Pysht River
| Pysht River | |
|---|---|
Location of the mouth of the Pysht River in Washington | |
| Native name | pəšc̕t (Klallam) |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Washington |
| County | Clallam |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Olympic Mountains |
| • coordinates | 48°9′49″N 124°16′13″W / 48.16361°N 124.27028°W |
| • elevation | 1,350 ft (410 m) |
| Mouth | Strait of Juan de Fuca |
• coordinates | 48°12′15″N 124°6′16″W / 48.20417°N 124.10444°W |
• elevation | 0 ft (0 m) |
| Length | 16.3 mi (26.2 km) |
| Basin size | 54 sq mi (140 km2) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | river mile 4.9 |
| • average | 167.2 cu ft/s (4.73 m3/s) |
| • minimum | 2.3 cu ft/s (0.065 m3/s) |
| • maximum | 1,990 cu ft/s (56 m3/s) |
The Pysht River (/ˈpɪʃt/ PISHT) is a stream in the U.S. state of Washington. It originates near Ellis Mountain in the northern Olympic Mountains on the Olympic Peninsula and flows generally north, emptying into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The Pysht and nearby Hoko River are the two largest streams flowing into the southwestern portion of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The watershed of the Pysht River drains a region of industrial forest lands; 98% of the watershed is zoned commercial forestry and the remainder rural. Nearly all of the forests have been logged at least once and most trees are less than thirty years old. The upper portions of the watershed, which feature steep gradients, are owned by the United States Forest Service. The lower reaches, with low gradients, are largely owned by two industrial forest owners.
The name of the Pysht River comes from the Klallam (Salishan) pəšc̕t, perhaps meaning "against the wind or current".