The Salmo River is a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

Pend d'Oreille River The Pend Oreille River ( ) is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately long, in northern Idaho and northeastern Washington (state), Washington in the United States, as well as southeastern British Columbia in Canada. In its passage throu ...

in the

West Kootenay The Kootenays or Kootenay ( ) is a region of southeastern British Columbia. It takes its name from the Kootenay River, which in turn was named for the Kutenai First Nations people. Boundaries The Kootenays are more or less defined by the Kootenay ...

region of the

Regional District of Central Kootenay The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) is a regional district in the province of British Columbia, Canada. As of the 2016 census, the population was 59,517. The area is 22,130.72 square kilometres. The administrative centre is locate ...

in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

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, ...

. The river is 60 km long and its source is 12 km south of

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

in the Selkirk Mountains. The Salmo River is part 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 ...

drainage basin, being a tributary of the Pend d'Oreille River, which flows into the

. The river's

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...

is in area. Its mean annual discharge is . Intermountain Subbasin Plan, Pend Oreille
Northwest Power and Conservation Council

Course

The Salmo River originates in the

Selkirk Mountains The Selkirk Mountains are a mountain range spanning the northern portion of the Idaho Panhandle, eastern Washington, and southeastern British Columbia which are part of a larger grouping of mountains, the Columbia Mountains. They begin at Mica Pe ...

south of

. The headwaters are south of Apex summit at the Nelson Nordic Ski Club, just south of Cottonwood Lake and very near the source of Cottonwood Creek. The entire length of the river is 60 km and drains an area of 1,300 square kilometres.

Highway 6 Route 6, or Highway 6, may refer to routes in the following countries: International * Asian Highway 6 * European route E6 * European route E006 Albania * National Road SH6 Argentina * Buenos Aires Provincial Route 6 Australia New ...

parallels the river for the rivers entire length. The Nelson-Salmo Great Northern Trail ( Salmo-Troup Rail Trail) also runs alongside the river from its headwaters to the town of

Salmo ''Salmo'' is a genus of ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae. The single ''Salmo'' species naturally found in the Atlantic North America is the Atlantic salmon, whereas the salmon and trout of the Pacific basin belong to another genus, '' ...

, where the trail diverts west. Course of the Salmo River

It flows south through the rugged mountains and forests of the West Kootenays, being joined by several creeks along its course. Apex Creek, which flows from

Ymir Mountain Ymir Mountain is a summit in the West Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia, Canada. The nearest higher neighbour is Wood Peak, about to the southeast. Name origin According to Norse mythology, Ymir was father of the giants and grand ...

, joins the Salmo river just south of the turnoff from

for

Whitewater Ski Resort Whitewater Ski Resort is a ski resort in western Canada, located a 25-minute drive from Nelson in southern British Columbia. In the Selkirk Mountains, the resort is situated in Ymir bowl, beneath the Ymir Mountain. The Selkirks receive plentiful, ...

. From there it flows south to the community of Hall, where is it joined by Hall Creek. The river then continues south to the community of

Porto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

, where it is joined by Barrett Creek. Salmo River at Hall

The river then flows south to the town of

Ymir In Norse mythology, Ymir (, ), also called Aurgelmir, Brimir, or Bláinn, is the ancestor of all jötnar. Ymir is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material, in the ''Prose Edda'', writ ...

, where it is joined by Stewart Creek, Ymir Creek, Quartz Creek and Oscar Creek. Upon leaving Ymir, the river is joined by Porcupine Creek and Boulder Mill Creek, and Hidden Creek. Salmo River near Ymir

The river then reaches the town of

, itself named for the river. In Salmo the river is joined by Erie Creek (historically known as the North Fork of the Salmo), which provides a large portion of the water in the river. Erie Creek near Salmo BC

South of the Salmo townsite, the river is joined by

Sheep Creek Sheep Creek is a geographical place name. With variations, the name is given to hundreds of bodies of water, roads, canals, reservoirs and populated areas in the United States and other countries. It is the name of a tributary to Lockyear Creek in ...

. The Salmo River Ranch, a large ranch that is known as the site of

Shambhala Music Festival Shambhala Music Festival is an annual electronic music festival in British Columbia, Canada. It is held during the last week of July at the Salmo River Ranch, a farm, in the West Kootenay mountains near Nelson, BC. The festival lasts 4 days and ...

(an annual electronic music festival that takes place at the end of July since 1998) is located on this portion of the riverbank. The river continues south to the southern junction of highways 3 and 6 where it is joined by the South Salmo River as that river flows west out of Stagleap Provincial Park. The South Salmo river also contributes a lot of flow to the Salmo. Salmo river north of Pend d’Oreille river

Salmo river north of Pend d’Oreille river

Once the South Salmo joins the main stem, the river turns west and flows for a few kilometres before finally discharging into the

just north of the Canada-United States border at the ghost town of Remac. The river is very popular amongst locals especially in the summer months. The rivers winding path through rocky mountains has created numerous swimming holes along the rivers' length especially suited for swimming. The rivers mouth at the Pend d'Orielle is at the entrance to a

BC Hydro The British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, operating as BC Hydro, is a Canadian electric utility in the province of British Columbia. It is the main electricity distributor, serving more than 4 million customers in most areas, with the exce ...

Recreation Area known as the "Pend d'Oreille Valley Wildlife Conservation Area" or the Pend d'Orielle Recreation Area. The area is popular for backcountry camping and swimming amongst locals.

References

{{authority control Rivers of British Columbia

Course

See also

References