The Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8 captured these views of Goose Lake and the surrounding watershed. The lake was relatively full on June 3, 2013 (top), and then dry on June 25, 2015 (bottom). Turn on the image comparison tool to see the lake transform into a dry lakebed.
When full, Goose Lake has a surface area that spans about 375 square kilometers (145 square miles). Water is supplied primarily by California’s Willow Creek, which flows westward from the Warner Mountains; some water also comes from Oregon’s southward flowing Thomas Creek. The amount of water delivered by those rivers depends on precipitation and snowmelt, as well as the amount of water diverted to irrigate pastureland, hay, and crops. (Springs also feed some of the rivers.)
In years with low precipitation or drought conditions, the lake can have a lower water level and even dry up, as was the case this year. One of the more famous episodes of drying came in the 1920s. Dry conditions shrunk the lake to a point where previously inundated wagon tracks appeared on the exposed lake bed. Those tracks had been left decades earlier by gold seekers in the mid 1800s.
You can point to global warming, or to nature and the weather, however your conscience allows.
ReplyDeleteThe Goose dries up every time there is a drought. Totally normal.
DeleteNot normal of you're a tree hugger with an agenda...then it's an environmental crisis because some toad who lives at the bottom of the lake must hibernate until it gets wet again.
DeleteIn the 1870’s, emigrants coming west on the Applegate trail were puzzled when they saw wagon ruts go right into Goose Lake. The lake was too deep to ford so they went 100 miles out of their way to go around. There they found the wagon ruts coming out of the lake and head west. When they got to the west coast none of the prior emigrants knew anything about a lake. I’ll bet if you drive there now those ruts are still there on the lake bottom.
ReplyDeleteYou can still see parts of the Applegate trail wagon ruts.
DeleteHey Cee Dub! Did ya like the part where I mentioned a wagon rut story that was already in your post? Maybe I should read the whole story next time. Maybe it's a good thing I retired!
ReplyDeleteI figured you were just emphasizing a colorful aspect of the story. I'll bet the ruts are findable if you know where to look.
DeleteAnna and I just drove from Winnemucca to Cedarville in July on the Lassen-Applegate and there are a few areas where the ruts in the rock are very evident.
DeleteMight be fun to run a metal detector out there.
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