Kaweah River - Course

Course

The Kaweah River rises in the southernmost part of the Sierra Nevada and flows southwest into the dry endorheic basin of the southern San Joaquin Valley, as do the Kings, Tule, and Kern Rivers, which all begin in or near Sequoia National Park. There are five primary forks to the Kaweah River: the Middle Fork, East Fork, North Fork, South Fork and Marble Fork, ordered by size. The Middle Fork, the largest tributary and sometimes considered the main stem of the Kaweah River, rises along the Great Western Divide, fed by a series of lakes, springs and snowfields. The river flows west, passing Moro Rock and crossing underneath California State Route 198, more commonly known as the Generals Highway (the main road through Sequoia National Park) between the confluence with Paradise Creek and the Marble Fork. It receives the Marble Fork from the right, forming the Kaweah River proper, which soon receives the East Fork from the left near Three Rivers.

The river continues southwest to the confluence with the North Fork from the right, then the South Fork enters from the left just before Lake Kaweah, formed by Terminus Dam, impedes the river’s course. After passing out of the dam, the Kaweah receives Dry Creek from the right then curves south through farmland past the town of Lemon Cove. Cottonwood Creek enters from the right and Yokohl Creek from the left. The river then splits into distributaries, including the St. Johns River and Deep Creek. The main channel continues southwest, joining with the Tule River. In wet years, the river occasionally reaches the now-dry Tulare Lake bed, which even emptied into the San Joaquin River during extreme floods through forks of the Kings River.