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The North Fork Flathead River (
Ktunaxa The Kutenai ( ), also known as the Ktunaxa ( ; ), Ksanka ( ), Kootenay (in Canada) and Kootenai (in the United States), are an indigenous people of Canada and the United States. Kutenai bands live in southeastern British Columbia, northern ...
: ''kqaskanmituk'' ) is a Calculated by adding Canada and US numbers given in and river flowing through
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, south into the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
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 ...
. It is one of the three primary forks of the
Flathead River The Flathead River ( fla, label= Salish, člq̓etkʷ ntx̣ʷetkʷ, , kut, kananmituk), in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Montana, originates in the Canadian Rockies to the north of Glacier National Park and flows southwest into Fla ...
, the main inflow of
Flathead Lake Flathead Lake ( fla, člq̓etkʷ, label=Salish, kut, yawuʔnik̓ ʔa·kuq̓nuk) is a large natural lake in northwest Montana. The lake is a remnant of the ancient, massive glacial dammed lake, Lake Missoula of the era of the last interglacial. ...
and a tributary of the
Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...
via the Clark Fork River and the
Pend Oreille River The Pend Oreille River ( ) is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately long, in northern Idaho and northeastern Washington in the United States, as well as southeastern British Columbia in Canada. In its passage through British Columbia ...
. The river is sometimes considered the upper headwaters of the Flathead River, although the North Fork is its official name in the U.S. Other naming conventions for the river include Flathead River - North Fork, North Fork of Flathead River, and North Fork of the Flathead River.


Description

The river originates in a valley northeast of
Lake Koocanusa Lake Koocanusa () is a reservoir in British Columbia (Canada) and Montana (United States) formed by the damming of the Kootenai River by the Libby Dam in 1972. The Dam was formally dedicated by President Gerald Ford on August 24, 1975. The la ...
in the Clark Range, and flows west. It then meets the
Continental Divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...
and turns south, winding through a broad glacial valley. The river then crosses the Canada–US border into the state of Montana, where it begins to delineate the western boundary of Glacier National Park. Roughly following the "inner" and "outer" North Fork Roads and Montana Secondary Highway 486, the river winds southwest past Kintla Lake, Bowman Lake,
Quartz Lake Quartz Lake is located in Glacier National Park, in the U. S. state of 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 ...
,
Logging Lake Logging Lake is located in Glacier National Park, in the U. S. state of Montana. Logging Lake is one of the longest lakes in Glacier National Park at in length. The Lower Logging Lake Snowshoe Cabin and Boathouse are two structures located near t ...
, and
Lake McDonald Lake McDonald is the largest lake in Glacier National Park. It is located at in Flathead County in the U.S. state of Montana. Lake McDonald is approximately 10 miles (16 km) long, and over a mile (1.6 km) wide and 472 feet (130 m) ...
, then turns west and south into a narrower valley before joining the
Middle Fork Flathead River The Middle Fork Flathead River is a river in western Montana in the United States, 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. ...
near the southwestern entrance of the national park, several miles northeast of Columbia Falls. Less than below this confluence, the combined river joins the
South Fork Flathead River The South Fork Flathead River is a major river in Northwestern Montana in the northwest United States. It is one of the three main forks of the Flathead River, a tributary of the Clark Fork River (the Pend Oreille River). The north-northwest trend ...
, forming the main Flathead River.


Wild and Scenic River designation

Although the North Fork is designated as a
National Wild and Scenic River 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- ...
(1975) in the United States, its greater length in BC (, not including headwaters forks) is not. Water in the BC section remains relatively pure as there are no permanent residents or livestock in this drainage north of the border.


Dam proposal

In the 1940s the Glacier View Dam was proposed, which would have flooded much of the river's valley between Glacier View Mountain and the Canada–US border. Supported by Flathead Valley interests, the dam and reservoir were opposed by the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...
, as between and of park lands would have been flooded. The proposed dam was cancelled by 1950.


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 ...
*
List of rivers of British Columbia The following is a partial list of rivers of British Columbia, organized by watershed. Some large creeks are included either because of size or historical importance (See Alphabetical List of British Columbia rivers ). Also included are lakes tha ...
* Hungry Horse Reservoir


References


External links

{{authority control Rivers of Montana Rivers of British Columbia International rivers of North America Tributaries of the Columbia River Landforms of Glacier National Park (U.S.) Rivers of Flathead County, Montana Wild and Scenic Rivers of the United States