Lacamas Creek is located within Clark County, Washington

Clark County, Washington

Clark County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Washington, across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon.Clark County was the first county of Washington, named after William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, and flows approximately 12.5 miles from headwaters near Camp Bonneville to Lacamas Lake

Lacamas Lake

Lacamas Lake is a small lake in Clark County, Washington. It is a popular place to fish and water ski for locals from Vancouver, Camas and Washougal. In the 1990s many high tech manufacturing plants and expensive housing developments began to appear in the area around the lake. The lake is very...

 and Round Lake

Round Lake (Washington)

Round Lake is a small lake in Camas, Washington, USA. The lake is connected at its north-west tip to Lacamas Lake. Lacamas Park includes access to Round Lake for fishing, picnicing, grilling, and jogging...

 in Camas

Camas, Washington

Camas is a city in Clark County, Washington, with a population of 19,355 at the 2010 census. Officially incorporated on June 18, 1906, the city is named after the camas lily, a plant with an onion-like bulb prized by Native Americans. At the west end of downtown Camas is a large Georgia-Pacific...

, and eventually into the Washougal River

Washougal River

The Washougal River is a shallow tributary of the Columbia River. Its mouth is located near the towns of Washougal and Camas, Washington. The Washougal river is a popular site for fishing, swimming, and tubing....

. Interestingly, geologists have concluded that the creek used to flow westward through the Burnt Bridge Creek channel. This changed when the Missoula Floods

Missoula Floods

The Missoula Floods refer to the cataclysmic floods that swept periodically across eastern Washington and down the Columbia River Gorge at the end of the last ice age. The glacial flood events have been researched since the 1920s...

 deposited an alluvial fan that diverted the flow into the Lacamas Lake trough. It is fed by numerous streams, but the five largest tributaries are:

• Matney Creek
• Shanghai Creek
• Fifth Plain Creek
• China Ditch
• Dwyer Creek

Water quality

According to the Clark County Stream Health Report:

The observed health of Lacamas Creek watershed streams ranges from good to very poor. Stream health
is best in the upland areas of relatively undisturbed forest, but declines markedly as streams flow through agricultural, suburban, and urban areas.

Recreation

Lacamas Creek meanders through public forest and private land before reaching NE Goodwin Road at which point it is paralleled by the Lacamas Heritage Trail until it enters Lacamas Lake. At the southern end of the lake, the stream flows into Round Lake, in Lacamas Park.

One trail in Lacamas Park follows Lacamas Creek for 0.8 miles from the dam on Round Lake, past the Camas Potholes

Camas Potholes

The Camas Potholes is a popular place to jump from moderately high cliffs into the waters below. On a hot, weekend day, the potholes attract people of all ages. The Camas Potholes can be accessed via a trail from Lacamas Park....

and Potholes Falls before crossing a footbridge at Lower Falls and heading to a small parking lot near Northeast Third Avenue and East First Avenue in Camas.

External links

• "Lacamas Creek Watershed" by Clark County Washington Public Works Department
• "Map of Lacamas Creek Watershed" by Clark County Washington Public Works Department