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The Skokomish River is a river in Mason County, Washington, United States. It is the largest river flowing into Hood Canal, an arm of Puget Sound. From its source at the confluence of the North and South Forks the main stem Skokomish River is approximately long. The longer South Fork Skokomish River is , making the length of the whole river via its longest tributary about . The North Fork Skokomish River is approximately long.〔River lengths calculated in Google Earth using GNIS coordinates.〕 A significant part of the Skokomish River's watershed is within Olympic National Forest and Olympic National Park. ==Course== The Skokomish River and its two tributary forks drain the southeast corner of the Olympic Mountains, mainly in Mason County but including a portion of Jefferson County. The main stem Skokomish River is formed by the confluence of the North Fork and South Fork near small community of Mohrweis. It flows east through the broad Skokomish Valley. After being crossed by U.S. Route 101 the river turns northeast. Washington State Route 106 crosses the river near its mouth on Hood Canal. Near the towns of Union and Skokomish the Skokomish River enters Annas Bay at the The Great Bend of Hood Canal from the south, where it creates a large estuary called Skokomish Flats. The lower portion of the river flows through the Skokomish Indian Reservation.〔General course info from USGS topographic maps accessed via the "GNIS in Google Map" feature of the USGS Geographic Names Information System website.〕 The South Fork Skokomish River originates near Sundown Pass in Olympic National Park, near the sources of the Wynoochee River and Graves Creek, a tributary of the Quinault River. The South Fork flows southeast out of the national park and between Capitol Peak, on the west, and Wonder Mountain on the east. After receiving Rule Creek from the west the South Fork turns more directly south and enters a broader valley. It receives Church Creek from the west, then turns to flow southeast and east through a widening river valley. A number of tributary streams join the South Fork, including Pine Creek and Cedar Creek, from the south, and Le Bar Creek, Brown Creek, and Harp Creek from the north. The South Fork Skokomish leaves the main Olympic Mountains and enters flatter terrain, but flows through gorges for several miles. After exiting the gorges the South Fork turns east and enters the broad Skokomish Valley where it joins with the North Fork to form the main stem Skokomish River. The North Fork Skokomish River originates on the northern slopes of Mount Skokomish. It flows west into Olympic National Park. The valley of the North Fork Skokomish is used for one of the national park's main backcountry hiking trails. At "Campground Nine Stream" the river turns south. It flows by "Campground Big Log", turns southeast and receives a number of tributaries including Four Stream and Slate Creek. The river rushes over Staircase Rapids shortly upriver from Staircase Campground and the national park's Ranger Station Staircase. The Staircase area is the main entry into the southeast portion of Olympic National Park. The North Fork receives Elk Creek at the campground and Lincoln Creek shortly downstream. The river then meanders southeast into Lake Cushman, a reservoir created to supply Tacoma with electricity. The tributary Big Creek enters the lake near Lake Cushman State Park. The North Fork exits Lake Cushman's southern end and flows a short distance to another reservoir, Lake Kokanee, from which it flows south into the Skokomish Valley to join the South Fork, forming the main stem Skokomish River. Lake Cushman and Lake Kokanee are maintained by Cushman Dam No. 1 and Cushman Dam No. 2 respectively. Until recently the entire flow of the North Fork is normally diverted at Cushman Dam No. 2, except for instream flow requirements and infrequent larger releases.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 publisher = United States Geological Survey )〕 On January 12, 2009, Tacoma Power, the Skokomish Tribe, and state and federal agencies signed settlement agreements that resolved long-standing disputes and damage claims relating to the Cushman Hydroelectric Project.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher= Tacoma Power )〕 As part of the settlement water will be released into the North Fork Skokomish River below the dams in order to mimic natural flow.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher= Tacoma Power )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Skokomish River」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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