Dierks Update

[FarPastGone]

I have had a few people ask me about Dierks today, so I figured I would just post this for everyone to see. The Saline River gauge downstream of Dierks has recorded 5 inches of rain in the past day.

The top of the conservation level is 526, the lake is currently 528, and it has been hovering around 527.3-527.5 for a couple weeks. You can find this information here:

http://www.swt-wc.usace.army.mil/webdat ... rrent.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

They will be unable to release water from the lake for a couple days due to high flows downstream, and if that area keeps getting rain in may be more than a couple days. Soooo, with that being said, the lake is already 2 feet over conservation, there is good inflow right now, they are unable to release, and there is more rain in the forecast. Lake levels should continue to rise.

If lake levels continue to rise (which all indications point to) I wouldn't be suprised to see Dierks run next week (depending on downstream flows and rain) at some point.

For some reason the link I have shows releases from dam of unachievable flows, so I don't know what is up with it. You can see this by going to the link below, and clicking Previous Day.

http://www.swt-wc.usace.army.mil/webdat ... rrent.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Scott or anyone else with Dierks insight know why the release is showing 10,000+ cfs for the last few weeks? I don't even think they have the capacity to release that much and they def are not since the lake is rising.

- Matt

[Jim E]

Big Tom (Campground Host there) called me Tuesday saying that they opened the gate some. The river gage is showing the rain spike but falling back down to the 4.79 ft. that they had been releasing, unless they shut that off due to the rain.

This gage is accurate.

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?07341000" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[FarPastGone]

The outflow gauge for the lake shows that they are releasing at 6 cfs, so I would assume that the majority of that is natural flow.

- Matt

[Jim E]

Yeah. They shut it down. Takes awhile for it to show up on the gage since it is a ways down the river.

[ScottH]

Someone told me that the gauge unit below the dam shorts out/get struck by lightning often cause it it not installed correctly. That is why it works for a while then gives "false" readings. It seems to be down more than it works over the years.

I agree, Dierks should run next week, level will depend on how much more rain the lake gets.

Wister has also been running at 3000 for a couple of days. Not far into the flood pool so it wont last long, but some serious rain is coming.

[TC]

Yep, Dierks went down wednesday night during the storms. Got it back up yesterday @ 1300.
Dierks T/W has a high data rate transmitter in it that transmits stage and water temp @ 00:24:50 every hour. Lighting and analog temp probes do not play very well with each other. Last spring I disconnected all ac power going to the gage house and put in a solar panel and 18 amp hr battery. Thought I had her whiped until it went down wednesday. Told the office that I was going just transmit stage until July 1. Lets see what happens when the next storm rolls through.

[BooF4FooD]

Looks like they're jigglin the knob.. If there's no more rain, and it's running... I plan on heading up tomorrow after work and camping... Sounds like a good Easter

[ouachita hiker]

FYI Dierks is running strong. Also the water, for the most part, is clear and doesn't stink! I am surprised because it hasn't been open since lat June or July. Also for those that come there is now a pick-nick table by the exercise station and the big flat rock at hole three is back up and you can sit and watch those at the spot in the river. We have done some clearing of dead trees, in fact last weekend, so it is much nicer down in that area of the stream. Plenty of camping spots. Three sites are roped off waiting on dead pines to be cut. That is numbers two, three and eleven. At this time only one site is occupied and that is #10.