The Minam River is a tributary of the

Wallowa River The Wallowa River is a tributary of the Grande Ronde River, approximately long, in northeastern Oregon in the United States. It drains a valley on the Columbia Plateau in the northeast corner of the state north of Wallowa Mountains. The Wallowa ...

, long, in northeastern

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It drains a rugged

wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

area of the

Wallowa Mountains The Wallowa Mountains () are a mountain range located in the Columbia Plateau of northeastern Oregon in the United States. The range runs approximately northwest to southeast in southwestern Wallowa County and eastern Union County between the ...

northeast of La Grande. It rises in the Wallowas in the

Eagle Cap Wilderness Eagle Cap Wilderness is a wilderness area located in the Wallowa Mountains of northeastern Oregon (United States), within the Wallowa–Whitman National Forest.

of the

Wallowa–Whitman National Forest The Wallowa–Whitman National Forest is a United States National Forest in the U.S. states of Oregon and Idaho. Formed upon the merger of the Wallowa and Whitman national forests in 1954, it is located in the northeastern corner of the state, in ...

, just south of the

Wallowa Wallowa may refer to: Places *Wallowa, Oregon *Wallowa County, Oregon *Wallowa Lake *Wallowa Lake State Park *Wallowa Mountains *Wallowa River Other *''Acacia calamifolia'', a shrub or tree *''Acacia euthycarpa'', a shrub or tree * ''The Wallo ...

–

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

border approximately southeast of La Grande at Blue Lake. It flows generally northwest through the mountains along the Wallowa–Union county line. It joins the Wallowa from the south at the community of Minam near

Oregon Route 82 Oregon Route 82 (OR 82) is a state highway in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Oregon. It travels from U.S. Route 30 (US 30) at La Grande to an intersection with Oregon Routes 350 and 351 in Joseph. It is kn ...

. Its headwaters include springs stemming from outflow from Minam Lake, also the source of the Lostine River. From its headwaters to the Eagle Cap Wilderness boundary downstream of Cougar Creek, a distance of , the Minam River was declared part of the

National Wild and Scenic Rivers System The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-542), enacted by the U.S. Congress to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free- ...

in 1988. Accessible mainly by

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...

trails, the river basin supports diverse wildlife, including

wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscul ...

bighorn sheep The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of sheep native to North America. It is named for its large horns. A pair of horns might weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspec ...

elk The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The common ...

American black bear The American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), also called simply a black bear or sometimes a baribal, is a medium-sized bear endemic to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most widely distributed bear species. American black bear ...

, and

cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...

. The Minam, except for the lower , where the surrounds have been heavily logged and otherwise altered, is largely pristine. It and the Wenaha River are the two largest rivers in Oregon that are nearly pristine.

Tributaries

From source to mouth, the named tributaries of the Minam River are Pop and Trail creeks, which enter from the left; Lowry Gulch, left; Wild Sheep Creek, right; Granite Gulch, right; Elk Creek, left; and Last Chance Gulch, right. Then Cap, Rock, and Lackey creeks, all from the left; Pole Creek, right, Pot Creek, left; North Minam River, right, and Little Pot and Jerry creeks, left. Then Threemile, Garwood, Whoopee, Chaparral, Wallowa, Horseheaven, and Horse Basin creeks, all from the right; the Little Minam River, left; Faun Creek, right, and Lobo and Eagle creeks, left. Then Murphy, Trout, Cougar, Gunderson, and Squaw creeks, all from the right.

References

External links

Grande Ronde Model Watershed
{{authority control Rivers of Oregon Wild and Scenic Rivers of the United States Rivers of Wallowa County, Oregon Rivers of Union County, Oregon Eagle Cap Wilderness

Tributaries

See also

References

External links