Birch Creek (Umatilla River) facts for kids

This article is about Birch Creek (disambiguation)|Birch Creek. For other uses, see Birch Creek (Umatilla River) (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids Birch Creek
At Hoeft Road, south of Pendleton Country Club
Country	United States
State	Oregon
County	Umatilla
Source	confluence of east and west forks
- location	near Pilot Rock
- elevation	1,622 ft (494 m)
- coordinates	45°29′06″N 118°50′04″W
Mouth	Umatilla River
- location	near Rieth
- elevation	958 ft (292 m)
- coordinates	45°39′19″N 118°52′54″W
Length	16 mi (26 km)
Basin	291 sq mi (754 km²)

Birch Creek is a 16-mile (26 km) tributary of the Umatilla River in eastern Oregon in the United States. It rises at the confluence of East and West Birch creeks south of Pilot Rock, Oregon, at the base of the Blue Mountains and flows north, slightly west of the city of Pendleton. It enters the Umatilla River about 49 miles (79 km) from the larger stream's confluence with the Columbia River.

Birch Creek is one of the rivers that drain Oregon's northwestern corner of the Blue Mountains, flowing alongside industrial waste ponds, and over two minor impoundments before reaching the Umatilla River. Lands in the Birch Creek drainage are used for logging, grazing, dairy farming, and factory farming. Birch Creek is a source of phosphates and the resulting eutrophication of the Umatilla River.

Pendleton photographer Walter S. Bowman is believed to have been born by Birch Creek.