Flaming Gorge Dam
Flaming Gorge Dam stands at 455 feet high and was completed in 1964. The dam was dedicated by former First Lady Mrs. Lyndon B. “Ladybird” Johnson. Water is released from the reservoir into the pwerplant where the water turns turbines which then turn a generator rotor to produce electricity. The power plant generates hydroelectric power of approximately 500,000 megawatt hours of energy a year. That’s enough to power about 150,000 homes and is sold to municipalities, public utilities, and governmental agencies in Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada.
Normally free tours are offered at the Dam but not while we visited. We checked out the Visitors Center and then headed on to our hike. Just past the dam is a hard right hand turn that takes you down to the river level below the dam and we started our hike at the parking lot. Little Hole Trail is a 7 mile trail from the dam to Little Hole. It’s an out and back so you can hike as far as you want and then turn around. We went out about 3.5 miles and turned around and came back.
Little Hole Hike
Little Hole Trail starts with a pretty steep descent down rocks and steps to the boat launch below. From there, it continues along the bank of the river on a VERY narrow piece of trail. In parts, the trail is actually a series of bridges and elevated walkways. Wire enclosures are filled in with rocks and then walkways are attached to the top of these. These are necessary whenever the steep banks can’t support a trail because the river can rise up to 4 feet as water is released. After that steep descent the hike is easy and straightforward. The hardest part is keeping your eyes on the trail instead of on all the gorgeous views!
Both Flaming Gorge Reservoir and Green River are famous for trout fishing and Green River is also famous for rafting.. These famous waters have produced fish of state and world record size, including lake trout over 50 pounds, German brown trout over 30 pounds, and rainbow trout over 25 pounds! We saw several boats drifting along with fly fishers casting lines and indeed, we could see fish in the river as we hiked along. We also saw lizards, snakes, plenty of birds, and a beaver.
Osprey Island
After our hike we headed back to the picnic area on the dam point. From the point you can see Osprey Island. This is a nesting area for osprey. I’ve seen osprey hunt before but didn’t spot any on this day. It is pretty cool to watch though. The Osprey hunt by flying over the reservoir looking for fish just below the surface. When it sees one, the Osprey pulls into a brief stall, flaps its wings a few times and plummets into the water. Back in Bend I used to see Osprey nests along the Deschutes River. The nests are HUGE; sometimes five feet in diameter.
We have about another week in the area and I’m excited for even more adventures.
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