Feather River Río de las Plumas | |
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![]() The Feather River near its confluence with the Bear River | |
![]() Map of the Feather River watershed. The artificially connected Sutter Basin and Butte Creek drainage basins are indicated in yellow. | |
Location | |
Country | United States |
State | California |
Region | Butte County, Yuba County, Sutter County |
Cities | Oroville, Yuba City, Marysville |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | North Fork Feather River |
- location | Confluence of Rice Creek and South Arm Rice Creek, Plumas County |
- coordinates | 40°21′47″N 121°27′05″W / 40.36306°N 121.45139°W[2] |
- elevation | 5,436 ft (1,657 m)[1] |
2nd source | Middle Fork Feather River |
- location | Near Beckwourth, Sierra Valley, Plumas County |
- coordinates | 39°48′49″N 120°22′46″W / 39.81361°N 120.37944°W[4] |
- elevation | 4,872 ft (1,485 m)[3] |
Source confluence | Lake Oroville |
- location | Upstream of Oroville Dam |
- coordinates | 39°32′14″N 121°29′00″W / 39.53722°N 121.48333°W[9] |
- elevation | 902 ft (275 m)[9] |
Mouth | Sacramento River |
- location | Verona |
- coordinates | 38°47′08″N 121°37′17″W / 38.78556°N 121.62139°W[5] |
- elevation | 26 ft (7.9 m)[5] |
Length | 73 mi (117 km), North-south[6] |
Basin size | 6,197 sq mi (16,050 km2)[6][8] |
Discharge | |
- location | Nicolaus[7] |
- average | 8,321 cu ft/s (235.6 m3/s)[7] |
- minimum | 222 cu ft/s (6.3 m3/s) |
- maximum | 357,000 cu ft/s (10,100 m3/s) |
Basin features | |
River system | Sacramento River Basin |
Tributaries | |
- left | Yuba River, Bear River |
- right | Sutter Bypass |
Type | Wild, Scenic, Recreational |
Designated | October 2, 1968 |
The Feather River is a river in Northern California in the United States. It is a tributary of the Sacramento River. The river originates in the Sierra Nevada mountains and is 114 kilometres (71 miles) long, flowing in a general southward direction.
The river is an important source of drinking and irrigation water for California. The Oroville Dam is located on the river, near the city of Oroville.