Silvies River

The Silvies River flows for about 119 mi through Grant and Harney counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. The river drains 1273 mi2 of the northern Harney Basin.

The headwaters are on the southern flank of the Aldrich Mountains, about 10 mi south of Mount Vernon in Grant County. Named tributaries include Bear Creek and Emigrant Creek. The Silvies runs generally southward and passes near Seneca and Burns. Southeast of Burns, in Harney County, the river splits into two distributaries, the East Fork Silvies River and the West Fork Silvies River. Both terminate at Malheur Lake about 25 mi southeast of Burns.

Flowing mainly through private land with limited public access, the river supports populations of redband trout, especially on its upstream reaches. Downstream of Seneca, fish such as smallmouth bass, yellow perch, and carp are more abundant. The pool behind Five-Mile Dam, about 5 mi north of Burns, is used for swimming, canoeing, and fishing.