Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Los Alamos Reservoir Road



The voodoo hex on the Los Alamos Reservoir continues. Just when reconstruction of the dam got underway, the Las Conchas fire burned almost 100 percent of the watersheds above the reservoir and forces a halt in the work, abandonment of all activities in the canyon, and more flood damage downstream. Dam construction was resumed in the fall of 2012, and is expected to be completed by summer 2013. The road remains closed as there is lots of heavy truck traffic. 

 The road to the reservoir in October 2011: the top of my head is road level. 



The road has been regraded and is now a wide cut through the canyon (November 2012)

Alas, Jersey Falls has been regraded (October 2011).

The outflow from the reservoir always preferred the road over its natural channel (October 2011).


The reservoir itself didn't change much since before the Las Conchas fire (October 2011). It is currently drained.


Another pulse of sediment and gravel filled the impoundment (October 2011). 

The material from behind the dam has been trucked out and dumped at the old wastewater treatment plant site in Bayo Canyon. (February 2013)


1 comment:

  1. I am told the fire in upper Los Alamos Canyon was a backfire set by crews to protect the town. Is that true?

    Chick Keller
    Anonymous because I can't find any other way to leave my name??

    ReplyDelete

Please enter reports on trail conditions. Thank you.