![]() The headwaters are in a rugged granite basin fed by multiple streams including one flowing from Little Needle Lake. The Middle Fork begins at an unnamed spring in the Granite Chief Wilderness, 8,382 ft (2,555 m) above sea level, in eastern Placer County, west of the Palisades Tahoe Ski Resort, and about 10 miles (16 km) west of Lake Tahoe. The Middle Fork canyon also has an extensive system of hiking and riding trails including the Western States Trail, which stretches 100 miles (160 km) from Auburn to Lake Tahoe. Professional whitewater rafting companies offer guided trips on the Middle Fork American river from May to October. Although long stretches of the Middle Fork have been dewatered by diversions, the portion of the river and canyon in the Auburn State Recreation Area is one of the state's most popular whitewater runs. The river is dammed extensively to produce hydroelectricity and provide domestic water supply. The Middle Fork was one of the richest gold mining areas during the California Gold Rush of the 1850s, and is still recreationally mined today. The Middle Fork joins with the North Fork near Auburn and they continue downstream to Folsom Lake as the North Fork, even though the Middle Fork carries a larger volume of water. It drains a large watershed in the high Sierra Nevada west of Lake Tahoe and northeast of Sacramento in Placer and El Dorado Counties, between the watersheds of the North Fork American River and South Fork American River. ![]() The Middle Fork American River is one of three forks that form the American River in Northern California. Duncan Creek, North Fork Middle Fork American River ![]()
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