Wooden Boat People
By McKenzieDriftBoat.com
Grand Canyon Flood Experiments.
http://news.yahoo.com/grand-canyon-flood-underway-rebuild-beaches-1...
Check out the news on experiments to return seasonal flooding to the Grand Canyon. This is a very interesting experiment.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on
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Randy, an interesting experiment for sure. Did you see this link from Tom Martin yet?
http://http://www.canoekayak.com/whitewater-kayak/speed-run-grand-c...
Rick Newman
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Permalink Reply by David Jensen on
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I couldn't access Tom's link, but hope to figure it out. He gave a wonderful presentation in Eugene about Randy, Greg, Tom and others float this fall. The change in thinking by the government is akin to the change in best practices for protecting our fisheries. Decades ago, the thinking was to remove all woody debris; now, the thinking is more than reversed. Not only is woody debris not removed, we (the government and many private groups like Trout Unlimited) are placing woody debris in our rivers and creeks. Not surprising best practices change - it was thought for centuries the earth was flat.
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http://www.canoekayak.com/whitewater-kayak/speed-run-grand-canyon-r...
Sorry, didn't try it before I posted it. I copied the http twice.
Rick Newman
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Permalink Reply by lhedrick on
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"This is truly an historic milestone for the Colorado River, Grand Canyon National Park, and the United States Bureau of Reclamation," Salazar said.
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Who is kidding who with this? 45000 CFS is not a flood, not even close to an average for a low year spring run off for the lower Colorado river. In 2011 we floated the Upper Green when it was 44000. Before the dams spring flows would have moved sand down from all the way up in WY. I'm sure most years were 50000 plus with many at 90000 or more. When you float by and see logs way up high we can only imagine what the estimated high flow of 300,000 CFS might have been like. The 1983 photos of Crystal at 100,000 are hard to imagine but, 300,000. Now that Lake Mead is down, when you float to the PF take out people can see the thousands of square miles of 30 foot deep mud and sand which is trapped at the top end of the lake. The new 30 year old lake bottom now exposed is covered with dead tamarisks who's roots can no longer reach the water.
I just go off the river last week. We started with a constant flow of 8000. When we got below Crystal the flow started to vary from 7000 - 9000. So most of the time we were around 8000. At 8000 we we were looking for rocks. We got an easy right side sneak at crystal which would not have been there at a much lower flow. At 5000 I wouldn't want to be running a dory down the river.
The flow was moving up a few days after we got to the take out so we missed it.
As for beaches, I am always amazed when I hear how there are no sandy beaches left in the Grand Canyon. I have done 5 trips down the canyon and found beaches on every trip. With the dams things have changed for sure but there are still lots of great sandy places to camp.
As for the flood building new beaches, it's unknown. The only sand left must come from the side canyons below Glen Canyon dam. Can they produce enough to keep beaches from shrinking? Don't know. If not then these flush events are just moving sand down river and when it's gone beaches will start to shrink. Years and years of low water is taking us to a condition of lower flows for sure if winters don't get better.
We had 3 dories on the trip, dodging rocks at 8000. We all got down river with no damage. It's always a great trip. Would love to sell my boat, build another and do it again for trip number 6.
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While at the LCR we had our boats tied up about 100 yards up river. Off the back of the boats we got to see a bunch of hump back chubs. They are still there.
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Permalink Reply by Jim Hall on
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This is not the first experimental beach building flood flow. A 15 year old program that is seeking to adapt the management of the glen canyon dam. This alone is an encouraging development in grand canyon--the early release schemes were on the order of 3-30k daily. It works, but a return to fluctuating flows tends to erode the new beach deposits rather quickly. The 2012 monsoon season was epic with a number of enormous flushes in the muav gorge. The National Canyon event obliterated three camps. So perhaps this flood flow will churn up some of the main channel sand deposits and lay down some beach at National, re-establishing this spot for worried boaters to rest their heavy heads before floating down to Lava Falls. Hats off to BuRec for that!
Glad to hear that you got your boats through uscathed on the "straight eights". Nice to be thinking of selling the boat instead of repairing it. Good job!
Oh yeah, the river regs forbid boats in the LCR. On your next trip be a steward and park your boats up the way on Colorado River beaches. Thanks
Jim
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Jim,
We were on the Regs, what gave you the impression we parked in the LCR? The boats were up river where they were required to be, not in the LCR and that is where we saw the chubs. We only got to see them because the water was clear at that spot. It took a while to be sure they were chubs and not carp. But they were hump backs for sure. Sadly I am not one who believes the LCR is going to save those fish. It's only a matter of time before the striped bass get them.
The camps at National are gone. There was so much rock from the flash that I'm not sure there will be camps there for many years to come. The river will need to move a lot of rock before sand can make any new camps and the big spring flows of the past are over so, the rocks are there to stay. The left side of Hance is gone also. It might be runnable above 20k, not sure.
There is no doubt the canyon is changing and beaches are getting smaller as the years go by but, the place is still the best trip a person can do. There are still lots of beaches to camp on. I owe a thanks to all the river runners before me who are keeping the canyon clean. We all pick up after each other a bit and it's keeping the place great for when we get our next chance and for those who may only get 1 chance to see and experience an untrashed place.
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Permalink Reply by Tom Martin on
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Hi Larry, GREAT to hear you had a good trip!
Hi Rick, thanks for fixing the Link! Harlan hiked out at Phantom Ranch after a three mile long swim below Grapevine.
Hi Randy, I wish it were not so, but I can't see any data that shows the "flood" made at Glen Canyon Dam is anything but rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
In researching the Big Water Little Boats book, I came across some wonderful history about Grand Canyon floods. Each year before the dam was built, the spring runoff would occur. While we all look at the highest of the high spring flows, it is important to look at the "lowest" high flow. Using the Topping, Schmidt and Vierra USGS professional paper 1677 (free download at the USGS web site), we can see that of the yearly recorded "high" flows, including 1884 and yearly between 1921 and 1962, only SIX years were below 42,000 cubic feet per second. The very concept of a flood flow of 42,000 cfs is flawed. The "average" high flood flow over the years we have data for at Lee's Ferry is 87,800 cfs. Twice the 'flood flow' of today. Don't tell anyone but 42,000 cfs is an awesome flow to boat on! The folks pre-Glen Canyon Dam had that figured out too!
The sand load is not enough to add to the system, and the net end result is a flush of material to Lake Mead. There is no driftwood, a key component as Jim noted, and the temperature is very cold, not like the pre-dam high flow temps. There were a lot of moving parts before the Dam that are missing now.
Hope all's well with you and yours, tom