The Nestucca River flows for about through forests near the

Pacific 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 contine ...

coast of northwest

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

in the United States. It drains a timber-producing area of the

Northern Oregon Coast Range The Northern Oregon Coast Range is the northern section of the Oregon Coast Range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges physiographic region, located in the northwest portion of the state of Oregon, United States. This section of the mountain range, part ...

west of Portland. Rising in the mountains of western Yamhill County, it is impounded near its headwaters to create McGuire Reservoir, the primary water source for the city of McMinnville. The river flows generally west through Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land and the

Siuslaw National Forest The Siuslaw National Forest ( ) is a national forest in western Oregon in the United States. Established in 1908, the Siuslaw is made up of a wide variety of ecosystems, ranging from coastal forests to sand dunes. Geography The Siuslaw Nati ...

, past Beaver, then southwest past

Hebo Hebo () is the god of the Yellow River (''Huang He''). The Yellow River is the main river of northern China, one of the world's major rivers and a river of great cultural importance in China. This is reflected in Chinese mythology by the tales s ...

and Cloverdale. It enters Nestucca Bay, on the Pacific Ocean, from the north at Pacific City. The Little Nestucca River does not join the Nestucca but enters Nestucca Bay from the south.

Recreation

Madelynne Sheehan in ''Fishing in Oregon'' calls the Nestucca River "a real gem of an all-around stream." Anglers can fish for spring

chinook salmon The Chinook salmon (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') is the largest and most valuable species of Pacific salmon in North America, as well as the largest in the genus '' Oncorhynchus''. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other ...

, fall chinook,

coho salmon The coho salmon (''Oncorhynchus kisutch;'' Karuk: achvuun) is a species of anadromous fish in the salmon family (biology), family and one of the five Pacific salmon species. Coho salmon are also known as silver salmon or "silvers". The scientif ...

, coastal cutthroat trout, and

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 ...

. Winter steelhead on this river average , while summer steelhead of can sometimes appear "almost nose to tail throughout a section of the river". Bank access to the lower river is limited because much of the land is privately owned, but the stream, which is wide on the lower reaches, is often fished from boats. Cloverdale, Farmer Creek, Three Rivers, and Pacific City have public boat ramps, and there are less formal put-in places upriver. Upstream of Moon Creek, more than half of the land along the river is publicly owned, is managed by the Siuslaw National Forest and the BLM, and includes five campgrounds. The upper river between Moon Creek and Elk Creek is fished mainly for winter steelhead, and no fishing is allowed upstream of Elk Creek. An stretch of the upper river between Rocky Bend Campground and Blaine offers

whitewater Whitewater forms in a rapid context, in particular, when a river's gradient changes enough to generate so much turbulence that air is trapped within the water. This forms an unstable current that froths, making the water appear opaque and ...

canoeing and kayaking possibilities when the flow is about . The first of the run include a class 4 rapid followed by a class 5 and another class 4. An alternate put-in is available at a log bridge downstream of the second class 4. Below the bridge, class 2 and 3 whitewater continues for the remaining of the run.

Recreation

References

See also