Paint Creek is a direct tributary of the

Upper Mississippi River The Upper Mississippi River is the portion of the Mississippi River upstream of St. Louis, Missouri, United States, at the confluence of its main tributary, the Missouri River. History In terms of geologic and hydrographic history, the Upper ...

, rising in central

Allamakee County, Iowa Allamakee County () is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,061. Its county seat is Waukon. History Allamakee County was formed on February 20, 1847. The derivation of the name is ...

, in and about the city of Waukon. The catchment measures approximately . It has some still-rural stretches past 9th Street Southwest in Waukon, but most of the actual Waukon portions have been culverted. It joins the Mississippi approximately above

Marquette, Iowa Marquette is a city in Clayton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 429 at the time of the 2020 census, up from 421 in 2000. The city, which is located on the Mississippi River, is named after Jesuit missionary Jacques Marquette, who al ...

in (Lock and Dam) Pool 10, near

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 road ...

641. The upper reaches have surface water only after a rainstorm, but as one goes east to the Mississippi, cutting down deeply into the gorge of the Mississippi, a serious cold water ever-flowing stream is encountered, fed by springs. Even in the worst drought years, Paint Creek always has water. By the time the creek reaches Waterville, it flows through a canyon between almost-vertical cliffs some 150 feet high. By the time the creek reaches the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

, it has cut a full 350 feet into the rock.Samuel Calvin, Drainage, Geology of Allamakee County
Third Annual Report, 1894
Iowa Geological Survey, 1895; pages 50-51. The watershed is divided into Big Paint Creek and Little Paint Creek. Once outside of Waukon, the creek travels through entirely rural country. Less than optimal farming practices have created erosion problems, leading to excess sediment being transported downstream into the River, and the Army Corps of Engineers is developing plans to combat this. It takes its name from Paint Rock Bluff, near Waukon Junction, Iowa. Once an important navigational landmark for Mississippi River traffic, it was named for the Indian paintings and

petroglyph A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

s on it. Notwithstanding its name, much of the

Yellow River State Forest Yellow River State Forest, (YRSF), is mostly forested land owned by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. It is located in the southeastern corner of Allamakee County, the most northeasterly of Iowa's counties. It is adjacent to the Upper M ...

lies within the Paint Creek watershed where the state maintains backpacking and equestrian trails, campgrounds and other such recreational amenities. The region is quite scenic, with rugged limestone cliffs and lush woodlands. Locally, it is also a place name, mainly of Lutheran Churches (the East Paint and West Paint churches). There is also a private Christian campground in the area.

References

Sources

Army Corps of Engineers siteEPACommercial horse stableIowa Audubon SocietyBrochure, Iowa DNR (*.pdf)
{{authority control Tributaries of the Mississippi River Rivers of Allamakee County, Iowa Rivers of Iowa

See also

References

Sources