:''For other rivers called Clearwater, see
Clearwater River''

Clearwater River near Greer Ferry
The 'Clearwater River' is a
river in
North Central Idaho, which flows from the
Idaho-
Montana border westward, joining the
Snake River at
Lewiston. in October 1805, the
Lewis and Clark Expedition descended the Clearwater River in dugout canoes, putting in at "Canoe Camp," five miles downstream from
Orofino.
[1]
The Clearwater River is the largest tributary of the
Snake River, with an annual mean
discharge of 14,820
ft³/s.
[1]
The Clearwater breaks into several separate forks:
★ Clearwater River (west of
Orofino to
Lewiston-
Snake River)
★
★ 'North Fork' Clearwater River (stream, Clearwater County - ; headwaters near Illinois Peak to just west of
Orofino)
★
★
★ 'Little North Fork' Clearwater River (stream,
Shoshone &
Clearwater Counties; headwaters in south-central Shoshone County, joins the North Fork in the
Dworshak Reservoir)
★
★ 'Middle Fork' Clearwater River (stream,
Idaho County - ; formed by the confluence of the
Selway and
Lochsa at
Lowell)
★
★ 'South Fork' Clearwater River (stream,
Idaho County - ; headwaters near Red River Hot Springs to
Kooskia, confluence with the Middle Fork)
★
★
★ 'Little Clearwater' River (stream,
Idaho County - ; near Three Prong Mountain to near Spot Mountain)
The
Dworshak Reservoir is the only major
lake on the Clearwater system, created from the
Dworshak Dam, completed in the early 1970s. Dworshak Dam is on the North Fork of the Clearwater River, and is just northwest of
Orofino.
There is no
fish ladder; the dam blocks
salmon and
steelhead passage.
The border between
Washington and
Idaho is defined as the meridian running north from the confluence of the Clearwater River and the
Snake River. Although this border is often referred to as the 117
th west longitude meridian, the actual border line is slightly west (less than 2 miles) of the 117th meridian.
[2]
References
1. http://pubs.usgs.gov/wdr/2005/wdr-id-05-1/ Water Resources Data, Idaho, 2005
2. Washington State Constitution Arcticle XXIV Boundaries
External links
★ , USGS GNIS