^ Federal Writers' Project (1941). Origin of Place Names: Nevada (PDF). W.P.A. p. 21.
- ^ "West Walker River, Pickle Meadows". Sierra Drifters Guide Service. Retrieved 2009-12-07.