The Middle Fork Owyhee River is a tributary of the North Fork Owyhee River in Malheur County, Oregon, and Owyhee County, Idaho, in the United States. It forms along Juniper Mountain, south of the Owyhee Mountains in Idaho. From its headwaters, it flows southwest then curves northwest to and beyond the Idaho–Oregon border, then turns north to meet the North Fork at Three Forks, Oregon. The confluence is less than a mile upstream from the North Fork's confluence with the Owyhee River. Below Three Forks, the main stem Owyhee flows 161 miles (259 km) to empty into the Snake River.[4]
| Middle Fork Owyhee River | |
|---|---|
  Location of the mouth of the Middle Fork Owyhee River in Oregon  Middle Fork Owyhee River (the United States) | |
| Etymology | An early name for Hawaii.[2] |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Oregon, Idaho |
| County | Malheur County, Oregon, Owyhee County, Idaho |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Juniper Mountain |
| • location | Idaho |
| • coordinates | 42°26′40″N 116°52′40″W / 42.44444°N 116.87778°W[1] |
| • elevation | 6,797 ft (2,072 m)[3] |
| Mouth | Owyhee River |
• location | Three Forks, Oregon |
• coordinates | 42°32′37″N 117°09′40″W / 42.54361°N 117.16111°W[1] |
• elevation | 3,963 ft (1,208 m)[1] |
Named tributaries of the Middle Fork from source to mouth include Summit Springs Creek, Berry Gulch, and Field Creek, all of which enter from the left. Below that Pole Creek enters from the right.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "Middle Fork Owyhee River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey (USGS). June 21, 1979. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ McArthur, Lewis A.; Lewis L. McArthur (2003) [1928]. Oregon Geographic Names (7th ed.). Portland: Oregon Historical Society Press. p. 735. ISBN 0-87595-277-1.
- ^ Source elevation derived from Google Earth search using GNIS source coordinates.
- ^ a b "United States Topographic Map". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved November 20, 2015 – via ACME Mapper.