Kankakee River
| Kankakee River Theakiki, Aukiki | |
|---|---|
View of the river from Kankakee, Illinois, near Cobb Park | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Indiana, Illinois |
| Region | Upper Illinois River Valley, Upper Mississippi Basin |
| Cities | South Bend, Indiana, Kankakee, Illinois |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | St. Joseph County, Indiana |
| • location | Portage Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana |
| • coordinates | 41°39′14.864″N 86°18′19.0404″W / 41.65412889°N 86.305289000°W |
| • elevation | 725 ft (221 m) |
| Mouth | Illinois River |
• location | Goose Lake Township, Illinois |
• coordinates | 41°23′25.4292″N 88°15′37.1478″W / 41.390397000°N 88.260318833°W |
• elevation | 508 ft (155 m) |
| Length | 133 mi (214 km) |
| Basin size | 5,150 sq mi (13,300 km2) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Wilmington, Will County, Illinois |
| • average | 4,823 cu ft/s (136.6 m3/s) |
| • minimum | 204 cu ft/s (5.8 m3/s) |
| • maximum | 75,900 cu ft/s (2,150 m3/s) |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Kankakee River → Illinois → Mississippi → Gulf of Mexico |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Yellow River, Iroquois River |
| • right | Little Kankakee River, Crooked Creek (Indiana) |
The Kankakee River is a tributary of the Illinois River, approximately 133 miles (214 km) long, in the Central Corn Belt Plains of northwestern Indiana and northeastern Illinois in the United States. At one time, the river drained one of the largest wetlands in North America and furnished a significant portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. Significantly altered from its original channel, it flows through a primarily rural farming region of reclaimed cropland, south of Lake Michigan.