UglyStick
07-13-2015, 01:52 PM
Had a chance to swing by Split Rock the other day for a little recon...
The construction on the dam appears completely finished with almost all of the equipment gone, no workers present and nothing looking unfinished. The section of Split Rock road over the dam is still closed. Most likely they are still finishing the inspections, etc. The water is still down but I was able to take several accurate measurements on the dam and water level. When the reservoir fills back up, the normal full pool water level will be the same as the old full level. Currently, the water is down just over 4 feet from normal full. In one picture you can clearly see the splliway in the center of the dam which represents where water will flow out at normal full pool. Since there is a minimum required flow that must feed the outlet stream I could not tell if they are still maintaining a lowered level or have begun to let the reservoir refill as it will take some time. There are now metered traffic lights, similar to the infamous 5 minute light, for the roadway over the dam. In the pics, you can also see the new official use only boat ramp next to the dam. I also was told by what I consider a reputable source that the state is not going forward with expanding the public access and boat launch due to finding American indian artifacts in the area. I took all photos except for the aerial pic which is from the engineers website.
The construction on the dam appears completely finished with almost all of the equipment gone, no workers present and nothing looking unfinished. The section of Split Rock road over the dam is still closed. Most likely they are still finishing the inspections, etc. The water is still down but I was able to take several accurate measurements on the dam and water level. When the reservoir fills back up, the normal full pool water level will be the same as the old full level. Currently, the water is down just over 4 feet from normal full. In one picture you can clearly see the splliway in the center of the dam which represents where water will flow out at normal full pool. Since there is a minimum required flow that must feed the outlet stream I could not tell if they are still maintaining a lowered level or have begun to let the reservoir refill as it will take some time. There are now metered traffic lights, similar to the infamous 5 minute light, for the roadway over the dam. In the pics, you can also see the new official use only boat ramp next to the dam. I also was told by what I consider a reputable source that the state is not going forward with expanding the public access and boat launch due to finding American indian artifacts in the area. I took all photos except for the aerial pic which is from the engineers website.