page_title: Mokelumne River
section_title: Watershed
hierarchical_section_title: Mokelumne River / Watershed
caption_attribution_description: English: Wildflowers in Mokelumne Wilderness, California, United States
context_page_description: The Mokelumne River is a 95-mile-long river in northern California in the United States. The river flows west from a rugged portion of the central Sierra Nevada into the Central Valley and ultimately the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta, where it empties into the San Joaquin River-Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel. Together with its main tributary, the Cosumnes River, the Mokelumne drains 2,143 square miles in parts of five California counties. Measured to its farthest source at the head of the North Fork, the river stretches for 157 miles.
  The river is colloquially divided into the Upper Mokelumne River, which stretches from the headwaters to Pardee Reservoir in the Sierra foothills, and the Lower Mokelumne River, which refers to the portion of the river below Camanche Dam. In its lower course, the Mokelumne is used heavily for irrigation and also provides water for the east San Francisco Bay Area through the Mokelumne Aqueduct. Several major tributaries of the river have been developed for the generation of hydroelectric power.
  The name is Plains Miwok and is constructed from moke, meaning fishnet, and -umne, a suffix meaning "people of".
context_section_description: The Mokelumne River watershed drains 2,143 square miles (5,550 km²) in parts of Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, San Joaquin, and Sacramento Counties. Elevations range from sea level at the confluence with the San Joaquin River to 10,400 feet (3,200 m) at the crest of the Sierra Nevada in the headwaters of the North Fork.
  The Mokelumne watershed divide borders the basins of the American River on the north, the Calaveras and Stanislaus rivers to the south, and the Carson River to the east. The American, Calaveras and Stanislaus rivers, like the Mokelumne, drain westwards into the Central Valley, while the Carson flows eastwards into the Great Basin. Drainage within the Mokelumne watershed generally occurs from east to west with all of the perennial streams originating in the Sierra Nevada.
  The Mokelumne River and its headwater forks above Lodi drain the southernmost part of the basin. The part of the basin above Pardee Dam is referred to as the Upper Mokelumne River Basin and drains about 550 square miles (1,400 km²), or 25.7% of the total watershed. The Cosumnes River and its own North, Middle and South forks drain about 724 square miles (1,880 km²) in the northern part of the basin, or about 33.8% of the total watershed. Dry Creek, which itself is formed by four Sierra streams – Jackson, Sutter, Amador and Rancheria Creeks – drains most of the area between the upper Mokelumne and Cosumnes basins, or about 324 square miles (840 km²).
  The upper watershed is situated principally in Alpine, Amador and Calaveras Counties and consists mostly of wilderness managed under various federal designations. Most of the Mokelumne and Cosumnes River headwaters lie within the Stanislaus and Eldorado National Forests. Much of the upper watershed is also protected under the 105,165-acre (42,559 ha) Mokelumne Wilderness. The Salt Springs State Game Refuge is located along the Mokelumne River near Salt Springs Reservoir. There are also significant private holdings in the upper basin including commercial timber land and protected watershed areas administered by the East Bay Municipal Utility District, which diverts urban and industrial water from Pardee Reservoir.
  The lower watershed, mainly within San Joaquin and Sacramento Counties, is part of the rich agricultural region of the Central Valley. Grapes are the major crop grown in the Mokelumne River watershed; as of 2001, vineyards comprised 51% of the basin's farmland. Of the remaining land, 31% is used for livestock, 9% for orchards, and 8% for annual crops. About 90,000 acres (36,000 ha) in the lower basin are part of the Mokelumne River AVA.
caption: The Mokelumne Wilderness, in the headwaters of the Mokelumne River
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