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Lost River begins and ends in a 
From its source, the river flows into Langell Valley, where Miller Creek enters from the
closed basin
An endorheic basin (; also spelled endoreic basin or endorreic basin) is a drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water, such as rivers or oceans, but drainage converges instead into lakes ...
in northern California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
and southern 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
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 territori ...
. The river, long, Map quadrangles show river mileage from mouth to source. flows in an arc from Clear Lake Reservoir in Modoc County, California
Modoc County () is a county in the far northeast corner of the U.S. state of California. Its population is 8,700 as of the 2020 census, down from 9,686 from the 2010 census. This makes it California's third-least populous county. The county seat ...
, through Klamath County, Oregon
Klamath County ( ) is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 69,413. The county seat is Klamath Falls. The county was named for the Klamath, the tribe of Native Americans living in the ...
, to Tule Lake in Siskiyou County, California
Siskiyou County (, ) is a county in the northernmost part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,076. Its county seat is Yreka and its highest point is Mount Shasta. It falls within the Cascadia bioregio ...
. About of Lost River are in Oregon, and are in California.
From its source, the river flows into Langell Valley, where Miller Creek enters from the right
Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical ...
. Near Bonanza, the river turns west and passes through Olene Gap, about east of Klamath Falls
Klamath Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The city was originally called ''Linkville'' when George Nurse founded the town in 1867. It was named after the Link River, on whose falls the city was ...
. The river then turns southeast and flows along the base of Stukel Mountain, where it provides diversion canals for small lakes including Nuss Lake for irrigation and flood control. It then re-enters California south of Merrill Merrill may refer to:
Places in the United States
* Merrill Field, Anchorage, Alaska
* Merrill, Iowa
*Merrill, Maine
* Merrill, Michigan
*Merrill, Mississippi, an unincorporated community near Lucedale in George County
*Merrill, Oregon
*Merrill, W ...
.
Dams, canals, pumps, and other artificial structures on the Lost River, Clear Lake, and Tule Lake are part of the Klamath Project of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
The Bureau of Reclamation, and formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and opera ...
, which manages the basin's water flow mainly for farming and flood control
Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...
. The project provides water to about of cropland, 62% of which are in Oregon and 38% in California. Water from the Lost River basin enters the Klamath River
The Klamath River (Karuk: ''Ishkêesh'', Klamath: ''Koke'', Yurok: ''Hehlkeek 'We-Roy'') flows through Oregon and northern California in the United States, emptying into the Pacific Ocean. By average discharge, the Klamath is the second large ...
basin, mainly through the Lost River Diversion Channel, about downstream of Olene. The channel can also supply water by reverse flow from the Klamath when irrigation water is needed for farms in drained parts of Tule Lake.
After 1846, the Applegate Trail
The Applegate Trail was an emigrant trail through the present-day U.S. states of Idaho, Nevada, California, and Oregon used in the mid-19th century by emigrants on the American frontier. It was originally intended as a less dangerous alternative t ...
crossed the river on a natural bridge of stepping-stones, later covered by a Bureau of Reclamation dam, near Merrill. Earlier in that year, explorer John C. Frémont had named the stream McCrady River after a boyhood friend, but over time the Lost River name prevailed. A Lost River post office operated briefly, probably in the vicinity of Olene, Oregon, in 1875–76.
A sluggish stream, Lost River offers fishing opportunities for bass, up to , brown bullhead
The brown bullhead (''Ameiurus nebulosus'') is a fish of the family Ictaluridae that is widely distributed in North America. It is a species of bullhead catfish and is similar to the black bullhead (''Ameiurus melas'') and yellow bullhead (''Am ...
, crappie, yellow perch
The yellow perch (''Perca flavescens''), commonly referred to as perch, striped perch, American perch, American river perch or preacher is a freshwater perciform fish native to much of North America. The yellow perch was described in 1814 by Sam ...
, and Sacramento perch. Trout
Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...
are uncommon in this river.
See also
*Battle of Lost River
The Battle of Lost River in November 1872 was the first battle in the Modoc War in the northwestern United States. The skirmish, which was fought near the Lost River along the California–Oregon border, was the result of an attempt by the U.S. ...
*List of longest streams of Oregon
Seventy-seven rivers and creeks of at least 50 miles (80 km) in total length are the longest streams of the U.S. state of Oregon. All of these streams originate in the United States except the longest, the Columbia, which begins in the ...
*List of rivers of California
This is a list of rivers in the U.S. state of California, grouped by region. Major lakes and reservoirs, if applicable, are indicated in italics.
North Coast (north of Humboldt Bay)
Rivers and streams between the Oregon border and Humboldt Bay th ...
*List of rivers of Oregon
This is a partial listing of rivers in the state of Oregon, United States. This list of Oregon rivers is organized alphabetically and by tributary structure. The list may also include streams known as creeks, brooks, forks, branches and prongs, as ...
References
{{authority control Rivers of Modoc County, California Rivers of Oregon Tributaries of the Klamath River Rivers of Klamath County, Oregon Modoc Plateau Modoc National Forest Rivers of Northern California