|
<br />-.-----.---
<br />CALIFOR...lIlU. FISH '.u."o'GAME
<br />
<br />,~~i;.__ _~.::
<br />
<br />>;;.)
<br />
<br />"..3.~_"
<br />
<br />. --.-'-- ,
<br />..;.;.~:~-t:-._- "
<br />
<br />FIG. 50. Yuma Project Canal. Jan. un.
<br />
<br />':jloolln the intermittent Gila River near Dome, Arizona, May 1942.
<br />
<br />Laguna eam to Imperial eam (5 miles)
<br />
<br />About 12 miles northeast of Yuma, J.a~una Dam (eompleted in 1009) l'xtends
<br />across the river. At one time it provided all the irrigation water for the United 8tatl'S
<br />Bureau of Reclamation's Yuma Project ill both states through a heading- ,.',n the
<br />California side. Its western beadin~ now supplies only about 10 miles of - C:llWj in
<br />Califomia Dnd its eastern hending diverts water for the small North Gila Irri>.;ation
<br />District in Arizona. It is probable that sometime in the near future no water will ~
<br />diverted here. However, the dam will be maintained as a control for tailwater at
<br />Imperial Dam, and the sluice gates will be left open to pass the silty discharge from
<br />above.
<br />Laguna is a low diversion weir of, the Indian type which raises the water leH]
<br />about 10 feet at low stage and can accommodate the entire flow of the river oyer its
<br />crest at flood 1!'I.age. It is passable to fish because of its low height and some breaks
<br />in it. Only a shallow silting bs.sin is cnated above it. It does not form a true lake
<br />or reservoir, but the river has been widened and one finds sballow sloughs, ponds and
<br />potholes behind it. Mittry Lake is one such area. The river immediately be!'.'''' the
<br />dam is a popular fishing spot.
<br />
<br />~)!,Headgate Rock eam (135 miles)
<br />
<br />1-~Portance to the fishery is the Reclamation Service's new (1938)
<br />, ,.'the diversion point for the All-American and G~ ~na.l8. . The All-
<br />tfanil has a maximum capacity of Hi,15!5 c.f.s. It carnes lrrlgation water
<br />,c'. Valley, and its Coachella branch will supply the Coachella Valley.. It
<br />ost ,of the Yuma Project lands through a turnout, has a wasteway .lUto
<br />~- and will eventually deli.er water to a lateral !eadin,g ~o S~n DIegO.
<br />, ;. with an ultimate diversiou of 6,000 c.f.s., furnIShes lrrlgation water
<br />'~na. Ordinarily, the discharge from the dam is through a sluiceway
<br />-.thradial gates, but a spillway is provided for floods.
<br />, ,Dam ru.ises the normal water surface 23 feet, and has a profound
<br />the river above. Here, as at Laguna, it is preferable to speak of the
<br />.u~silting basin rather than a lake (as in the sense of Lake Mead). Large
<br />~~ shallow, Tbe spread of the river through swift shifting and interco':!-
<br />ii.nels keeps the water turbid and unsuited for tbe establishment of aquatic
<br />er, the backing up of tbe waters has created wide shallow "lakes" such as
<br />,{California) and Martinez (Arizona) on eitber side of the. channel. In
<br />" 'where the water is clearer and quieter one can find good fishmg.
<br />ew"miles aboye i'icach.. the iLtluence of Imperial Dam becomes less noticeable
<br />;",bottleneck separates the reservoir area from the low lands of Cibola and
<br />\'::-Although rocky sections are foux.d throughout this stretch, allu~ial
<br />on one side or the ,other flank tbe greater portion. And wherever the nver
<br />'by resistant walls one may find side.lakes or sloughs, often with their
<br />,obscured from view by the tbick vegetation. .
<br />, "OlStance abo,"e Cibola is tbe mouth of tbe Palo Verde Slough, a seml-
<br />.,' ,el fed ",ith waste irrigation water and navigable by small boat.
<br />-er highway bridge t'ro~ses the river at Blythe, About 14 miles above here
<br />iU.'Vem')n taking water into the Palo Verde Irrigation District ~Californ~a)
<br />~aidof a dam, Betweon bere and the town of Parker the extensive low-Iym.g
<br />, -()Olorado River Indian Reservation border the Arizona side. The river
<br />'. ' separates into channels, but there are not the number or variety of
<br />el8 and lakes found further downstream.
<br />"~iill towns of Earp California, and Parker, Arizona, are connected by a
<br />""y bridge, and about a mile above the town is the newest dam on the river.
<br />
<br />, One of the few bridges across the river is found at Yuma. Here, too, is all
<br />inverted siphon carrying water from the All-Amt-rican Canal nuder the riyer to the
<br />Arizona lands of the Yuma Project. Waste water from the Project's main canal aDd
<br />from irrigated fields enters the river through a ditch (Yuma Main Canal Wasteway)
<br />three-quarters of a mile below the bridge on the California side.
<br />Yuma is the largest town on the lower river ,( population 5,325 in 1940), From
<br />here and the nearby agriculturalllettlernents corne a fairly large number of people to
<br />fish the waters from the Mexican border to Imperial Dam. The heaviest concentratioDs
<br />of anglers are found: at the dams themselves; near the head of the Alamo Canal
<br />("Mullet Bay") ; at Haughtelin Lake; and along the canals, wasteways, and drain
<br />ditches of the Yuma Project lands.
<br />Only one natural stream, the Gila River, is tributary to this portion of the
<br />stream, 5 miles above Yuma. In its lower reacbes it is normally dry, save where some
<br />water from the Colorado backs up into its mouth, and in small potholes along its CO Ul"'e ,
<br />However, it is subject to severe fioods e\"en if of but sbort dnration, SOIDe of th~se
<br />floods have been reported as e,"en greater than the bigbest p€ak flood-sof the Colvrad'J.
<br />(h.'1einsorge, 1941, p. 11.)
<br />
|