Just north of the Kern River, a 3 hour drive from Los
Angeles in South-Central California, the Kaweah River pants and plunges through
a multitude of great rapids. The River
ends up in a lake after being drained for various resources.
Kaweah River Geography
Kaweah River
is a river in Tulare County, California,
located in the foothills of the southern Sierra Nevada
mountains. The river's headwaters are in the Sequoia
National Park at about the 12,000
foot elevation. 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. As the rivers
drops in elevation, it goes down about 70 feet per mile. The river passes through the town of Three
Rivers 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.
The Kaweah River,
like its neighboring rivers, never sees the Pacific Ocean.
Instead, it splits into many channels upon entering the San
Joaquin Valley. Most of the water from the river is now used
for irrigation in the valley. If any of
the water is not diverted, it end in Tulare Lake,
CA.
Flow Data for the river is updates regularly by the
government and private individuals. (http://c2.com/kaweah/flowdata.html).
Kaweah River History
The Kaweah got its named from ancient Indians who lived in
the area long before modern day settlers. The first white settler arrived in
1856. That man, a cattleman named Hale Dixon Tharp (1829-1912), settled on
Horse Creek nears its confluence with the Kaweah
River.
During the 1860s, other stockmen and ranchers began to
locate along the various forks of the Kaweah
River. Much of the land being
claimed in the area was under the provisions of the Homestead Act of 1862,
which allowed a settler to occupy 160 acres, or 320 acres for a man and wife.
Early homesteads were located along the South, Middle, and North forks of the Kaweah
River.
In 1886, the Kaweah Colony was established as a tent camp at
Advance on the North Fork. The utopian socialists began
to attract attention, both locally and nationwide, with the building of a road
to access timber claims in the Giant Forest.
In 1963, the river was run from Pumpkin
Hollow Bridge
per Holback and Stanley.
The river is fast running and drop quickly in
elevation. In 1997, the river was
flooded and measured a peak output of over 56,595 cfs. Normally the river runs in the low thousands.
Many areas along the river were damaged,
and the river changed from how it was originally before the flood. The river is claimed to have become wider and
shallower now than it was before the flood.
Most rapids and holes were changed by the rapidly moving debris and
rocks.
Kaweah River Recreation
The Kaweah River
is a fast dropping, quick running river. White water rafting the challenging class IV+ run on the
Kaweah is recommended only for fit, active, experienced paddlers with strong
swimming ability who are able to stay in a wildly tossing boat all the while
paddling vigorously. It is a fast and intense California rafting experience.
This river is not recommended for casual recreational
floating or private boating without experience or guides.
The river is however located near the Seqoia
National Park which is a popular California
tourists and vacation attraction.
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