The Winchuck River is a short coastal stream that runs through the Siskiyou National Forest to the Pacific Ocean

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

. Flowing generally west from its origin near Elk Mountain, the river enters the sea at Crissey Field State Recreation Site

Crissey Field State Recreation Site

Crissey Field State Recreation Site is a state park in the U.S. state of Oregon, administered by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.The northern boundary of the park is the Winchuck River. The southern border is indeterminate, varying by source...

, about 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) north of the Oregon–California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 border and about 5 miles (8 km) south of Brookings

Brookings, Oregon

Brookings is a city in Curry County, Oregon, United States. It was named after John E. Brookings, president of the Brookings Lumber and Box Company, which founded the city in 1908. As of the 2010 census the population was 6,336. The total population of the Brookings area is over 13,000, which...

.

Formed by the confluence of Fourth of July Creek and Bear Creek in southern Curry County

Curry County, Oregon

Curry County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. In 2010, its population was 22,364. The county is named for George Law Curry, a governor of the Oregon Territory. The seat of the county is Gold Beach.-Economy:...

, the river flows generally west. Just below the source, Salmon Creek enters from the left, then Elk Creek and Deer Creek enter from the right. Further downstream, the Winchuck receives Moser Creek and the South Fork Winchuck River, both from the left. The river then leaves Oregon, flowing in Del Norte County, California

Del Norte County, California

Del Norte County is a county located at the far northwest corner of the U.S. state of California on the Pacific adjacent to the Oregon border. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 28,610. The county seat is Crescent City, the county's only incorporated city. Del Norte is the abbreviated...

, for a short distance before re-entering Oregon. The Winchuck passes under U.S. Route 101 in Oregon

U.S. Route 101 in Oregon

In the U.S. state of Oregon, U.S. Route 101, a major north–south U.S. Highway, runs through the state along the coastline near the Pacific Ocean. In Oregon, it runs from the Oregon–California border, south of Brookings, to the Oregon–Washington border on the Columbia River, between Astoria,...

 just before reaching the ocean. Winchuck River Road runs along or near the north side of the river for much of its course.

The main stem and tributaries support Chinook

Chinook salmon

The Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, is the largest species in the pacific salmon family. Other commonly used names for the species include King salmon, Quinnat salmon, Spring salmon and Tyee salmon...

 and Coho

Coho salmon

The Coho salmon, Oncorhynchus kisutch, is a species of anadromous fish in the salmon family. Coho salmon are also known as silver salmon or "silvers". It is the state animal of Chiba, Japan.-Description:...

 salmon, steelhead

Rainbow trout

The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....

, and sea-run cutthroat trout

Cutthroat trout

The cutthroat trout is a species of freshwater fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. It is one of the many fish species colloquially known as trout...

. Access for fishing is limited, especially along the lower stretches of the river. Fishing from boats is not allowed, but Winchuck River Road provides public access in places.

The forests in the watershed include a wide variety of vegetation, including Douglas-fir

Douglas-fir

Douglas-fir is one of the English common names for evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Pseudotsuga in the family Pinaceae. Other common names include Douglas tree, and Oregon pine. There are five species, two in western North America, one in Mexico, and two in eastern Asia...

, bigleaf maple, madrone

Arbutus

Arbutus is a genus of at least 14 species of flowering plants in the family Ericaceae, native to warm temperate regions of the Mediterranean, western Europe, and North America.-Description:...

, typical of the Southern Oregon Coast Range

Southern Oregon Coast Range

The Southern Oregon Coast Range is the southernmost section of the Oregon Coast Range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges, located in the southwest portion of the state of Oregon, United States roughly between the Umpqua River and the middle fork of the Coquille River, beyond which are the Klamath...

, coastal Siskiyou Mountains

Siskiyou Mountains

The Siskiyou Mountains are a coastal mountain range in the northern Klamath Mountains in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon in the United States. They extend in an arc for approximately from east of Crescent City, California northeast along the north side of the Klamath River into...

, and the Redwoods Zone. Most of Oregon's remaining redwood

Sequoioideae

Sequoioideae is a subfamily in the Cupressaceae family, with three genera.-Genera:The three redwood subfamily genera are: Sequoia and Sequoiadendron of California and Oregon, USA; and Metasequoia in China. The redwood species contains the largest and tallest trees in the world. These trees can live...

forest lies within the Winchuck watershed.

Works cited

• McGuire, Mike (2001). Winchuck River Watershed Assessment. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Retrieved April 12, 2011.