Pine Creek Progress

Beaver Dam Analog we installed in 2015

It has been very wet in the John Day Basin in early spring of 2019. In fact, the John Day River hit it's third highest recorded flow volume this month. Pine Creek has also surged so I was very curious to see how it is doing and find out how our work over the years has held up. Happily, it has held up amazingly well. Pine Creek will take years to return to a healthy, functioning stream, but it is on it's way. We installed a number of beaver dam analogs a few years ago as part of an ONDA effort.  These are basically fake beaver dams.  Fun to build, and very effective. Actual beavers have reoccupied the stream and are doing amazing things in short order. Base level is already rising, though with the depth of incised channel to be found here it will be a while before the stream retakes its floodplain.   I am now a beaver believer!

The Hancock Lady Pictograph