Steele Bayou ??

[BR549]

All Im saying is the stage comparisons are not always the same. The steele Bayou gates are a ways up the Yazoo River. The stages are probably more affected by the water coming down the Yazoo than they are by the water in the MS river. When the MS is high and the Yazoo can no longer drain then it starts to back up. I forget the exact formula to convert the river stage at Vicksburg to the actual sea level that the gates at Steele Bayou are measured by. It is around 2 to one but that's not exact. When I speak of closing off the sea wall at Vicksburg it's to keep the water from backing out into levee street in downtown Vicksburg. It's around 43 to 44 feet on the Vicksburg guage. When the water gets that high it will make the yazoo back up all the way past the steel bayou gates. Flood stage At Vicksburg and the 87-89 ft elevations at the Steele bayou gates are about the same. This would be on basicaly a "flat" river. Meaning there is little to no current moving either way. Once this happens if we were to get a big rain inside the steele bayou area there is no where for the water to go. No way for it to get out unless it is pumped over the levee that is. In '73 the river was appx 51 and a half feet and the steele bayou was at appx 101.5. No water was moving either way. You can form your own conclusions from this. (I guess) We need to keep the water on the landside no more than 89 if possible. Starting the pumps at 87 is just a safeguard to ensure it won't build up any more than the 89' target level is the way I understand it. At 89' sea level you won't drive thru Delta National Forest! All the roads will be under water! I doubt there is any land south of hwy 16 in the forest over 91' elevation. Where would all the game go then? Not to mention all the farmland that would be underwater by these levels.
Not trying to pick a fight with you but gee how hard is it to understand?You tilt a pan a little and start pouring water in from the top where does it all go? once it reaches the bottom it starts backing up the pan! It's the same senario here only on a larger scale. Without a way to get it out over the levee thousands of acres will go under water and MILLIONS of animals will die! How would you like to be out there trying to survive with every critter in the forest pushed up on one ridge?

[Wildfowler]

At 89' sea level you won't drive thru Delta National Forest! All the roads will be under water! I doubt there is any land south of hwy 16 in the forest over 91' elevation.

I didn't know this fact. This is basically what I've been trying to understand this whole time. What's really being affected by these certain water levels.

It just seemed odd to me when I noticed the level of the Steele bayou the other day was just three feet lower than it would need to be for the pumps to activate and I knew the river wasn't nearing flood stage. I had no idea that we were approaching a critical stage and that another five feet of water would have shut down all the roads through DNF. I am skeptical until I understand something and was trying to think through this on my own.

Thanks for bearing with me through this. I'll probably have more questions at some point.

[BR549]

With where we at right now it's a good possibility the turkey season in the forest could get shut down. All it would take is a couple of good rains in the north end of the basin to put a lot of it under water. Whe the 707 road goes under just north of Barge lake they will stop the traffic going thru there. Season will stay open till it goes under down around the lower duckpond. Then they usually will shuit it down. When the water gets close to those levels you really have to know your way around in there or you will get cut off from reaching most of the birds in the forest.

[Wildfowler]

With where we at right now it's a good possibility the turkey season in the forest could get shut down. All it would take is a couple of good rains in the north end of the basin to put a lot of it under water. Whe the 707 road goes under just north of Barge lake they will stop the traffic going thru there. Season will stay open till it goes under down around the lower duckpond. Then they usually will shuit it down. When the water gets close to those levels you really have to know your way around in there or you will get cut off from reaching most of the birds in the forest.

What reading does it take to close either turkey or deer season? Maybe I should have asked to know when the 707 road goes underwater.

[BR549]

Thats kinda hard to answer. If it's backed up any at all a heavy rain could put it under but usually only for a short time. In that case they wouldn't try to interupt the seasons. Top of the dummy line is around 92 to 94 feet If I remember right. You know how much higher the dummy line is than the 707 and 715 roads are. I would say if it was backed up and at 87 or better the forest would be closed to hunting. At least on the south end anyhow. I don't know if there is an "official" stage where they would close the seasons. The law just states that anytime game is forced from their natural habitat due to flooding the season is automaticaly closed. I know behind the levee they kinda stick with a certian gauge reading in their areas. Sorry but that's about as definitive as I can be. I don't that there is a set number.

[Wildfowler]

Top of the dummy line is around 92 to 94 feet If I remember right. You know how much higher the dummy line is than the 707 and 715 roads are.

That really helps me understand the perspective of this issue. I really thought the top of the dummy line road would have been 100 feet or better. Yes, understanding the reason why this floods the way it does, is not difficult. But when I don't know at what level certain events occur. Like those lower roads going underwater, I'm having to come up with my own way of evaluating this as best I can.

So at 84 feet two weeks ago, water should have been lapping at the base of the dummy line road. I just never dreamed that would have been the case.


Thanks.

[SoftCall]

What was the reading mid April 1997 Wildfowler?

[Wildfowler]

What was the reading mid April 1997 Wildfowler?

Landside rose to 90 feet in March, and looks to have peaked at just above 93 feet on April 13 of that year.

Riverside also went to 80 feet on March 1, then peaked at 98 feet on March 28.

MS at Vicksburg was around 33 feet at beginning of March, and peaked at almost 49 feet by the end of March. WOW!!

[BR549]

That's what I was saying about the stages. It's hard to put an exact gauge to a stage anywhere unless everything is flat and just stacking up. I've seen several feet diffenence on the landside of steel bayou vs sunflower. Rainfall in the right places and how fast water can get to a certian point at a given time can make all the difference in the world. I've been living around it all my life. I really don't use the guages except for reference. When I ride over little river @ 16 and see where the water is on the banks then I know what to expect further south in the forest. Little river is a big bottleneck for the water getting past the forest. Sometimes the north end will be flooded and the south end will still be dry. Why? Simply cause the water can't get down there quick enough. But once it does the north end my be dry and the lower end be flooded.

[YazooValley]

Top of the dummy line is around 92 to 94 feet If I remember right. You know how much higher the dummy line is than the 707 and 715 roads are.

Topo maps say that the 707 road is 92 or 93 feet. There are a couple of low spots though. The dummy line is 96 to 99 feet.

[peewee]

Topo maps say that the 707 road is 92 or 93 feet. There are a couple of low spots though. The dummy line is 96 to 99 feet

The low spots would make the road impassable. They will shut the road down before it ever gets to 92 feet (I am pretty sure).

[BR549]

The top of the Long Bayou Greentree levee is 91. It's a good foot to foot and a half higher that the 715 road. The water in the duckpond was at 87.4 YESTERDAY. I looked at the gauge when I walked by it yesterday. The guages have been shot with an instrument the topo map is a best guess buy someone putting numbers on a map. Go look for yourself if you don't believe me.

[Wildfowler]

The top of the Long Bayou Greentree levee is 91. It's a good foot to foot and a half higher that the 715 road. The water in the duckpond was at 87.4 YESTERDAY. I looked at the gauge when I walked by it yesterday. The guages have been shot with an instrument the topo map is a best guess buy someone putting numbers on a map. Go look for yourself if you don't believe me.

I'm confused. Is the whole area flooded to 87.4 feet right now? Or is this just the amount of water in an artificially flooded GTR? I'm asking because the landside gauge reads 82.2 feet right now. http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/WaterCon ... &fid=&dt=S

[BR549]

That's right, that's water that was held in there or rather pumped in there. It's draining out and running down the ditches now. I was just using that for reference cause I looked at it yesterday. The topo map is not always accurate. There is a lot of water just to the east of that greentree though. You need hipboots to get around in there. By the way Little river at hwy 16 was at 88 ft yesterday. Good current so there is still a lot of water headed south.

[Meeka]

Allright BR, you sure know a lot not to know much. Take this to the bank, at around 90-91, parts of 707, in the two or so low places go under. Dummy line is WAY above that level. At 89, a lot of DNF is under water, but some isn't. At 89, you could wade across DNF, if it weren't for ditches. ANd you mentioned you couldn't drive through? Where do you get all this?