Sacramento River Basin

The Sacramento River drains the northern central part of California. The watershed includes the eastern slopes of the Coast Ranges, Mt. Shasta, and the western slopes of the southernmost region of the Cascades and the Northern section of the Sierra Nevada. The Sacramento carries 31% of the state's total runoff water.

The Sacramento Valley is one of California's major agricultural regions, with more than 2.1 million acres of irrigated farmlands in the valley. Crops grown in the Sacramento Valley include rice, wheat, olives, orchard fruits, corn, alfalfa, tomatoes, and vegetables. As a result of this agriculture, however, only 5% of the valleys original 500,000 acres of riparian forest remain.

Sacramento River
The Sacramento is California's largest river. It stretches 384 miles from its headwaters near Mount Shasta to its mouth at the Delta. The Sacramento is dammed at Shasta Dam, which can hold 4.5 million acre feet of water.



	Feather Falls, Plumas National Forest

McCloud River
The McCloud enters the Sacramento River at Shasta Lake; its headwaters are in the Shasta National Forest.

Pit River
The Pit River also enters the Sacramento at Shasta Lake, its headwaters are in the Modoc and Shasta National Forests.

Feather River
The Feather drains the Plumas National Forest and portions of the Lassen National Forest. Lake Oroville, a reservoir on the Feather below the National Forests, holds 3.5 million acre feet of water. The Middle Fork of the Feather River has designated Wild and Scenic portions.

Yuba River
The Yuba's headwaters are in the Tahoe National Forest.

American River
The American River originates in the Tahoe and Eldorado National Forests. Its North Fork is designated Wild and Scenic. Folsom Dam, above Sacramento, hold 1 million acre feet of water.


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