Ophir Creek

Ophir Creek is a 7.7mi eastward-flowing stream originating in Tahoe Meadows just south of Tamarack Peak and southeast of Mount Rose Summit, a pass on Nevada State Highway 431. Ophir Creek flows to Washoe Lake in Washoe County in western Nevada, shortly after passing under U.S. Route 395.HistoryOphir Creek is named for the 1853 discovery of the Comstock Ophir bonanza, a major silver discovery. Ophir was classically a wealthy region described in the Bible, from where King Solomon received tribute of gold, silver, and other precious items. To reduce the silver metal from the ore from the Comstock Ophir mine, the Ophir Mining Company erected the Ophir Mill in 1861 on Washoe Lake's (what was then Washoe Marsh) west shore. A historic marker just north of Ophir Creek on U.S. Route 395 marks its location.Upper and Lower Price Lakes were named for W. E. Price, a sawmill operator and assemblyman for Washoe County in 1873. A 1983 landslide from aptly named Slide Mountain abruptly filled Lower Price Lake.Watershed and courseOphir Creek is part of the Steamboat Creek/Washoe Lake subwatershed of the Truckee River watershed. The Ophir Creek watershed drains 6.5sqmi.