Cow Creek (Sacramento River tributary) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cow Creek |
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 Location of the mouth of Cow Creek in California
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| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Main source | Confluence of Old Cow Creek and South Cow Creek Millville, Shasta County 558 ft (170 m) 40°32′38″N 122°13′52″W / 40.54389°N 122.23111°W |
| River mouth | Sacramento River Anderson, Shasta County 374 ft (114 m) 40°27′52″N 122°13′52″W / 40.46444°N 122.23111°W |
| Length | 14 mi (23 km) |
| Basin features | |
| Basin size | 430 sq mi (1,100 km2) |
| Tributaries |
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Cow Creek is a waterway in Shasta County, California. It flows into the Sacramento River. Even though it's called a "creek," it's quite large, especially in winter. It can even cause big floods!
Cow Creek is about 46.9 miles (75.5 km) long if you measure from its farthest starting point. It helps drain a hilly area in northern California. This area is mostly rural, with farms and forests.
Contents
Where Does Cow Creek Flow?
Cow Creek starts near a town called Millville. It forms where two smaller creeks, Old Cow Creek and South Cow Creek, join together.
- From Millville, Cow Creek flows west towards Junction.
- Then, it turns south.
- Finally, it meets the Sacramento River near Anderson.
During winter, when there's a lot of rain or snowmelt, Cow Creek can become very full. It can even contribute a lot of water to the Sacramento River during its peak flows.
The Cow Creek Watershed
A watershed is an area of land where all the water drains into a single river or creek. The Cow Creek watershed covers about 430 square miles (1,100 km2).
- This area is divided into different uses:
- Farms and agriculture
- Homes and private properties
- Commercial forests (where trees are grown for wood)
- Very little of this land is public.
- About 45 percent of the watershed is covered in forests.
The land in the watershed ranges from high peaks in the Cascade Range (up to 7,300 feet (2,200 m) high) to lower areas (less than 400 feet (120 m)) where the creek joins the Sacramento River.
Why is Cow Creek Important?
Cow Creek is very important for fish! Unlike many other waterways, Cow Creek doesn't have any large dams. This makes it a great place for certain fish to lay their eggs.
- Chinook salmon and steelhead trout (which are a type of rainbow trout) use Cow Creek as a place to spawn.
- However, sometimes water is taken from the creek to water farms. This is called "diversion."
- Also, runoff from farms can sometimes pollute the water.
- These things can make it harder for the native fish to live and thrive in the creek.
Cow Creek's Many Branches
Even though the main part of Cow Creek is only about 14 miles (23 km) long, it has many smaller streams, called tributaries, that feed into it. These tributaries collect water from a much larger area.
- Old Cow Creek is about 32.9-mile (52.9 km) long.
- South Cow Creek is about 28.5-mile (45.9 km) long.
- Both Old Cow Creek and South Cow Creek start in the Lassen National Forest.
- Clover Creek is another important tributary, about 27.5-mile (44.3 km) long. It also starts in Lassen National Forest.
- Other major tributaries include Oak Run (24.5-mile (39.4 km) long) and Little Cow Creek (36-mile (58 km) long). These creeks drain a large area close to Shasta Lake.
