Salt River (Arizona)
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The Salt River (O'odham [Pima]: Onk Akimel) is a tributary of the Gila River, approximately 200 mi (322 km) long, in central Arizona in the United States.
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[edit] Description
The river is formed in eastern Arizona in eastern Gila County, by the confluence of the White and Black rivers, in the valley between the Mogollon Rim and the Natanes Plateau. With the Black, it forms the boundary between the Fort Apache Indian Reservation to the north and the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation to the south. It flows northwest through Salt River Canyon, then southwest and west through the Tonto National Forest. It passes in the valley between the Mazatzal Mountains and Superstition Mountains through a series of consecutive reservoirs: Lake Roosevelt (formed by Roosevelt Dam), Apache Lake (Horse Mesa Dam), Canyon Lake (Mormon Flat Dam), and Saguaro Lake (Stewart Mountain Dam). Near Fountain Hills it is joined by the Verde River. About five miles below this point, the Granite Reef Diversion Dam diverts all remaining water into the Arizona and South canals, which deliver drinking and irrigation water for greater Phoenix.
From here, the riverbed emerges from the mountains and runs past Mesa, Tempe, and Scottsdale, then south of downtown Phoenix, where it passes north of South Mountain Park. With the exception of Tempe Town Lake, the riverbed winding through the cities is dry, except when heavy rains upstream force larger than normal releases from Stewart Mountain Dam. But dangerous flash floods occasionally occur in the dry riverbed, especially during monsoon storms in late July and early August. Water washes out roads that cross the river in drier times of the year, and bridges have been damaged, most notably in 1980, 1993 and 2005. The natural flow of the Salt is 3040 ft³/s (86.1 m³/s) at its mouth, almost four times that of the Rio Grande River. However except during floods it is rare for the Salt to carry anything more than a small amount of water or be dry because of the diversion at Granite Reef Dam. The Salt was formerly navigable throughout its course by small craft. The river is still navigable in the majority of the area where it still carries a significant flow.
The Salt River joins the Gila on the southwestern edge of Phoenix approximately 15 miles (24 km) from downtown.
The river was used for irrigation by the Native Americans and by early white settlers in the 19th century. It currently provides a major source of irrigation and drinking water for Phoenix and surrounding communities through the Salt River Irrigation Project. The river's water is distributed over more than 1,000 mi (1,609 km) of irrigation canals, used primarily for the growing of cotton, alfalfa, fruit, and vegetables.
[edit] Onk Akimel O'odham
A band of Pima (autonym "Akimel O'odham", river people), the Onk Akimel O'odham (Salt River People), have lived on the banks of the Salt River since before the arrival of Spanish explorers.
Their traditional way of life (himdagĭ, sometimes rendered in English as Him-dak) was and is centered around the river, which is considered holy. Traditionally, sand from the banks of the river is used as an exfoliant when bathing (often in rainstorms, especially during the monsoon).
In modern times, most of time the river that flows by the reservation is dry, due to diversion upstream. This has been a cause of great upset among the Onk Akimel O'odham, especially the elders. Some have suggested pursuit of legal action against the state government. However, at times during the monsoon season the river runs (although very low usually). In the weeks after December 29, 2004 when an unexpected winter rainstorm flooded areas much further upstream (in Northern Arizona), water was let to flow over the dams to such a level that the flow at the time was higher than any time since the preparations for Tempe Town Lake in 1998, and was a cause for minor celebration in the SRPMIC.
