Fall Creek Lake

Fall Creek Lake (also known as Fall Creek Reservoir) is a reservoir in Lane County, in the U.S. state of Oregon.[2] It is about 22 miles (35 km) southeast of Eugene[1] on Fall Creek, immediately upstream from Unity Bridge, a covered bridge. The communities of Unity, at the bridge site, and Lowell, south of Unity, are near the lake. The unincorporated community of Jasper is further downstream, below the confluence of Fall Creek with the Middle Fork Willamette River.[4]

Fall Creek Lake
LocationLane County, Oregon
Coordinates43°56′33″N 122°45′25″W
TypeReservoir, mesotrophic
Primary inflowsFall Creek
Primary outflowsFall Creek
Catchment area184 square miles (480 km2)
Basin countriesUnited States
Surface area1,716 acres (694 ha)
Average depth67 feet (20 m)
Max. depth161 feet (49 m)
Water volume125,000 acre feet (154,000,000 m3)
Residence time3.5 months
Shore length122 miles (35 km)
Surface elevation834 feet (254 m)
SettlementsUnity, Lowell
References[1][2][3]
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Fall Creek Dam, 205 feet (62 m) high, impounds up to 125,000 acre feet (154,000,000 m3) of water in the reservoir.[3] The embankment dam is of the rockfill type with a gated concrete spillway and outlet controls for regulating lake levels.[5] The lake includes two arms, one along the Fall Creek main stem and one along Winberry Creek, a tributary entering from the south.[4]

History

Fall Creek Lake is one of 13 multi-purpose water projects managed by the United States Corps of Engineers in the Willamette Valley. The reservoir, completed in 1966, functions mainly to control downstream flooding on the Willamette River but is also heavily used for recreation when the lake is full. The Corps keeps water levels high—up to 161 feet (49 m)— in the lake during the spring and early summer but draws them down by up to 100 feet (30 m) below maximum in late summer through winter. This creates storage capacity for potential flood water in the rainy season. Mud flats that appear during the drawdown make recreational uses less feasible.[3]

Recreation

In addition to a variety of campsites, amenities at the lake include picnic tables, boat ramps, swimming areas, toilets, and a fishing pier. Activities on the lake also include waterskiing and jet-skiing.[6]

Winberry Creek Road runs along the Winberry arm and meets Lowell–Unity Road (Lowell–Jasper Road) near the covered bridge. Big Fall Creek Road and Peninsula Road branch off Winberry Creek Road and, along opposite shores, follow the Fall Creek arm upstream to the end of the lake. Each road leads to one or more of the many day-use sites and campgrounds around the lake. Forest Road 18 begins at the head of the lake and follows Fall Creek upstream for many miles to other campgrounds and hiking trails in the Cascade Range.[6]

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References
  1. Johnson, Daniel M.; Petersen, Richard R.; Lycan, D. Richard; Sweet, James W.; Neuhaus, Mark E., and Schaedel, Andrew L. (1985). Atlas of Oregon Lakes. Corvallis: Oregon State University Press. p. 193. ISBN 0-87071-343-4.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. "Fall Creek Lake". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. May 22, 1986. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  3. "Atlas of Oregon Lakes: Fall Creek Lake (Lane)". Portland State University. 1985–2016. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  4. "United States Topographic Map". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved February 13, 2016 – via Acme Mapper.
  5. "Building Strong at Fall Creek Dam and Reservoir". United States Army Corps of Engineers. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  6. Bannan, Jan (2002). Oregon State Parks: A Complete Recreation Guide (2nd ed.). Seattle: The Mountaineers Books. pp. 144–45. ISBN 0-89886-794-0.
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