Geographic Units

We have divided the Yakima Basin into geographic reaches based on tributary watersheds and mainstem reaches. While we tried to follow HUC boundaries where possible, this is a unique arrangement that is meant to match how we talk about places in the basin.

The links below take you to individual pages for each area, where you can find detailed information on the watersheds, streams and river reaches in each geographic unit.

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Geographic Frameworks Used in the Yakima Basin

Recovery Board system

HUC system: https://www.usgs.gov/national-hydrography/watershed-boundary-dataset

Population areas by species

Subbasin Plan Assessment Units

ADD LINK/IFRAME FOR FUTURE WEB MAP

River miles?

More information on the default geographic organization used in Yakipedia can be found below.

Yakima Basin

An online GIS layer for the Yakima Basin can be found here: ADD LINK TO GIS PORTAL

It makes up approximately 10% of the state of Washington, with an area of ADD.

The Yakima Basin is both a USGS HUC 4 (1703) and HUC 6 watershed (17030001) within the HUC 2 Region #17 (Pacific Northwest); interestingly there is no HUC designation for the Columbia Basin.

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council uses the Columbia Basin as its top-level unit, which is divided into Provinces and then subbasins. The Yakima Basin is #62 of the 62 total subbasins, and is one of 11 subbasins within the Columbia Plateau Province. You can see a map of this framework here:. https://www.nwcouncil.org/subbasin-plans/map/ The 2004 Yakima Subbasin Plan LINK divided the Yakima Subbasin into ?? assessment units FIND/LINK TO MAP.

The Yakima Basin makes up approximately 2/3rds of the State of Washington's Middle Columbia Salmon Recovery Region. Link

The Yakima Basin is one of four Major Population Groups (MPGs) withing NOAA's Middle Columbia River Steelhead Distinct Population Segment (DPS).

The Yakima Basin is designated by USFWS as one of 24 Occupied Core Areas within the Mid-Columbia Bull Trout Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESU).

Add Map of Yakima in state?

WRIAs

Washinton State's Water Resource Areas (WRIAs) are our top-level breakout unless there is a compelling reason to us a different geographic framework. There are three WRIAs in the Yakima Basin, and they are consistent with the USGS HUC 8s.

WRIAs in the Yakima Basin

WRIA	Name	HUC 8	Description
37	Lower Yakima	17030003	Yakima River and all its tributaries below the Naches River confluence
38	Naches	17030002	Naches River and all its tributaries
39	Upper Yakima	17030001	Yakima River and all its tributaries above the Naches River confluence

See map below.

Mid-Level Geographic Units

Middle layer are either watersheds (when all areas that drain to the lowest point in a unit are included in the unit) or reaches (when water flows into a unit from an upstream unit). We have designated 18 Mid-Level Units; they are consistent with HUC 10 watersheds except where we have a specific reason to split and/or combine HUC 10s. We use names that match local usage, which differ from the often-inscrutable official HUC names.

WRIAs and Mid-level Geographic Units

Mid-Level Geographic Units

Unit	Name	WRIA	HUC 10(s)	Description
1	Upper Yakima Watershed	39	1703000103	Yakima River and all tributaries except the Cle Elum from Cascade Crest to the mouth of the Teanaway, including Kachess and Keechelus Lakes
2	Cle Elum Watershed	39	1703000101	Cle Elum River and all its tributaries
3	Teanaway Watershed	39	1703000102	Teanaway River and all its tributaries
4	Thorp to Ellensburg Reach	39	1703000105	Yakima River and its tributaries from the mouth of the Teanaway downstream to the mouth of Wilson Creek
5	Ellensburg Area Watershed	39	1703000104	Wilson Creek and all of its tributaries
6	Yakima Canyon Reach	39	1703000107	Yakima River and its tributaries (except Wenas Creek) between the mouth of Wilson Creek and the mouth of the Naches
7	Wenas Watershed	39	1703000106	Wenas Creek and all its tributaries
8	Upper Naches Watershed	38	1703000201	American, Bumping and Little Naches Rivers and all their tributaries, including Bumping Lake
9	Nile Reach	38	1703000202	The Naches River from the confluence of the Bumping and Little Naches to the confluence of the Tieton and its tributaries
10	Tieton Watershed	38	half of 1703000203	The Tieton River and its tributaries including Rimrock Lake
11	Lower Naches Reach	38	half of 1703000203	Naches River and its tributaries from the mouth of the Tieton to the confluence with the Yakima, including Cowiche Creek
12	Gap to Gap Reach	37	1703000302	Yakima River and its tributaries from the mouth of the Naches to the mouth of Ahtanum Creek
13	Ahtanum Watershed	37	1703000301	Ahtanum Creek and all its tributaries
14	Wapato Reach	37	1703000304, 1703000305 & part of 1703000310	Yakima River from Union Gap to approximately 4.25 miles below the mouth of Satus Creek
15	Toppenish Watershed	37	1704000306 & 1704000303	Toppenish Creek and all its tributaries
16	Satus Watershed	37	1704000307 & 1704000308	Satus Creek and all its tributaries
17	Mabton Reach	37	1703000309 and part of 1703000310	Yakima River and its tributaries from approximately 4.25 miles below the mouth of Satus Creek to just downstream of the Benton County line
18	Lower Yakima	37	1703000312, 1703000311 & part of 1703000310	Yakima River and its tributaries from just below the Benton County line to the confluence of the Yakima and Columbia Rivers

Geographic Units

Geographic units are named after the dominant creek or river that passes though them. Where possible utilize HUC 12s- but in some cases creating untis that match general usage in the basin requires either combining or splitting HUC 12s.

UPPER YAKIMA WATER RESOURCE AREA (WRIA 39)

MAP

Upper Yakima Watershed (USGS HUC 1703000103 Kachess River-Yakima River)

1. Gold Creek
2. Keechelus Lake
   1. Cold Creek
3. Upper Kachess River
4. Box Canyon
5. Kachess Lake
6. Cabin Creek
7. Big Creek
8. Upper Yakima River Mainstem
9. Easton Reach of the Yakima River Mainstem
10. Cle Elum Reach of the Yakima River Mainstem

Cle Elum Watershed (USGS HUC 1703000101 Cle Elum River)

1. Waptus River
2. Cooper River
3. Cle Elum River
   1. Cle Elum Lake
   2. Cle Elum Fish Passage Project OR LEAVE FOR NEXT LEVEL DOWN CLE ELUM PAGE?

Teanaway Watershed (USGS HUC 1703000102 CHECK NAME)

1. North Fork Teanaway River
2. Middle Fork Teanaway River
3. West Fork Teanaway River
4. Mainstem Teanaway River

Thorp to Ellensburg Reach (USGS HUC 1703000105 Taneum Creek- Yakima River)

1. Taneum Creek
2. Manastash Creek
3. Reecer Creek
4. Swauk Creek
5. Upper Canyon Yakima River Mainstem
6. Thorp Reach Yakima River Mainstem
7. Ellensburg Reach Yakima River Mainstem

Ellensburg Area Tributaries (USGS HUC 1703000104 Wilson Creek- Cherry Creek)

1. Wilson/Naneum Creeks
2. Coleman Creek
3. Cherry Creek

Yakima Canyon Reach (USGS HUC 1703000107)

1. Umptanum Creek
2. Yakima Canyon Reach Yakima River Mainstem
3. Selah Reach Yakima River Mainstem

Wenas Watershed (USGS HUC 1703000106)

1. Wenas Creek

NACHES WATER RESOURCE AREA (WRIA 38)

MAP

Upper Naches Watershed (USGS HUC 1703000201)

1. Little Naches River
2. Bumping River
3. American River
4. Upper Naches River

Nile Reach (FIX USGS HUC 1703000202)

1. Nile Creek
2. Rattlesnake Creek
3. Middle Naches River

Tieton Watershed (FIX USGS HUC 1703000203)

1. Clear Creek
2. North Fork Tieton River
3. South Fork Tieton River
4. Indian Creek
5. Rimrock Lake
6. Tieton River
7. Oak Creek

Lower Naches Reach (FIX USGS HUC)

1. Naches River
2. Cowiche Creek

LOWER YAKIMA WATER RESOURCE AREA (WRIA 37)

MAP

Gap to Gap Reach (USGS HUC 1703000302)

1. Gap to Gap Reach - Yakima River Mainstem
2. Wide Hollow
3. Moxee Drain

Ahtanum Watershed (USGS HUC 1703000301)

1. Ahtanum Creek

Wapato Reach (USGS HUCs 1703000304 and 1703000305)

1. Wanity Slough and Marion Drain
2. Wapato Reach - Yakima River Mainstem
3. Granger Drain

Toppenish Watershed (USGS HUCs 1703000303 and 1703000306)

1. Simcoe Creek
2. Upper Toppenish Creek
3. Lower Toppenish Creek

Satus Watershed (USGS HUCs 1703000307 and 1703000308)

1. Upper Satus Creek
2. Lower Satus Creek
3. Logy Creek
4. Dry Creek

Mabton Reach (USGS HUCs 1703000309 and 1703000310)

1. Mabton Reach - Yakima River Mainstem
2. Sulphur Creek Wasteway

Lower Yakima (USGS HUCs 1703000310, 1703000311 and 1703000312)

1. Prosser Reach - Yakima River Mainstem
2. Lower Yakima Reach - Yakima River Mainstem
3. Spring and Snipes Creeks
4. Corral Creek
5. Cold Creek
6. Amon Creek Wasteway
7. Yakima Delta