The Wenatchee River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington , originating at Lake Wenatchee and flowing southeast for 53 miles (85 km), emptying into the Columbia River immediately north of Wenatchee, Washington . On its way it passes the towns of Plain , Leavenworth , Peshastin , Dryden , Cashmere , Monitor , and Wenatchee , all within Chelan County . The river attracts kayaking and river rafting enthusiasts and tourism.
5-665: Tributaries include the Chiwawa River , Nason Creek , Peshastin Creek , and Icicle Creek . Its drainage basin is 1,333 square miles (3,450 km) in area. Historically the dividing line between Okanogan County and Kittitas County , the river has been in the center of Chelan County since the county's formation around 1899. Water from the Wenatchee River and its tributaries has been diverted for irrigation since 1891, mainly for orchards. There are two small dams on
10-658: Is a tributary of the Wenatchee River , in the U.S. state of Washington . It is completely contained within Chelan County . Much of the Chiwawa River's drainage basin is designated national forest and wilderness . The upper Chiwawa watershed is in nearly pristine condition. The river is part of the Columbia River basin, being a tributary of the Wenatchee River, which is a tributary to
15-729: The Columbia River. The river's name comes from a Columbia-Moses term meaning of kind of creek ("wawa" creek). A large number of place names in the Chiwawa River basin were given by Albert H. Sylvester . The Chiwawa River originates in the Glacier Peak Wilderness of the North Cascades , on the southern slopes of Chiwawa Mountain and Fortress Mountain . It flows south through the Wenatchee National Forest , between Chiwawa Ridge to
20-784: The Wenatchee River, the Tumwater Canyon Dam, which sits just west of the community of Leavenworth, and the Dryden dam, a low-head dam situated just outside the town of Dryden. The Tumwater Canyon dam originally provided power to the original 2-mile (3.2 km)-long railroad tunnel used near Stevens Pass to get trains across the Cascade Mountains, it was later (starting in 1928) used to power the railroad's electrification from Wenatchee to Skykomish . Toxic chemicals banned decades ago in Washington continue to linger in
25-632: The environment and concentrate in the food chain , threatening people and the environment, according to three recent studies by the Washington state Department of Ecology. In 2007, the Washington Department of Health advised the public to not eat mountain whitefish from the Wenatchee River from Leavenworth downstream to where the river joins the Columbia, due to unhealthy levels of PCBs . Chiwawa River The Chiwawa River
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