The Yokuts, who comprised most of the indigenous people in the San Joaquin basin, mostly lived in the foothill area of the Sierra along streams, with their territory stretching south from the Chowchilla River to the Kern River. Certain areas above the foothills were occupied by the Chumash and visited by Paiute peoples of the Great Basin for trade. The marshy areas to the west were inhabited by various nomadic groups, and probably had fewer permanent residents although it was a favored fishing and hunting area. In contrast, the Miwok occupied land deeper within the Sierra Nevada stretching north from the Merced River to the Mokelumne or the American, a tributary of the Sacramento, and west to the Delta region. Most of the Miwok people in the watershed were part of the appropriately named Sierra Miwok group.