Martis Lake Stories

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Thanks Ralph and John for the excellent info on Martis.

It is amazing how complex lots of this is.

[montana mike]

I work in conservation and restoration in the Truckee region and we do a lot of work in Martis Valley. There is a fair bit of restoration going on in the Martis tribs. East Martis creek is in decent shape, lack of development wise than the other tribs. The main stem has some restoration underway that will get rid (hopefully) of the physical and thermal barriers to fish passage. The valley is Truckee’s primary aquifer. The dam is a flood control dam and the usage is looking at both safety and need. I believe the fault that runs beneath it is quite active and is called the Polaris fault. The land trust I work for owns the land south of the dam.

The property has these areas that look like old fire roads that sit in cuts, which are Polaris fault lines-kinda cool. Another interesting thing to me-all of these mountain valleys now covered with reservoirs and sage-the historic seed stock is grass. That is, prior to modifications by people they were not sagebrush seas, they were grasslands/meadows all the way up into the woods. Operation of the plumbed systems and watercourse modifications to convey the water to the reservoirs lowers the water table and dries out the meadow. Also makes the spawning tribs less accessible to the fish. Sorry for rambling.

The film crews would show up every spring and film outside for the western series . They would set up trailers and trucks and film in the meadow next to Martis lake . The opening scenes of Bonanza where Ben and the boys all rode up was there !

[Ralph]

The property has these areas that look like old fire roads that sit in cuts, which are Polaris fault lines-kinda cool. Another interesting thing to me-all of these mountain valleys now covered with reservoirs and sage-the historic seed stock is grass. That is, prior to modifications by people they were not sagebrush seas, they were grasslands/meadows all the way up into the woods. Operation of the plumbed systems and watercourse modifications to convey the water to the reservoirs lowers the water table and dries out the meadow. Also makes the spawning tribs less accessible to the fish. Sorry for rambling.

Excellent. Wildfire prevention has also allowed conifers to encroach on the meadows and tap out the surface water with their effective root systems. I'd love to see the lake dewatered and the valley restored as a functioning mountain meadow. WITHOUT friggin dogs!! (I love dogs, but not most dog owners who blatantly ignore leash laws. "oh, but my dog never catches the birds it chases, so it must be okay." That bird needs to be on her nest protecting the chicks and eggs from the sun and predators).

[montana mike]

Excellent. Wildfire prevention has also allowed conifers to encroach on the meadows and tap out the surface water with their effective root systems. I'd love to see the lake dewatered and the valley restored as a functioning mountain meadow. WITHOUT friggin dogs!! (I love dogs, but not most dog owners who blatantly ignore leash laws. "oh, but my dog never catches the birds it chases, so it must be okay." That bird needs to be on her nest protecting the chicks and eggs from the sun and predators).

Is this the Ralph that made the blood midge emerger for Martis lake ? Mike

[John Sv]

Excellent. Wildfire prevention has also allowed conifers to encroach on the meadows and tap out the surface water with their effective root systems. I'd love to see the lake dewatered and the valley restored as a functioning mountain meadow. WITHOUT friggin dogs!! (I love dogs, but not most dog owners who blatantly ignore leash laws. "oh, but my dog never catches the birds it chases, so it must be okay." That bird needs to be on her nest protecting the chicks and eggs from the sun and predators).

Oh man... I was there one day with my kid when he was a toddler and I thought this dog might attack him. It was truly scary. My old dog used to chase deer and one time 'caught' a fawn (not in Martis and it didn't attack it, just scared it half to death) That incident made me rethink dogs on the land, and Indiana Jones stayed home a lot during fawning and nesting seasons. And then there is the poop bag issue. We spend a lot of time picking up bagged poop which is beyond me. With conifer encroachment, you're right that is a huge deal. We are removing encroaching conifers at Webber, Coppins, and Lacey Meadows right now, with lower Carpenter Valley up next. It is so cool to see the meadows come back-the seeds are still in there! Aslo I swear Coppins Creek has more water. It's a bit heavy handed at first but it seems to come right back!

[OceanSunfish]

Excellent. Wildfire prevention has also allowed conifers to encroach on the meadows and tap out the surface water with their effective root systems. I'd love to see the lake dewatered and the valley restored as a functioning mountain meadow. WITHOUT friggin dogs!! (I love dogs, but not most dog owners who blatantly ignore leash laws. "oh, but my dog never catches the birds it chases, so it must be okay." That bird needs to be on her nest protecting the chicks and eggs from the sun and predators).

Good point. If the valley/meadow isn't going to be the 100% functional reservoir-flood control dam, then restore it to the original grassy meadow. The sagebrush look and dog poop land isn't appealing.

[OceanSunfish]

I work in conservation and restoration in the Truckee region and we do a lot of work in Martis Valley. There is a fair bit of restoration going on in the Martis tribs. East Martis creek is in decent shape, lack of development wise than the other tribs. The main stem has some restoration underway that will get rid (hopefully) of the physical and thermal barriers to fish passage. The valley is Truckee’s primary aquifer. The dam is a flood control dam and the usage is looking at both safety and need. I believe the fault that runs beneath it is quite active and is called the Polaris fault. The land trust I work for owns the land south of the dam.

The property has these areas that look like old fire roads that sit in cuts, which are Polaris fault lines-kinda cool. Another interesting thing to me-all of these mountain valleys now covered with reservoirs and sage-the historic seed stock is grass. That is, prior to modifications by people they were not sagebrush seas, they were grasslands/meadows all the way up into the woods. Operation of the plumbed systems and watercourse modifications to convey the water to the reservoirs lowers the water table and dries out the meadow. Also makes the spawning tribs less accessible to the fish. Sorry for rambling.

Great input. Appreciate hearing about the projects and such. Keep rambling.

[Ralph]

Is this the Ralph that made the blood midge emerger for Martis lake ? Mike

Same guy. That midge fell off the vice around 1980. Still seems to work where blood midges are about. And sometimes it doesn't.

[Ralph]

Good point. If the valley/meadow isn't going to be the 100% functional reservoir-flood control dam, then restore it to the original grassy meadow. The sagebrush look and dog poop land isn't appealing.

Storage has been vastly increased in Stampede over the past few years. I think the pressure is a little off keeping Martis a flood control option. The dam was built atop a base of fractured basalt. At the 26' elevation currently maintained, it holds water but any more water and the head pressure seems to be enough to force water through the basalt. Years of pumping concrete into the dam has done little to stem the leaks and the potential for failure. Reno would be massacred if the Martis dam failed during a flood control attempt.

[montana mike]

Same guy. That midge fell off the vice around 1980. Still seems to work where blood midges are about. And sometimes it doesn't

That fly has caught a lot of good fish in many places! We would go to Martis in float tubes in the evening and wait for sipping crusers. You had to be patient , but it was worth it . Lots of good fish , but lost lots in the weeds too .THanks again . Mike