Tag: Klamath River

The Klamath River (Karuk: Ishkêesh, Klamath: Koke) is an American river that flows 263 miles (423 km) southwest through Oregon and northern California, cutting through the Cascade Range to empty into the Pacific Ocean. The river drains an extensive watershed of almost 16,000 square miles (41,000 km) that stretches from the high desert country of the Great Basin to the temperate rainforest of the Pacific coast. It is known for its basin’s peculiar geography—most of its upper basin is developed, but the lower remains wild—and has been called “a river upside down” by the National Geographic Society.
As one of the most important rivers for fish migration on the west coast of North America south of the Columbia River, the Klamath River basin has been inhabited by humans for at least 7,000 years. At one time, the river supported abundant wildlife. Vast freshwater marshes in the upper basin provided habitat for thousands of migratory birds. The first Europeans to visit the region were fur…