Palouse River Drainage
Clearwater River
Clearwater River, north of Lewiston.
The Palouse River drains from a timbered, mountainous area with elevations ranging to 5,000 feet mean sea level (msl) through rolling hills developed as agricultural land at an elevation of 2,500 feet msl near the Idaho-Washington border. The upper reaches of the Palouse drainage have been extensively roaded, logged, and dredge mined, while the lower areas have been intensively farmed.

The only remaining trout habitat in the drainage is located near the headwaters. Substantial improvements in fish populations in the drainage will necessitate rebuilding riparian habitat that will increase flow and reduce water temperature during the summer.


Written and compiled by Jacqueline Harvey 1999.