<Tr> <Td> - min </Td> <Td> 0 cu ft / s (0 m / s) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Map showing the course and tributaries of the Kings River, with the canal system in light blue . </Td> </Tr> <P> The Kings River is a major river of south - central California . About 125 miles (201 km) long, it drains an area of the high western Sierra Nevada and the Central Valley . The headwaters originate at elevations of above 13,000 feet (4,000 m) along the Sierra crest, in and around Kings Canyon National Park . Further west in the foothills, the river is impounded in Pine Flat Lake, before flowing into the Central Valley south of Fresno, where most of its water is used for irrigation . The Kings River was named by the commander of a Spanish military expedition into the Central Valley in 1805 . </P> <P> A large alluvial fan has formed where the river's gradient decreases in the Central Valley so the river divides into distributaries . Southern distributaries enter the endorheic basin surrounding Tulare Lake while northern distributaries join the San Joaquin River, eventually reaching San Francisco Bay via the Sacramento--San Joaquin River Delta . Tulare Lake was formerly one of the largest freshwater lakes in western North America, but heavy water diversions have left it dry except in years of exceptionally heavy runoff . </P>

Where does the kings river start and end