Kaweah River

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The Kaweah River

Kaweah River is a river in Tulare County, California, located in the foothills of the southern Sierra Nevada. The river's headwaters are in the Sequoia National Park. There are several hiking trails near the headwaters. The river begins as the Middle Fork, it is then joined by Cliff Creek, the Marble Fork, the East Fork, the North Fork and the South Fork. The river passes through the town of Three Rivers, California shortly after the North Fork joins the Middle Fork, and then it drains into Lake Kaweah. The lake is formed by Terminus Dam, which is one of four dams on the river owned by Southern California Edison for hydroelectricity production. The other three dams are diversion dams for run-of-the-river plants. Below Lake Kaweah, the river splits into many channels. Most of its water is used for irrigation, but some reaches Tulare Lake. There is some fishing and rafting on the river, but access is difficult because some of the land is privately-owned, particularly in the lower portion. There are several companies that offer day trips on the class IV section. The Kaweah River is free-flowing above Lake Kaweah and depending on the winter snowfall, it can rise to very high flows during the spring. It is best if rafters and kayakers have previous experience running class IV because with the fluctuating flows, the river requires great maneuvering and whitewater skills.

[edit] History

Marble Fork, Kaweah River

The meaning of the word "kaweah" in the ancient Yokuts language is "crow" or "raven cry".

The first known European settler along the Kaweah river was Hale Dixon Tharp in 1856. He settled on Horse Creek near its confluence with the Kaweah River. During the 1860s, other stockman settled along the various forks of the river claiming large areas of land under the Homestead Act of 1862. This act allowed a settler to occupy 160 acres (0.65 km²), or 320 acres (1.3 km²) for a man and wife together. Thus began the settlement of the Kaweah region. Since then, various mining towns (due to the discovery of silver) and small establishments have existed in the area.