Pit
Pit is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- 41.20°, -121.14°
About Pit
The Pit River is a major river draining from northeastern California into the state's Central Valley. The Pit, the Klamath and the Columbia are the only three rivers in the U.S. that cross the Cascade Range.
The longest tributary of the Sacramento River, it contributes as much as eighty percent of their combined water volume into the Shasta Lake reservoir; the junction of their Shasta Lake arms is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Shasta Dam. The main stem of the Pit River is 207 miles (333 km) long, and some water in the system flows 265 miles (426 km) to the Sacramento River measuring from the Pit River's longest source.
The Pit River drains a sparsely populated volcanic highlands area in Modoc County's Warner Mountains, passing through the south end of the Cascade Range in a deep canyon northeast of Redding. The river is so named because of the semi-subterranean permanent winter homes and large 'sweat houses' that the Pit River Tribe dug, and their pit traps for game that came to water at the river.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Pit River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Pit in Depth
Course
The Pit River rises in several forks in Modoc, Lassen and Shasta counties in the northeastern corner of California. The 58-mile (93 km) South Fork Pit River - West Valley Creek - Cedar Creek source originates just southeast of Buck Mountain in the Warner Mountains, in the extreme southeastern corner of the Modoc National Forest 9 miles (14 km) west of the California–Nevada border. The South Fork is formed from the confluence of several creeks in Jess Valley 13 miles (21 km) northeast of Madeline and flows west through a narrow canyon, past Likely, then generally north through a broad ranching valley where its waters are diverted for irrigation and waterfowl conservation via an extensive system of canals.
Hydrology
Fed by significant volcanic groundwater basins that produce some of the largest contiguous freshwater spring systems in the United States, the middle and lower reaches of the Pit River exhibit a strong year-round flow, in contrast to the highly seasonal nature of most northern California rivers. Before Shasta Dam was built, the Pit contributed as much as 85 percent of the Sacramento River's dry-season flow as measured at Red Bluff, nearly 100 miles (160 km) downstream of their confluence – making the river an important resource for irrigation, and later, hydroelectricity. The upper reaches of the Pit above Fall River Mills are a snow-fed high desert stream with a much more seasonal hydrograph.
History
The Pit River is located in historical Achomawi territory, who lived in the area expanding from Big Bend to Goose Lake. Human habitation in this region may date back as far as 12,500 years. The Achomawi (consisting of nine distinct bands) had up to 28 villages in the Pit River area and are considered Palaihnihan speakers, along with the neighboring Atsugewi people who lived along southern tributaries of the Pit such as Burney and Hat Creeks, and the Dixie Valley. Because of the sparse resources of the Pit River's high desert watershed, most natives lived close to the river and subsisted primarily by hunting and fishing. Achomawi moved between hunting camps in summer, consisting of cone-shaped tents covered with tule, and larger wood-frame pit houses in winter.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Pit River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Pit: Key Facts
| Length | 333 km |
|---|---|
| Drainage basin | 18,296 km² |
| Mouth | Sacramento River |
| Drainage system | Sacramento River basin |
| Tributaries | Hat Creek |
Facts from Wikidata Q1760800 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Pit: Quick Answers
- Where is Pit?
- Pit is located in United States, at 41.2029° N, 121.1382° W.
- Are there dams on the Pit?
- No dam on the Pit is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.