The Middle Fork Flathead River is a
river in western
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
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 ...
, forming the southwestern boundary of
Glacier National Park. Its drainage basin lies to the east of the
South Fork Flathead River and the
Hungry Horse Reservoir
Hungry Horse Dam is an arch dam in the western United States, on the South Fork Flathead River in the Rocky Mountains of northwest Montana. It is located in Flathead National Forest in Flathead County, about south of the west entrance to Glaci ...
. Towns along the river include
West Glacier,
Nyack,
Pinnacle
A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was mainly ...
,
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
, and
Nimrod
Nimrod (; ; arc, ܢܡܪܘܕ; ar, نُمْرُود, Numrūd) is a biblical figure mentioned in the Book of Genesis and Books of Chronicles. The son of Cush and therefore a great-grandson of Noah, Nimrod was described as a king in the land of ...
.
The river's headwaters lie in the
Bob Marshall Wilderness at the confluence of two small streams, Strawberry Creek and Bowl Creek.
From there, it runs north, receiving many tributaries from glacial valleys to the east and west, most of them inside Glacier National Park. The river begins to parallel
U.S. Highway 2
U.S. Route 2 or U.S. Highway 2 (US 2) is an east–west U.S. Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected by various roadways in southern Canada. Unlike some routes, whi ...
as it winds north-northwest, and after a long and narrow course, the river enters a wider valley and begins to spread out and braid between meadows and forested slopes. It then enters another narrow gorge, turning generally westwards, then passing the southwestern entrance of the national park, receives a tributary from
Lake McDonald, a large glacial lake to the north, from the right. The river then proceeds southwest to meet the
North Fork Flathead River, southwest of West Glacier and northeast of
Columbia Falls, forming the main stem of the Flathead River, which eventually flows into the
Clark Fork River
The Clark Fork, or the Clark Fork of the Columbia River, is a river in the U.S. states of Montana and Idaho, approximately long. The largest river by volume in Montana, it drains an extensive region of the Rocky Mountains in western Montana and ...
(the
Pend Oreille River).
Tributaries
The following minor creeks are tributaries to the Middle Fork Flathead River:
See also
*
List of rivers of Montana
The following is a partial list of rivers of Montana (U.S. state).
East of Continental Divide
Water in these rivers flows east and south from the Continental Divide of the Americas, also known as the Great Divide, into the Gulf of Mexico via t ...
References
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Rivers of Montana
Landforms of Glacier National Park (U.S.)
Tributaries of the Columbia River
Rivers of Flathead County, Montana
Wild and Scenic Rivers of the United States