Naches River (Wash.)

The Naches River is a tributary of the Yakima River in central Washington in the United States. Beginning as the Little Naches River, it is about 75 miles (121 km) long. After the confluence of the Little Naches and Bumping River the name becomes simply the Naches River. The Naches and its tributaries drain a portion of the eastern side of the Cascade Range, east of Mount Rainier and northeast of Mount Adams. In terms of discharge, the Naches River is the largest tributary of the Yakima River. In its upper reaches, the Naches River basin includes rugged mountains and wildernesses. The lower Naches River and its tributary the Tieton River flow through valleys with towns and irrigated orchards northwest of Yakima, where the Naches River joins the Yakima River. Historically, the river served as an important travel corridor between the east and west sides of the Cascades, via Naches Pass, used by both Native Americans and settlers. The river's name comes from the Indian words "naugh", meaning rough or turbulent, and "chez", meaning water. Among numerous spellings used historically, "Naches" is the official spelling in the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), however "Nachess" was official according to the Board on Geographic Names from 1898 to 1900.