Flaming Gorge Reservoir

Flaming Gorge Reservoir
Flaming Gorge Dam from the air
Location	northeastern Utah and Southern Wyoming
Coordinates	41°09′41″N, 109°33′04″WCoordinates: 41°09′41″N, 109°33′04″W
Lake type	Hydroelectric reservoir
Primary sources	Green River
Primary outflows	Green River
Basin countries	United States
Surface area	acres ( km²)
Water volume	3,788,900 acre feet (4.67 km³)
Surface elevation	6,040 ft (1841 m)

Flaming Gorge Reservoir is a reservoir in Wyoming and Utah, on the Green River, created by the Flaming Gorge Dam.

Construction on the Flaming Gorge Dam began in 1958 and was completed in 1964. The Reservoir stores 3,788,900 acre feet (4.67 km³) of water when measured at an elevation of 6,040 feet (1,840 m) above sea-level (maximum).

Location

The Reservoir is mainly in southwest Wyoming, and partially in northeastern Utah. The northern tip of the reservoir is just mi ( km) southeast of Green River, Wyoming, mi ( km) southwest of Rock Springs, Wyoming, and 43 miles (69 km) north of Vernal, Utah. The lake straddles the Utah-Wyoming border.

Geology

Foundation: Steep-sided narrow canyon composed of siliceous sandstone and hard quartzites inter-bedded with softer shales, siltstones, and argillates.

Recreation

Visitors enjoy hiking, boating, fishing, waterbiking, windsurfing, and camping within Flaming Gorge National Recreational Area run by the U.S. Forest Service Ashley National Forest Service. Camp sites can be found close to the dam and along Highway 191 for a fee, as well as free throughout the area. The many available fish species in the reservoir and surrounding lakes are Colorado River Cutthroat Trout, Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout, Kokanee Salmon, and Smallmouth Bass. The Green River is a popular spot for fishing, namely below the dam. The river's ice cold water and beautiful structure make it a world class, world renowned fly fishing stream.

Boat ramp at Flaming Gorge. Summer 2005.

Dam dimensions
Crest Elevation	6047 ft (1843 m)
Structural height	502 ft (153 m)
Hydraulic height	448 ft (137 m)
Crest length	1,180 ft (360 m)
Crest width	27 ft (8.2 m)
Base width	131 ft (40 m)
Volume of concrete	986,600 yd³ (754,000 m³)

Access

From Rock Springs, Wyoming, take I-80 east to U.S. Highway 191 south, (63 miles (101 km) to the dam). From Vernal, Utah, take U.S. Highway 191 north for 43 miles (69 km). Flaming Gorge can be reached year-round.

External links

utah.com
Flaming Gorge Reservoir from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
Report on Flaming Gorge ReservoirPDF (108 KiB) from the Utah Division of Water Quality
Flaming Gorge Reservoir from UtahDiving.com

Colorado River system
Dams and aqueducts (see US Bureau of Reclamation)	Shadow Mountain Dam • Granby Dam • Glen Canyon Dam • Hoover Dam • Davis Dam • Parker Dam • Palo Verde Diversion Dam • Imperial Dam • Laguna Dam • Morelos Dam • Colorado River Aqueduct • San Diego Aqueduct • Central Arizona Project Aqueduct • All-American Canal • Coachella Canal • Redwall Dam
Natural features	Colorado River • Rocky Mountains • Colorado River Basin • Grand Lake • Sonoran desert • Mojave desert • Imperial Valley • Colorado Plateau • Grand Canyon • Black Canyon • Glen Canyon • Marble Canyon • New River • Paria Canyon • Gulf of California/Sea of Cortez • Salton Sea
Tributaries	Dirty Devil River • Dolores River • Escalante River • Gila River • Green River • Gunnison River • Kanab Creek • Little Colorado River • Paria River • San Juan River • Virgin River
Major reservoirs	Fontenelle Reservoir • Flaming Gorge Reservoir • Taylor Park Reservoir • Navajo Reservoir • Lake Powell • Lake Mead • Lake Mohave • Lake Havasu
Dependent states	Arizona • California • Colorado • Nevada • New Mexico • Utah (See: Colorado River Compact)
Designated areas	Glen Canyon National Recreation Area • Lake Mead National Recreation Area

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