Pecatonica River

Pecatonica River
The Pectaonica River in the Pecatonica River Woods State Natural Area in Iowa County, Wisconsin
Basin features
Main source	Iowa County northwest of Cobb, Wisconsin 1,188 ft (362 m) 42°58′44″N 90°20′37″W / 42.9788889°N 90.3436111°W / 42.9788889; -90.3436111 (Pecatonica River origin)
River mouth	Confluence with the Rock River at Rockton, Illinois 712 ft (217 m) 42°27′00″N 89°04′30″W / 42.45°N 89.075°W / 42.45; -89.075 (Pecatonica River mouth)Coordinates: 42°27′00″N 89°04′30″W / 42.45°N 89.075°W / 42.45; -89.075 (Pecatonica River mouth)
Progression	Pecatonica River → Rock → Mississippi → Gulf of Mexico
Physical characteristics
Length	194 mi (312 km)
GNIS ID	415503

The Pecatonica River is a tributary of the Rock River, 194 miles (312 km) long, in southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois in the United States.

The word Pecatonica is an anglicization of two Algonquian language words: Bekaa (or Pekaa in some dialects), which means "slow", and niba, which means "water", forming the conjunction Bekaaniba or "Slow Water".

It rises in the hills of southwest Wisconsin, in southwest Iowa County, 2 miles (3 km) west of Cobb. It flows south, then southeast, past Calamine and Darlington. In southeast Lafayette County it receives the East Branch Pecatonica River, approximately 8 miles (13 km) north of the state line. It flows south-southeast into Illinois, past Freeport, where it turns east, then east-northeast, receiving the Sugar River near Shirland in northern Winnebago County, 5 miles (8 km) south of the state line. It joins the Rock at Rockton, approximately 15 miles (24 km) north of Rockford.

The Winnebago County Forest Preserve District owns and operates six preserve along the river in Winnebago County. The river is the chief attraction of the 1,048-acre (424 ha) Pecatonica Wetlands Forest Preserve and the 221-acre (89 ha) Crooked River Forest Preserve off U.S. Highway 20 near Pecatonica, Illinois. These forest preserves contain oxbow, wetlands, and bottomland forest. The river also flows past the 466-acre (189 ha) Pecatonica River Forest Preserve off Illinois Route 70 near Pecatonica. The forest preserve contains a bottomland forest and has been designated an Illinois Nature Preserve. The 15-acre (6.1 ha) Trask Bridge Forest Preserve and the 6-acre (2.4 ha) Two Rivers Forest Preserve at the confluence of the Sugar River and Pecatonica River provide public boat launches, picnic areas, and fishing opportunities. At the mouth of the Pecatonica is the 281-acre (114 ha) Macktown Forest Preserve on Illinois Route 75 near Rockton, the site of the ghost town of Macktown or Pe-Katonic.