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Water levels kept low at area lakes By MARK FREEMAN The threat of a possible spring flood in the Rogue River basin has prompted federal water regulators to keep water levels at Lost Creek and Applegate lakes artificially low this month. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hydrologists are keeping both reservoirs stagnant by setting releases at the respective dams at exactly as much water is flowing in. That practice, called "passing in-flow," will remain in effect at Lost Creek Lake through through March, Corps officials say. The halt in the seasonal filling schedule will save enough extra space within the two reservoirs to swallow a mid-level flood behind them if one sneaks in this spring. This spring action is unprecedented in the Rogue Basin, where the two Corps reservoirs have helped halt or reduce winter flooding most years. But the Corps has not faced these conditions for the potential of spring flooding since Lost Creek Lake first became operational in 1977. "There's so much snow in the mountains right now, we don't want to get caught off guard by a quick thaw during a tropical storm,'' Corps spokesman Matt Rabe says. The change, however, will mean visitors will not see Lost Creek and Applegate lakes full until the Memorial Day weekend -- a full four weeks later than normal. "We anticipate that, at Memorial Day, anyone going out to the lakes won't be able to tell the difference," Rabe says. "The lakes will be full." The halt to filling Lost Creek Lake, however, is not likely to make much of a difference in the lake's bass angling, says Central Point bass angler Joe Pool. The lake, known as one of the coldest bass lakes in the region, will probably remain so cool from the melting snow that the largemouth and smallmouth bass will likely remain inactive, Pool says. "Those fish won't be thinking of doing anything," Pool says. "I think it will be the middle of April before we can catch a fish up there." As of Monday, the federal Natural Resources Conservation Council listed the mountain snowpack within the Rogue basin at 188 percent of average. In late February, the thick snowpack enticed Corps hydrologists to back off their typical filling schedule. Under normal conditions, water releases from Lost Creek and Applegate lakes are set to raise the reservoirs gradually until they are full May 1. But Corps hydrologists feared a freak flood could occur in May if a heat spell -- with or without a spring rain -- caused vast hillsides of snow to "ripen" and melt into runoff quickly, Cassidy says. The Corps then backed off those schedules by reducing storage by 5 percent at Applegate Lake and 15 percent at Lost Creek Lake, Cassidy says. On March 5, agency leaders decided to start passing in-flow, he says. On April 1, Lost Creek Lake is forecast to be five feet lower than normal at that time of year, and Applegate Lake will be 16 feet lower, Cassidy says. Outdoor Journal main page Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA