Landels-Hill Big Creek Reserve

07 Jan, 04 AM - 09 Jan, 04 AM

The main purpose of the visit is to establish more comprehensive information in preparation for the future visits for the students of the Wildland Studies Program, usually offered at the end of the Summer by Nicole Crane through CSUMB. In the last 2 years we have designated 9 pools, 3 on each of Lower Big Creek, Upper Big Creek, and Upper Devil's creek for studies of pool size, cause of pool, Steelhead salmon population, and velocities of stream flow. These 9 pools are the most stable pools in the watershed, as far as we can tell from past data and Geo-morphological observations. Data on the entirety of the streams has been collected over the course of the last 15 years, but the data set only includes one data point per year, collected by the students at the end of the Summer. In order to better understand the hydrology and steelhead population dynamics of these streams, we propose to return to these select 9 pools 3 times a year, once during the Winter, once in the Spring, and allow the students to continue to do the data collection at the end of the Summer. Understanding the conditions that occur in between Summer data collection periods would greatly enhance the understanding of the students when analyzing their data, as well as enhancing our ability to interpret the 15 year data set for further information about the life histories and habits of the Steelhead in the area throughout the year. This visit would be the first attempt to take pictures and data about the pools, and the Steelhead in them during the Winter months, if weather permits. It is understood that actual counts may not be possible due to high water flows, but even being able to show students pictures of what the watershed looks like during a high flow situation would elucidate the life history of the Steelhead in the creeks, and assist in the education of the students.

Visit #26807 @Landels-Hill Big Creek Reserve

Approved

Under Project # 24512 | Class

Wildland Studies Big Sur Annual Class; Cool Pools Project Suppliment

graduate_student - California State University (CSU), Monterey Bay

Reservation Members(s)

John Silveus Jan 7 - 9, 2012 (3 days)
Group of 12 Undergraduate Student Jan 7 - 9, 2012 (3 days)

Reserve Resources(s) | Create Invoice

Redwood Camp 13 Jan 7 - 9, 2012