High Mountain Dams in Upalco Unit, Water Lily Lake Dam, Ashley National Forest, 1.1 miles Northeast of Swift Creek Campground, Mountain Home

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The Water Lily Lake Dam is the oldest manmade structure to reservoir a natural lake in the Swift Creek drainage. With a crest length of 64 feet, it is the smallest of the dams in the Upalco Unit of the Central Utah Project. The reservoir was never a water storage success and has reverted to near a natural state. Long left unused, the dam on Water Lily Lake has deteriorated significantly and no longer functions to impound water for active storage. Inventoried by: Clayton Fraser and James Jurale Fraserdesign Loveland, Colorado October 19, High Mountain Dams in Upalco Unit, Water Lily Lake Dam HAER No. UT-42-N (Page 2)

Historical Information

Located at the head of a smail creek at an altitude of approximately feet, Water Lily Lake is the lowest of the impounded lakes in the Swift Creek drainage. Its outlet tumbles down feet of descent to Swift Creek about one-half mile north of its confluence with the Yellowstone River. On January 25, the Farmers Irrigation Company filed for irrigation water storage rights totalling 723 acre-feet from Water Lily Lake. The permit was approved by the State Engineer the following April, but the National Forest Service had already granted a special use permit to build a dam in November By the company had completed the small-scale earth-fill dam over the outlet at the south point of the lake. Fed by an extremely small drainage area, Water Lily was limited in its active storage capacity.

It was reported unused in and again in Today, the lake is drained by a 24-inch-diameter concrete outlet pipe with an upright (and inoperable) upright headgate. The dam is choked with debris by beavers, which have repaired a partial breach in the wall. It is proposed that the breach be further repaired and the outlet blocked to return the lake to its natural state.

Architectural Information

Dam length: 64 feet Dam height: 10 feet Dam width: 4 feet Construct: Earth fill dam with stone riprap facing Lake size: acres; 470 acre-foot maximum capacity; 3 vertical foot maximum drawdown Outlet: Gated pipe BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION "Preliminary Engineering Report: Stabilization of High Mountain Lakes, Upalco Unit" National Forest Service Report, William F. Gettleman, "Report on the Lakes and Reservoir of the Headwaters of the Uintah, Whiterocks and Lakefork Rivers, Uintah Project, Utah: Feb. page 24. Water Lily Lake Reservoir File Roosevelt District Ranger Office, Ashley National Forest, Roosevelt, Utah Field inspection by Robert Righter, July 27, For additional information, see Irrigation Canals in the Uinta Basin, HAER No. UT-30.

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