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<br />7.2 ft on July 20, 1966, and the elevations of6.9 ft
<br />or above from March 15, 1966, to August 23,
<br />1966, indicate that the channel bed was at roughly
<br />the same elevation as the white line for at least 5
<br />months in 1966. Therefore, the line probably
<br />represents a fonner channel elevation.
<br />
<br />Repeat photography.-comparison of
<br />photographs taken before and after the flood of
<br />September 1970 show significant channel change
<br />at this site (figs. 14 A-C). On January 9, 1964
<br />(fig. 14A), there was a stand of riparian trees along
<br />the right bank of the stream channel. At that time,
<br />the PZF was 4.62 ft. Figure 19B shows the channel
<br />in 1970 (exact date unknown) before a large flood
<br />that occurred on September 5, 1970. Note the ab-
<br />sence of the riparian trees along the right bank and
<br />the flatness of the channel in comparison to figure
<br />l4A. The two PZF measurements made in 1970
<br />were 5.84 ft on March 11 and 6.12 ft on July 29;
<br />these are about 1 ft higher than the PZF at the time
<br />of the 1964 photograph. Also note the location of
<br />the top of the white stain on the rock in relation to
<br />the channel (fig. 14B), and compare this to the
<br />location of the white stain to the channel in figure
<br />14C. These two photographs show that the channel
<br />has lowered about 4 ft in elevation from before
<br />and after the flood on September 5, 1970. This
<br />change in channel relative to the white stain is
<br />similar to the changes in the PZF from 6.12 ft on
<br />July 29, 1970, to 1.53 ft on March 18, 1971, and is
<br />a change of 4.59 ft. Thus, it seems that the large
<br />flood on September 5, 1970, caused the channel
<br />bottom to incise about 4 ft along this reach.
<br />
<br />The second set of repeat photographs were
<br />taken 2 days before and 4 days after the flood on
<br />September 26, 1997 (figs. 15A-15B). The
<br />photographs show the coarsening of the channel
<br />sediment immediately following prolonged flows,
<br />which occurred after the flood on September 26,
<br />1997. This coarsening of channel sediment has
<br />been observed on several occasions at this site.
<br />
<br />09516000 Hassayampa River at U.S.
<br />Highway 60, at Wickenburg, Arizona
<br />
<br />The Hassayampa River has a drainage area of
<br />about 711 mi2 at the crossing of U.S. Highway 60
<br />in Wickenburg, Arizona (fig. 1). The channel is
<br />
<br />about 400 ft wide under the highway bridge. The
<br />channel sediment is primarily sand and is highly
<br />mobile. Flow velocities during large discharges are
<br />high, and standing waves are common. The USGS
<br />operated a crest-stage gaging station on the bridge
<br />in the 1960s and 1970s. Only maximum stage
<br />values were reported from this station. In 1994, the
<br />FCDMC installed a continuous streamflow-gaging
<br />station on the bridge.
<br />
<br />Cross sections.~ The earliest cross-section
<br />measurement (fig. 16) was taken from the Flood
<br />Insurance Study HEC-2 model of 1988 (Cella-Barr
<br />Associates, written commun., 1989). A second
<br />cross-section measurement was constructed from a
<br />current-meter measurement of discharge made
<br />from the bridge on September 26, 1997, at
<br />3,800 ft3 Is on the recession limb of a flood. The
<br />peak discharge earlier that morning was estimated
<br />at 15,400 ft3/s at this site. A third cross section was
<br />surveyed on September 29, 1997.
<br />A comparison of the dry riverbed in 1988 with
<br />the riverbed on September 29, 1997, shows that
<br />the cross-sectional area increased by 21 percent
<br />relative to the reference elevation. The cross-
<br />sectional area measured during the flood on
<br />September 26, 1997, was 12 percent greater than
<br />the cross section of the post-flood channel.
<br />
<br />09516500 Hassayampa River near
<br />Morristown, Arizona
<br />
<br />The gaging station, Hassayampa River near
<br />Morristown, has a drainage area of 796 mi2 and is
<br />at an elevation of 1,831 ft (fig. 1). The gaging
<br />station, which is attached to a bedrock cliff that
<br />overlooks the channel on the left bank, is about
<br />15 mi downstream from the gaging station,
<br />Hassayampa River at Box Canyon, and 8 mi down-
<br />stream from the gaging station, Hassayampa River
<br />at U.S. Highway 60. Bedrock cliffs also are im-
<br />mediately downstream from the gaging station.
<br />Beyond these bedrock controls, the river enters the
<br />alluvial fill of the valley called the Hassayampa
<br />Plain. The river channel is flat, and narrows as it
<br />approaches the gaging station. Bed material is
<br />primarily sand. The narrowing increases stream
<br />velocity past the gaging station, and most high
<br />flows are near or at critical depth. The cross sec-
<br />tion was measured nine times at the site during and
<br />
<br />Results 21
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