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UINTA BASIN IN UTAH 25 <br />2 TIRE GRE ,N HOVER AND ITS UTILIZATION _ <br />south slope of the Uinta Range. In this stretch it is joined by the East <br />and Nest Forks abo•at halfway down and by the Southwest Fork near <br />the mouth of this canyon. Here the course is changed from almost <br />south to southeast and, about 10 miles farther down the streams <br />reaches the margin of the range, and the canyon gives way to a broad <br />valley. Through this valley the grade of the stream flattens, an4 <br />numerous beaver ponds are to be seen. Upon leaving this valley; <br />the course is southward through a broad canyon for 15 miles to the <br />Duchesne. This canyon is bordered on its west side by Farm Creel' <br />Mountain and on its east side by a high. broken plateau, which slopes <br />southeastward toward Lake Fork ,and is known as the Purple and <br />Blue Beneb country. <br />The Strawberry River with its tril-utaries drains the southwestern <br />portion of the Uinta Basin. It rises along the east slopes of the <br />Wasatch Range just south of the headwaters of the West Fork of the <br />Duchesne. Its catchment basin is a rolling plateau that drains from <br />the west, north, and east into Strawberry Valley, the lower part ol <br />which has been converted into a reservoir by the United States <br />Bureau of Reclamation to store water for use in irrigating lands -0' <br />the Utah Lake Valley west of the Wasatch Range. The capaci4 <br />of this reservoir is 250,000 acre-feet, and the water is diverted fro* <br />its original drainage basin to the Great Salt Lake drainage basis <br />through a tunnel 19,900 feet long leading from the west side of tW <br />Strawberry Riverlrorn elm Dns that lie nearly .pa allaI t?i one =nnin a northeasterly course, but none of them carry much water. All <br />reservoir under the divide. With this development already ta'> <br />much of the Strawberry River water out of the basin, it is obviot <br />-that any further development along the river must be limited . to t4 <br />surplus water of the stream, which is an uncertain quantity, a1thou0 <br />during some years more water flows into the Strawberry Reserver <br />than it will hold, and the surplus passes down the river. The. Stram' <br />berry Dam is built in what is known as "The N-arroa-S," where t#3' <br />river enters its canyon after leaving Strawberry Valley. For aboq <br />-2 es b turn to m ththe course of e eat the stream iQ lr <br />s in this direction for about and tbeml <br />makes a sharp miles to its confluence with -the Duchesne River at the town 4, <br />Duchesne. The Strawberry River Canyon is broad, with flat botlkJ <br />lands which are farmed wherever the soil conditions are favorable: <br />'early halfway between Strawberry Valley and Duchesne Crass <br />Creek empties into-the Strawberry Fiver from the north. This str am <br />with its, main tributary, Red Creek, drains much of the territory z <br />between the-Strawberry and Duchesne Rivers and is the only lerj <br />tribuitary entering h the nort'v side of the river. The flow of Lti <br />Creek is vasty, ?v ewe. the channel -ay be overflowed b-cc-i-, <br />a thunde? torm.o er, its basin, and within a few hours it may'a <br />ractical-, pty.._From the south a number of tributaries enter <br />Y, em <br />- -- <br />of them are very muddy in the wet seasori or during local thunder- <br />storms, but the natural low-water floe- is negligible. <br />Lake Fork is formed by its two main branches, the West Fork <br />and the East or Yellowstone Fork, which unite a few miles south of <br />the margin of the Uinta Range. The West. Fork rises just east of <br />Rock Creek, in a number of small glacial lakes at the base of 'Mount <br />Lovenia, which stands at an altitude of 13,350 feet. The catchment <br />area is broad, open, and flat bottomed, with many marginal cirques, <br />characteristic of all the basins on the south slope of the Uinta Ran,,e. <br />For 7 or 8 miles below the catchment area the stream occupies a <br />narrow rocky inner gorge, beyond which the 4eancen widens into a <br />broad U-shaped valley. Aloon Lake occupies the head of this valley, <br />and about 10 miles below- the lake the two forks unite. The East. <br />Fork also rises in glacial lakes, at the base of Filson Peak and Kings <br />Peaks immediately east of the catchment basin of the West Fork. <br />Wilson Peak rises to an altitude of 13,095 feet, and the two Kings <br />Peaks are the highest points in Utah, 13,496 and 13,498 feet above <br />sea level. Most of the lakes that drain into the. East Fork lie above <br />11,000 feet. The stream flows southeastward for about 20 miles <br />through a very rugged canyon, and about midway down its-canyon <br />Swift Creek, a rather large tributary, comes in from the east. A <br />smaller stream enters from the west a little farther down. After <br />leaving the canyon, the East Fork flows a little west of south through <br />a broad open valley to its confluence with the best Fork. From <br />this point Lake Fork in its southeasterly course to the Duchesne <br />flows through about 25 miles of broad flat-bottomed canyon, bordered <br />on both sides by sloping, irrigated bench land. <br />The Uinta River rises on the east dope of the Kings Peaks and <br />drains the south slope of the Uinta Mountains for about 15 miles <br />east of these peaks. It has the largest catchment area of all the <br />Duchesne River tributaries. The main basin is a broad open region, <br />with comparatively -slight relief. -Several headwater streams wonder <br />from lake to-lake or meadow to meadow, collecting the water from <br />the melting snow and rains. At the lower margin of the main basin <br />these headwater tributaries unite to form one stream which enters <br />the rugged inner gorge of the Uinta Canyon. This inner gorge reaches <br />a maximum depth of 100 feet in about 4 miles and dies out in another <br />=' miles. The entire length of the canyon is about 20 miles,- and <br />it finally gives way to the broad open country beyond the margin of <br />the range.-_, After leaving the. mountains the Uinta receiv,es'Pale, <br />Farm, and W-M-- teroeks Creeks from the north and east; Below <br />the mouth of Whiterocke Creek the river flows.through n broad; <br />gently sloping valley to its confluence with the Duchesne near <br />Randlett. In this IDwer stretch of -about 25,miles Deep-Creak comes _