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10 <br />In 1982 nine hydraulic measurements and sediment samples were <br />collected at Mathers Hole in the months May through July. The seasonal <br />hydrograph was composed of two peaks; the first of which occurred on May <br />5 and was the highest. All the sediment samples were collected on the <br />recessional limb. The highest measured discharge for which samples were <br />collected was approximately 11,000 cfs. <br />The sampling program for 1983 was greatly expanded over that from <br />the previous year. Forty-three daily sets of sediment data were <br />collected at Mathers Hole, with the highest sampling discharge being <br />19,300 cfs. Measurements were made on both the rising and recession <br />limbs; 28 sets of sediment data were collected on the rising limb and 15 <br />on the falling limb. The sediment samples were supplemented with <br />measurements of water surface slope, river width, cross section profiles <br />and velocity. <br />Suspended sediment samples were collected at ten foot verticals <br />with a USGS D-74 depth integrating suspended sediment sampler using the <br />ETR (Equal Transit Rate) method. The D-74 sampler is lowered from the <br />surface to bed and raised to the surface at the same rate at each <br />vertical. This rate should not exceed that which would fill the bottle <br />approximately three quarters full at the deepest vertical. The transit <br />rate is established by volume of sampler container, nozzle size, <br />velocity profile of the stream, and the flow angle. A type B-56 USGS <br />reel was used to raise and lower the D-74 sampler. <br />In 1982, a sample bottle was collected at each vertical and <br />returned to the laboratory for analysis. An improved and simplified <br />method was implemented for 1983 field season. After the bottle was <br />removed from the suspended sampler, the contents were poured through a <br />0.0625 mm sieve into a graduated cylinder and the volume recorded. The <br />fluid contents plus the fine sediment (silts and clays) were then poured <br />into a 32 liter churn. This process was repeated at each ten foot <br />vertical for two crossings of the entire river. At the completion of <br />each crossing the sand size sediment in the sieve was washed into a <br />container and sealed. Following the completion of the second crossing, <br />the churn was pumped and three supernatant samples were drawn off from <br />the nozzle of the churn into three separate 250 ml bottles. These <br />bottles together with the two sand containers were returned to the <br />laboratory to determine suspended sediment concentration. The field <br />assistants were trained by USGS personnel in Denver to apply this new <br />method. <br />The Helley-Smith sampler was employed to collect unmeasured <br />sediment zone samples near the bed. The Helley-Smith sampler was <br />operated at each vertical in conjunction with the D-74 sampler. At <br />each vertical, the Helley-Smith sampler was lowered to the bed and left <br />there for 30 seconds. For each crossing a separate bag of sediment was <br />collected, sealed and returned to the lab. The Helley-Smith sampler is <br />not sanctioned by the USGS but represents the best available technology <br />for bedload and unmeasured suspended zone sampling. <br />Discharge measurements were facilitated in 1983 by erecting a staff <br />gage. A stage-discharge relationship was calibrated with 24 measure- <br />ments over the two field seasons. The Mathers Hole cross section