Des Moines River
| Des Moines River | |
| River | |
 The Des Moines River upstream of Ottumwa, Iowa
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| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State | Iowa |
| Source | |
| - coordinates | 44°05′02″N 95°41′17″W / 44.0839°N 95.6881°W |
| Mouth | Mississippi River |
| - location | Clark County, Missouri / Lee County, Iowa, near Keokuk, Iowa |
| - elevation | 597 ft (182 m) |
| - coordinates | 40°22′52″N 91°25′21″W / 40.3812°N 91.4224°WCoordinates: 40°22′52″N 91°25′21″W / 40.3812°N 91.4224°W |
| Length | 525 mi (845 km) |
| Basin | 14,802 sq mi (38,337 km2) |
| Discharge | |
| - average | 8,678 cu ft/s (246 m3/s) |
 The Des Moines River watershed
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| U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Des Moines River | |
The Des Moines River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the upper Midwestern United States that is approximately 525 miles (845 km) long from its farther headwaters. The largest river flowing across the state of Iowa, it rises in southern Minnesota and flows across Iowa from northwest to southeast, passing from the glaciated plains into the unglaciated hills near the capital city of Des Moines, named after the river, in the center of the state.
The Des Moines River forms a short portion of Iowa's border with Missouri in Lee County. The Avenue of the Saints, a four-lane highway from St. Paul, Minnesota to St. Louis, Missouri, passes over this section; the highway is designated Route 27 in both Iowa and Missouri, and was completed in the early 21st century.
The Des Moines River rises in two forks. The West Fork (the main branch) rises out of Lake Shetek in Murray County in southwestern Minnesota. It flows south-southeast into Emmet County, Iowa, past Estherville. The East Fork rises out of Okamanpeedan Lake in northern Emmet County on the Iowa-Minnesota border and flows south, through Algona.
The two forks join in southern Humboldt County, approximately 5 miles (8 km) south of Humboldt at Frank Gotch State Park. The combined stream flows roughly southward through Fort Dodge. South of Boone it passes through the Ledges State Park. It flows through downtown Des Moines, then turns generally southeastward, flowing through Ottumwa. It forms approximately 20 miles (32 km) of the border between Iowa and Missouri before joining the Mississippi from the northwest at Keokuk.
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Wikipedia