The Washougal River is a 33mi tributary of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Its headwaters and upper 21mi are in Skamania County in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, and its lower 12mi are in Clark County. The river, which meets the Columbia near the cities of Washougal and Camas, is a popular stream for fishing, swimming, and boating.Explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark referred to the Washougal River as the "Seal River." The name Washougal comes from the Cascades Chinook placename ' or ', meaning "rushing water". It has been suggested that D. B. Cooper, who hijacked a Boeing 727 in 1971 then parachuted from the plane with ransom money, may have landed in the Washougal River basin.WatershedThe Washougal River drains 212mi2 of land that is largely forested, especially in its upper reaches in the Cascade Range and its foothills. Of the total, 162mi2 are in Skamania County, and the remaining 50mi2 are in Clark County. Small farms and rural homes are found along the lower part of the basin, and two small Clark County cities, Camas and Washougal, are at the river mouth. About 63 percent of the watershed is forested; 21 percent is devoted to fields, pastures, bare earth, and shrubland, and 16 percent is developed or cleared for development.
