Powder River (Oregon)

Powder River (Oregon)
Port-pel-lah
The Powder River at Baker City
Powder River (Oregon) is located in Oregon
Powder River (Oregon)
Location of the mouth of the Powder River in Oregon
Native namePolalle Illahe (Chinook jargon)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateOregon
RegionBaker and Union counties
Physical characteristics
SourceConfluence of McCully Fork and Cracker Creek
 • locationSumpter, Oregon, in the Sumpter Valley Dredge State Heritage Area, Blue Mountains
 • coordinates44°44′30″N 118°12′22″W / 44.74167°N 118.20611°W / 44.74167; -118.20611[1]
 • elevation4,400 ft (1,300 m)
MouthBrownlee Reservoir on the Snake River
 • location
10 mi (16 km) east of Richland, Oregon
 • coordinates
44°44′37″N 117°02′56″W / 44.74361°N 117.04889°W / 44.74361; -117.04889[1]
 • elevation
2,064 ft (629 m)
Length153 mi (246 km)[2]
Basin size1,603 sq mi (4,150 km2)[3]
Discharge 
 • average534 cu ft/s (15.1 m3/s)[3]
TypeScenic
DesignatedOctober 28, 1988[4]

The Powder River is a tributary of the Snake River, approximately 153 miles (246 km) long,[2] in northeast Oregon in the United States. It drains an area of the Columbia Plateau on the eastern side of the Blue Mountains. It flows almost entirely within Baker County but downstream of the city of North Powder forms part of the border between Baker County and Union County.

  1. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Powder River
  2. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed May 3, 2011
  3. ^ a b Palmer, Tim (2014). Field Guide to Oregon Rivers. Corvallis: Oregon State University Press. p. 276. ISBN 978-0-87071-627-0.
  4. ^ "National Wild and Scenic Rivers System" (PDF). rivers.gov. National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Retrieved 2023-01-16.