Big Creek (San Joaquin River tributary)

Big Creek is a 19.3-mile-long (31.1 km) tributary of the San Joaquin River in the Sierra Nevada, within the Sierra National Forest, central California.

The Big Creek Hydroelectric Project, one of the most extensive hydroelectric systems in the world, is partly located on Big Creek.

There are nine power plants in the project: Portal, Eastwood, Mammoth Pool; and Big Creek 1, 2, 2A, 3, 4, and 8.

The terminus of the system is the outlet of Big Creek 4, which discharges into the San Joaquin River several miles downstream from Redinger Dam.

The San Joaquin passes through many more powerhouses downstream, including A.G. Wishon and the powerhouse at Friant Dam.