Middle Fork Popo Agie River facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Middle Fork Popo Agie River |
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The Middle Fork Popo Agie River seen from Main Street in Lander Wyoming.
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The Flow of the Middle Fork Popo Agie from source to confluence.
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| Country | United States |
| State | Wyoming |
| City | Lander, Wyoming |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Main source | Sweetwater Gap Wind River Range, Fremont County 12,000 ft (3,700 m) |
| River mouth | North Popo Agie River Fort McGraw 5,000 ft (1,500 m) 42°51′14″N 108°42′00″W / 42.8540°N 108.6999°W |
| Length | 54 mi (87 km) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries |
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The Middle Fork Popo Agie River is a river found in Wyoming, a state in the United States. This river is about 54 miles (87 km) long. People sometimes call it simply the 'Middle Fork'. It is part of a larger area of land where all water drains into the Popo Agie River, called the Popo Agie Watershed.
From where it starts in the Wind River Range mountains, all the way to where it meets the North Fork of the Popo Agie River, the Middle Fork and its smaller streams (called tributaries) help water about 11,503 acres of land.
A cool fact about this river is that it disappears underground! It flows into a big hole, called a sinkhole, in Sinks Canyon State Park. Then, it pops back out of the ground a few hundred yards away at a spot called "the rise." Even though the distance above ground isn't far, scientists have used special dyes to show that it takes the water many hours to travel through this hidden underground path.
Contents
The River's Journey
The Middle Fork Popo Agie River gets its water from many places. It is fed by natural springs, rain and snowmelt, and water that flows back from irrigation systems. Several smaller streams also join it, like Sawmill Creek, Hornecker Creek, and Baldwin Creek. Another important stream, Roaring Fork Creek, adds water to the river after flowing from Worthen Meadow Reservoir.
The river begins high up in the Wind River Range mountains, near a place called Sweetwater Gap. From there, it flows down through the mountains. It passes through Sinks Canyon State Park and then reaches the town of Lander. Finally, it meets the North Fork of the Popo Agie River. When these two rivers join, they form the main Popo Agie, or Big Popo Agie River. This larger river then connects with the Little Popo Agie River before all its water flows into the Little Wind River.
A Look Back in Time
People have known about the Middle Fork Popo Agie River for thousands of years. Native American tribes lived along its banks long before explorers arrived. One of the first written records of the river comes from Benjamin Bonneville. He explored the Wind River region around 1833.
The name 'Popo' comes from the Crow language and means 'Head'. 'Agie' means 'River'. So, the name can be translated as "Head River." However, some people also say the name means "Gurgling River."
The Crow Tribe has a special database of their place names. In this database, the river's name is recorded as Poppootcháashe. This word sounds like the noise the river makes. It describes the "plopping" sound the water makes when it goes into the sinkhole in Sinks Canyon.
More detailed studies of the river and its surroundings happened during The Jones Expedition of 1873. The report from this expedition described the rocks and land along the river. It also mentioned Native American petroglyphs (ancient rock carvings) and early settlements by white pioneers. The report said the land near the river had rich soil, good for farming with irrigation, and a mild climate.
Modern Discoveries
Scientists have studied the river's flow and the rocks around it for many years. By the early 1900s, people had found different minerals and resources along the river. They looked into mining for limestone and marble. They also explored if the river could be used to create hydroelectric power, which is electricity made from moving water.
River Health
In April 2019, the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality looked into a report about gasoline leaking into the river. This happened near a gas station on Main Street in Lander. After checking, the department found that the leak came from an underground gasoline storage tank that had been overfilled. Steps were taken to address the situation and protect the river.
In Books and Stories
The unique "Sinks" of the Popo Agie River are featured in a book! They are an important part of the ending of James Galvin's novel Fencing the Sky, which was published in 2000.
Images for kids
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This graph shows the flow of the Middle Fork Popo Agie River between 1959 and 1968, measured in cubic feet per second, below the Sinks near Lander, Wyoming.
