rendered unsxiitable for salmon spaifming although the dredge itself may 

 not reach them for yearso All gold mining activities in the John Day 

 River system were suspended diiring the war. Observations made in 19hh 

 indicate that normal stream action had cleaned the silted areas in the 

 short span of two years, making them again suitable for spaTming. 

 Dredging, according to local reports, has been proceeding intermittently 

 for about 25 years, and very probably has contributed to the depletion 

 of the salmon runs in the river. Of the many local residents inter- 

 viewed, none had seen or heard of a salmon in the upper main river for 

 many years, but all spoke of the large runs of 25 or 30 years ago. It 

 was reported that large runs of steelhead trout also formerly entered 

 the river. Rtms of these fish are greatly depleted at the present time, 

 but some continue to come into the river each year and a few are taken 

 by anglers. Most of the steelhead in the present runs enter the North 

 and Middle Forks and proceed to their tributaries to spawn. The 19hh 

 run was the heaviest for the past 10 years and attracted many anglers 

 to Camas Creek, a tributary of the North Fork. Nimerous plantings of 

 steelhead fingerlings have been made in this stream by the Oregon Game 

 Commission. 



The only permanent barrier to the migration of fish on the 

 main John Day River, aside from the dredged sections described above, 

 is the West Coast Power and Light Company dam located about 3 miles 

 above Prairie City» This dam is 6 feet high, has no fishway, and is 

 a barrier to upstream migration except perhaps for a few steelhead trout. 

 Approximately 60 c.f.s. is diverted at this point for the generation of 

 electric power. The diversion is not screened. However, the remaining 

 12 miles of stream above this structure is of little possible value to 

 salmon and steelhead. 



In the main river valley beginning a few miles above Prairie City 

 and extending downstream to Dayville water is extensively diverted for 

 irrigation. There are eleven major diversions in this section carrying 

 from 5 to UO c.f.s., and numerous smaller ones diverting from less than 

 1 to 3 c.f.s. None of these diversions were provided with screens at the 

 time of survey. All of the dams in connection with these diversions are 

 of temporary construction. They are loose rock and bnish structures 

 rarely exceeding 2 feet in height, and because of their loose construction 

 no water spills over their crests, but percolates through from end to end. 

 Thus, while these structures are in place they are barriers to both up- 

 stream and downstream migrants. These dams are usually put in during the 

 month of May and are carried away by the early spring freshets the follow- 

 ing year. 



There are numerous tributaries to the main John Day River, but only 

 the North Middle, and South Forks and a few of their larger tributaries 

 are of present or potential value to salmon and steelhead trout* 



2A. Hay Creek and 2B. Butte Creek . — (Unsurveyed) Small, intermit- 

 tent tributaries of the lower John Day River that are of no value to 

 salmon and steelhead trout. 



17 



