The Hoko River is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
in the U.S. state of
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
. It originates in the foothills of the
Olympic Mountains
The Olympic Mountains are a mountain range on the Olympic Peninsula of the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are not especially high – Mount Olympus is the highest at ; however, the easter ...
, and runs about to the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
through a rugged landscape that has been heavily
logged. Its largest tributary is the
Little Hoko River, which joins at
river mile
A river mile is a measure of distance in miles along a river from its mouth. River mile numbers begin at zero and increase further upstream. The corresponding metric unit using kilometers is the river kilometer. They are analogous to vehicle roa ...
. The lower of the Hoko River is
estuarine. The Hoko watershed supports
chinook,
chum,
coho
The coho salmon (''Oncorhynchus kisutch;'' Karuk: achvuun) is a species of anadromous fish in the salmon family and one of the five Pacific salmon species. Coho salmon are also known as silver salmon or "silvers". The scientific species name is ...
, and winter
steelhead
Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the common name of the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or redband trout (O. m. gairdneri). Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific basin in Northeast Asia and ...
, with over of stream miles that provide suitable spawning habitat.
Because the Hoko River, like the nearby
Pysht River
The Pysht River ( ) is a stream in the U.S. state of Washington. It originates near Ellis Mountain in the northern Olympic Mountains on the Olympic Peninsula and flows generally north, emptying into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The Pysht and nearby ...
, is brushy, full of
snags, and often carries
tannin stained water, it is known as a "cedar creek".
The name Hoko is of
Makah
The Makah (; Klallam: ''màq̓áʔa'')Renker, Ann M., and Gunther, Erna (1990). "Makah". In "Northwest Coast", ed. Wayne Suttles. Vol. 7 of '' Handbook of North American Indians'', ed. William C. Sturtevant. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Instit ...
origin and refers to the large projecting rock at the river mouth.
The Hoko River is the namesake of the
Late Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', "daw ...
Hoko River Formation, which was formally described in 1976 by
Parke D. Snavely, Jr. et al
References
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*
{{Latin phrases
Lists of Latin phrases, E ...
from outcrops along the river.
Sites along the Hoko River have proved it to be an ideal location for preserving artifacts, bones, antlers, and baskets from the past. Hooks, cordage used for lines, and drying racks made from wood have all been found near the Hoko River sites. These artifacts' production is dated to around 1000 BCE.
See also
*
List of rivers of Washington
This is a list of rivers in the U.S. state of Washington.
By drainage basin
This list is arranged by drainage basin. Respective tributaries are indented under each larger stream's name and are ordered downstream to upstream.
Fraser River (Britis ...
References
External links
USGS gage 12034400 Hoko River USGS Water-Date Report 2008
*
Rivers of Washington (state)
Rivers of Clallam County, Washington
{{Washington-river-stub