Smith River (California)

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The Smith River (Tolowa: Script error: No such module "Lang". [1]) flows from the Klamath Mountains to the Pacific Ocean in Del Norte County in extreme northwestern California, on the West Coast of the United States.[2] The river, about 25.1 miles (40.4 km) long, all within Del Norte County, flows through the Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest, Six Rivers National Forest, and Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park.

Course

File:Smith River near Crescent City, CA.jpg
The confluence of the South Fork with the main Smith River near Crescent City, California

The Smith River is formed by the confluence of its Middle Fork and North Fork, near the community of Gasquet. The Middle Fork, Script error: No such module "convert". long,[2] rises in Del Norte County, approximately Script error: No such module "convert". northeast of Crescent City, and flows west. The North Fork Smith River, Script error: No such module "convert". long,[2] rises in Oregon on the northeast slope of Chetco Peak.[3] The South Fork Smith River enters the Smith River near the community of Hiouchi. The Script error: No such module "convert".[2] fork rises on the eastern edge of the Smith River National Recreation Area, approximately Script error: No such module "convert". east-northeast of Crescent City, flowing southwest and then northwest.

From the confluence with the South Fork, the Smith River flows generally northwest, entering the Pacific Ocean near the community of Smith River, approximately Script error: No such module "convert". north of Crescent City. Smith River estuary is recognized for protection by the California Bays and Estuaries Policy.[4]

Watershed

The river's watershed catchment area is Script error: No such module "convert".. It drains a rugged area of the western Klamath Mountains and Northern Outer California Coast Ranges, west of the Siskiyou Mountains, barely across the Oregon border, and north of the watershed of the Klamath River.

By average discharge, the Smith is the largest river system in California that flows freely along its entire course.[5] The highly variable annual flow is approximately Script error: No such module "convert"., with an average monthly high of Script error: No such module "convert". in January, and an average low of Script error: No such module "convert". in September. The all-time highest flow was Script error: No such module "convert". on December 22, 1964, during the Christmas flood of 1964.[6]

The river was named for the explorer Jedediah Smith.[7]

Conservation

The free-flowing nature of the river—without a single dam along its entire length—makes it especially prized among conservationists and is considered one of the crown jewels of the National Wild and Scenic River program.[8] It is the only major California river never to have been dammed.[9]

File:CONTEXTUAL VIEW OF BRIDGE IN SETTING, LOOKING NORTHEAST, FROM UPSTREAM - Smith River Bridge, CA State Highway 199 Spanning Smith River, Crescent City, Del Norte County, CA HAER CAL,8-CRECI.V,1-2.tif
Former Smith River Bridge crossing the Lower Smith River.
File:VIEW OF UNDERSIDE OF BRIDGE FROM NORTH PIER, LOOKING NORTHWEST - Smith River Bridge, CA State Highway 199 Spanning Smith River, Crescent City, Del Norte County, CA HAER CAL,8-CRECI.V,1-13.tif
Former cantilever highway truss of Smith River Bridge.

Crossings

The 1929 Smith River Bridge, also known as the Hiouchi Bridge or Bridge Wo. 1-06, was a rare example of a cantilever highway truss bridge within California, until it was demolished in 1989.[10] The two-lane road bridge carried U.S. Highway 199 across the Smith River. The structural steel components were fabricated by Virginia Bridge & Iron Co. in Roanoke, shipped via the Panama Canal to San Francisco, then reloaded to a smaller coastal vessel and shipped to Crescent City. The suspended center span was a Parker truss.[10]

It was the first cantilever truss type designed by the California Division of Highways Bridge Department engineers in 1928. The bridge type was briefly popular during the late 1920s to the late 1930s in the United States, but because it was best suited to specialized applications only limited numbers were built in the state. Its design was influenced by the first Carquinez Bridge, designed by David B. Steinman and completed in 1927 (demolished 2007).[10]

Studies for the replacement of the Smith River Bridge began in 1987. U. S. Highway 199 provides a link between Highway 101 at Crescent City on the northern California coast, and Interstate Highway 5 inland at Grants Pass, Oregon. The proposal to replace the bridge was based on its functionally obsolete structural condition. Because of the high percentage of heavy truck traffic using the route, the bridge had sustained damage from high loads over the years, causing concern that the bridge was susceptible to collapsing.[10]

Since it had been determined eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places, it was required to be documented to Historic American Engineering Record−HAER standards prior to its removal in 1989.[10]

In popular culture

For the 1983 movie Return of the Jedi, the 3rd film in the Star Wars franchise, the Smith River and its surrounding forests and the community of Smith River were used as filming locations for most of the Endor scenes, although a miniaturized set was used for the battle sequences.

References

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  1. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ a b c d U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed March 9, 2011
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "Template wrapper".
  4. ↑ State Water Resources Control Board Water Quality Control Policy for the Enclosed Bays and Estuaries of California (1974) State of California
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ Cite error: Script error: No such module "Namespace detect".Script error: No such module "Namespace detect".
  7. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ a b c d e Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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External links

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