Stillaguamish River

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Stillaguamish River
Granite Falls on the South Fork of the Stillaguamish River, near the town of Granite Falls, Washington
Origin	North Cascades
Mouth	Puget Sound
Basin countries	USA
Length	67 mi (108 km) (incl. North Fork)
Mouth elevation	0 ft (0 m)
Basin area	700 mi² (1,813 km²)

The Stillaguamish River is a river in northwest Washington in the United States. It is mainly composed of two forks, the longer North Fork Stillaguamish (45 miles (72 km)) and the South Fork Stillaguamish. The two forks join near Arlington. From there the Stillaguamish River proper flows for 22 miles (35 km) to Puget Sound. The river's watershed drains part of the Cascade Range north of Seattle.

1 Course
2 Natural History
3 History
4 External links

[edit] Course

The Stillaguamish River is formed from the confluence of the North and South Forks, both of which rise in the Cascades. The North Fork rises as several branches in a remote area of Skagit County near Finney Peak, approximately 10 miles (16 km) north of Darrington. Collecting many tributary creeks, the river flows south, then west through the foothills along the Skagit-Snohomish county line. Tributaries of the North Fork Stillaguamish River include Boulder River and Deer Creek.

The South Fork (30 miles (48 km)) rises near in central Snohomish County, 20 miles (32 km) south of Darrington, and flows west and northwest by the towns of Silverton, Robe, and Granite Falls.

The two forks unite at Arlington in northwestern Snohomish County. The combined stream flows west, entering the north end of Port Susan, an arm of Puget Sound, approximately 10 miles (16 km) west of Arlington. Between the North and South Forks there is a portion of the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest called the Boulder River Wilderness.

[edit] Natural History

The Stillaguamish River and its tributaries are known for their salmon runs. Eight salmonid species use the streams for spawning, including chinook, coho, chum, pink, and sockeye salmon, steelhead trout, sea-run cutthroat, and bull trout.

[edit] History

Variant names for the Stillaguamish River, according to the USGS, include Tuxpam River, Stoh-luk-whahmpsh River, Stillaquamish River, Steilaguamish River, Stalukahamish River, and other similar spellings.