Everyone wants our Water
This report is a little early due to Super Bowl Sunday
President Trump wants more water deliveries from the north to the south, Westland wants more water, farmers want more water, the L A metropolitan Water District wants more water and the river needs more water. The truth is that the Sierra Snow Pack is 27% of normal for this time of year, northern California is 14% of normal for this time of year and we are 174% of last year’s snow pack at this time of year. Sooo where is the water going to come from? Pres Trump and Sec. Zink had better do a much better job of planning on how to get more snow in the Trinity Alps and the Sierras if we are going to deliver more water south. As the present weather conditions are I cannot see how we in the north can produce more water to be delivered anywhere no matter who wants more water! Snow pack in the mountains is how water is produced and until the mountains are covered with more snow NO extra water will be produced. SORRY !!!
Humboldt County, one of the wettest counties in the state has started their wet weather testing as of January 28, 2018. This is for soils permeability for subdivisions and septic systems and will end April 1st. Normally this starts much earlier in the year but because of the lack of rain it just started. Normally I have recorded twice the amount of rain at this time of year but to date only 31.25 inches have been recorded at this location. we should see the preliminary options for Chinook salmon fishing in the ocean and in river.
Trinity River Hatchery: For the week ending Jan. 28 ; Fall Run Chinook salmon , jacks 0, adults 0, total 0, season total 5,632, Coho salmon, jacks 0, adults 2, total 2, season total 422; steelhead 340, season total 1,766.
Klamath Iron Gate: For the week ending Jan. 9; Bogus Creek, Chinook season total 2,247, Coho 0, season total 68; Scott River, Chinook salmon 0, season total 2,279, Coho 382; Shasta River, Chinook salmon season total 9,935, Coho season total 38.
Fishing: Last week the Trinity was blown out and now it is dropping inches every day. Right now it is in really good fishing condition in the upper sections but as the snow melts the lower section is a tad high and wide. In talking with a local this morning he stated that all he has been hooking is small fish in the Willow Creek and Hoopa areas this week. The moon has been hurting the fishing in the upper part of the river but prior to the full moon many adults were being landed by both the bank fishers and drift boaters. As the river drops fishing in the lower section of the Trinity should pick up. The good thing is that fishing for Steelhead Days has been improving over last year. Remember that last year was a wet year and we had plenty of water both in the reservoirs and the rivers.
Mid-Klamath: Iron Gate Dam is only releasing 958cfs. This is a slight decrease from last week but it didn’t seem to change fishing on the Klamath above I-5very much. The Happy Camp area has been steady the last couple of weeks as Seiad Valley is flowing 2,143cfs a very slight increase over last week. Above I-5 fishing has been fairly steady for the Drift boaters. Bank anglers will see that it is a bit harder to locate good fishing and the farther down river you go the harder the fishing will be until you reach Orleans and then Klamath is blown out. Wetchpec is flowing 12.8Kcfs.
Lake Conditions: Whiskeytown is 85% of capacity (a decrease of 1%) with inflows of 147cfs and releasing 218cfs into Clear Creek and on to Keswick. Shasta is 74% (an increase of 1% and 0ft) with inflows of 4,381cfs and releasing 3,340cfs, Keswick is 86% of capacity (a decrease of 0%) with inflows of 3,559cfs and releasing 3,884cfs; Oroville Lake is 40% capacity (an increase of 1% & plus 1ft), inflow is 4,209cfs and releases are 1,215 cfs; Folsom Lake is 59% of capacity (minus 1% & minus s 1ft.) inflows are 2,598cfs and releases are 2,931cfs.
Trinity Lake: The Lake is 46ft below the overflow (decrease of 1ft) and 73% of capacity (1% increase) Inflow to Trinity Lake is 967cfs and Trinity Dam is releasing 562cfs to Lewiston Lake with 241cfs going to Whiskeytown Lake and on to the Keswick Power Plant and it is releasing 3,884cfs to the Sacramento River.
Trinity River Flows and Conditions: Lewiston Dam releases are 321cfs with water temps of 45.6 and air is 45 degrees at 12:00pm today. Limekiln Gulch is 4.7ft at 360cfs, water temps of 45 degrees. Douglas City is 6.3ft at 412cfs, water temps of 46.1, air is 48. Junction City is 1.8ft at 480cfs. Helena is 9.2ft at 620cfs with water temps of 45.2. Cedar Flat is 4.6ft at 1,436cfs. Willow Creek is estimated at 2,513cfs air is 54 and water at 46. Hoopa is 15.5ft at 4,722cfs with water temps of 47.5. Flows at the mouth of the Trinity River at Klamath River are estimated to be 12.2Kcfs.
Klamath: Iron Gate Dam releases are 95869cfs. Seiad Valley is 3.3ft at 2,14324fs. Happy Camp is estimated at 2,847fs, Salmon River is 4.4ft at 2,158cfs, Somes Bar is estimated at 6,004cfs and Orleans is 6.9ft. at 8,162cfs and the Klamath River at Terwer Creek is 13.2ft at 16.9Kcfs, with water temperatures of 47 degrees. Flows at Smith River, Dr. Fine Bridge are 8.9ft at 4,260cfs.
Temperatures in the Valley last week were 58/42 degrees with 0.00in of rain with a season total of 31.25in of rain and no snow. The temperatures for next week are expected to be 68/41 degrees and partly cloudy and scattered clouds the first of the week with sunshine for the weekend and partial sun the next week.