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The American River, located in the US state of California , has a prominent place in American history for being the site of Sutter's Mill , where Gold was found in 1848 , leading to the California Gold Rush . It runs from the Sierra Nevada mountains through Sacramento and flows into the Sacramento River on its way to San Francisco Bay . It is known for its whitewater Rapid s. The American River is divided into the North, Middle, and South Forks. The North and the Middle Forks come together at the Confluence about 3 miles from Auburn , California. From there, the river (the North Fork) meander down past the site of the controversial Auburn Dam to Folsom Lake. These rivers are popular for their verdant canyons, fishing and White Water Rafting . Below Folsom Lake , the river passes through an urbanized area but is buffered by a riparian park, the American River Parkway , that runs 23 miles (37 km) from Folsom Lake to the river's confluence with the Sacramento River. The American River and its tributaries (like most of California's rivers) are extensively dammed and diverted for Hydroelectricity production. The five Power Plant s on the Middle Fork are owned by the Placer County Water Agency (PCWA) and the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) owns eight plants on the South Fork. The SMUD plants are run on a peaking basis, although reservoir flood control capacity and minimum flow requirements impose some constraints on their operation. The Pacific Gas And Electric Company (PG&E) owns the Chili Bar power plant on the South Fork downstream from SMUD's plants. The U.S. Bureau Of Reclamation (USBR) has two hydroelectric plants downstream at Folsom Dam and Nimbus Dam . The Bureau of Reclamation operates Nimbus as a Base Load Plant and Folsom as an intermediate plant. See also External links
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