Peculiar River: A Photo Story of the Deschutes
Upper Deschutes, Caitlyn Burford
The Deschutes River is one of the largest spring-fed rivers in the United States. It has long been known as the “Peculiar River” for its remarkably consistent year-round water levels. In fact, its natural stream flows are more consistent than any other river its size in the U.S.
Benham Falls, Caitlyn Burford
Today, the river’s story looks different.
Since 1949, mismanagement of the Upper Deschutes has made the once stable water flows highly volatile, with low flows of 100 cubic feet per second (cfs) in the winter and flood level flows as high as 1,800 cfs in the summer.
This river holds the soul of Central Oregon. Photos still take our breath away. But, if you look closely towards the banks, you can see a river in dire want of restoration. The Deschutes still needs our help.
Habitat on the Banks
Upper Deschutes, Caitlyn Burford
The winter flows fall several feet beneath the grass on the banks, disconnecting the floodplain from the river. What was once a marshy wetland is now a crusted edge of dry grasses perched high above the river that cannot support the wildlife that evolved alongside the river.
The Spotted Frog is one such threatened amphibian. Rather than lay its eggs in the protected grasses, it is forced to lay them in open water over mudflats where they can be washed away by rising river currents and are exposed to predators.
Learn more about the Spotted Frog, an “indicator species” for the health of the Deschutes River.
The dry winter months are followed by summer floods. As huge volumes of water are released from Wickiup Reservoir beginning in April, high flows inundate the floodplains and scour riverbanks. Wild grasses and sedges cannot persist in deep water, so the once-vegetated floodplain transforms into mudflats when the water recedes in the winter.
Upper Deschutes, Caitlyn Burford
Here, you see the exposed wetlands. The perched grasses would be frog habitat and the large logs and wood would be prime fish habitat, protective cover near downed logs. In the winter, as the water recedes, fish move from the protected shallows into the open river, under the watchful eye of their aviary predators.
Upper Deschutes, Tod Heisler
A Lesson in Geology
Upper Deschutes, Tod Heisler
Central Oregon’s geology carries a volcanic history. Basalt, pumice and tuff, all originating from volcanic activity, make up the banks of the Deschutes. These porous, erosive materials evolved alongside a river with gentle, consistent flows. When highly volatile river flows were introduced after the construction of Wickiup Dam, the porous banks quickly eroded. In the last 70 years, the river’s channel has eroded 20%.
Rivers Conservation Director Tod Heisler walks along the bank of the Deschutes in the fall. You can see the scale of the bank that has been eroded from the high flood waters in the summer months.
Hope for Restoration
Upper Deschutes, Caitlyn Burford
The Deschutes River has flowed through this region since time immemorial, but it was fundamentally altered by human intervention only seventy years ago. We have the capacity and knowledge and it is not too late to restore this wild and scenic river.
Unfortunately, the Habitat Conservation Plan approved by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service at the end of last year won’t restore the river adequately. The plan specifies virtually no conservation action within the next decade and minimal steps beyond ten years.
LandWatch will keep fighting for the Deschutes. We are continuing to investigate options to restore this magnificent river.
Help us protect the river, and its fish & wildlife, for the future of Central Oregon.