Imnaha River | |
Imnaha River near Imnaha
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Name origin: The land ruled over by Imna, a native American leader Alternatively, the name of a Nez Perce village. | |
Country | United States |
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State | Oregon |
County | Wallowa |
Source | Confluence of the North and South forks of the Imnaha River |
- location | Wallowa–Whitman National Forest, Wallowa County, Oregon |
- elevation | 5,324 ft (1,623 m) |
- coordinates | 45°06′47″N 117°07′31″W / 45.11306°N 117.12528°W |
Mouth | Snake River |
- location | Hells Canyon National Recreation Area, Wallowa County, Oregon |
- elevation | 945 ft (288 m) |
- coordinates | 45°49′03″N 116°45′53″W / 45.81750°N 116.76472°WCoordinates: 45°49′03″N 116°45′53″W / 45.81750°N 116.76472°W |
Length | 73 mi (117 km) |
Basin | 855 sq mi (2,214 km2) |
Discharge | for Imnaha, 19.3 miles (31.1 km) from the mouth |
- average | 511 cu ft/s (14 m3/s) |
- max | 20,200 cu ft/s (572 m3/s) |
- min | 16 cu ft/s (0 m3/s) |
The Imnaha River is a 73.3-mile-long (118.0 km) tributary of the Snake River in the U.S. state of Oregon. Flowing generally east near the headwaters and then north through Wallowa County, the entire river is designated Wild and Scenic. It follows a geologic fault to the Snake River, and in addition to land in the Wallowa–Whitman National Forest and private land, its corridor includes parts of three special management areas: the Eagle Cap Wilderness, Hells Canyon National Recreation Area, and Hells Canyon Scenic Byway. The Imnaha flows by the unincorporated community of Imnaha, the only settlement along its course, and enters the Snake River roughly 4 miles (6 km) from the larger river's confluence with the Salmon River of Idaho and 192 miles (309 km) from its confluence with the Columbia River.
Formed by the confluence of its north and south forks, the Imnaha River begins in the Eagle Cap Wilderness and the Wallowa–Whitman National Forest and flows east and then north and north-northeast through Wallowa County, Oregon, for about 64 miles (103 km) to the Snake River on the Oregon-Idaho border. The unincorporated community of Imnaha is the only named settlement through which the river passes. The Imnaha River rises at about 5,300 feet (1,600 m) above sea level and, in a canyon along a geologic fault line, descends about 4,400 feet (1,300 m) between source and mouth.