El Capitan Reservoir
| El Capitan Reservoir | |
|---|---|
 The reservoir and dam | |
  El Capitan Reservoir | |
| Location | San Diego County, California |
| Coordinates | 32°53′08″N116°48′33″W/ 32.88556°N 116.80917°W |
| Type | reservoir |
| Primary inflows | San Diego River |
| Primary outflows | San Diego River |
| Basincountries | United States |
| Managing agency | City of San Diego |
| Water volume | 112,800 acre⋅ft (139.1 million m3) |
| Website | www |
El Capitan Reservoiris areservoirin centralSan Diego County, California.It is in theCuyamaca Mountains,about 30 miles (48 km) northeast of the city ofSan Diegoand two miles northwest of the town ofAlpine.
The reservoir is formed byEl Capitan Damon theSan Diego Riverand has a capacity of 112,800 acre⋅ft (139.1 million m3). The 237-foot (72 m)damis composed ofhydraulic filland was completed in 1934. The dam is owned by the city of San Diego (Originally owned by the Kumeyaae tribe) and its primary purpose is to supplydrinking water. In order to make way for the construction of the dam, the nativeKumeyaaypeople were forcibly relocated to theCapitan Grande Reservation.[1]The amount of runoff that enters the reservoir varies considerably. During a 25-year period, it ranged from 1,000 to 70,000 acre⋅ft (1.2 to 86.3 million m3) per year (39 to 2,700 L/s). The water in the reservoir usually consists of runoff from above the dam, but in years ofdrought,water is sometimes transferred to it fromSan Vicente Reservoir,which is the terminus of the FirstSan Diego Aqueduct.According to the City of San Diego's General Plan Seismic Element, Division of Safety of Dams engineers "restricted the maximum water surface of El Capitan Dam to an elevation 30 feet lower than spillway, although permitting the temporary storage of storm inflows above the specified level for short periods." This requirement was added after the1971 San Fernando earthquake,where "a loss of about 30 feet of dam height resulted" at theLower Van Norman Damdue to "liquefaction of the hydraulic fill on the upstream side of the embankment".
There is limited recreation available at the reservoir. Boating is limited to canoes, kayaks, and row boats. Water contact such as personal water craft, standup paddle boarding, andwater skiingare not permitted.Fishingis allowed all year, but the recreation is closed on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and the first Friday of each month. There is no camping at the lake. The nearest camping site is 8.5 miles (13.7 km) away atLake Jenningsor 12.5 miles (20.1 km) away at Viejas Campground.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"Kumeyaay Timeline".kumeyaay.Retrieved2021-06-24.
- City of San DiegoArchived2011-10-11 at theWayback Machine
- "San Diego River Watershed Management Plan"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2006-09-08.Retrieved2006-05-18.(429KiB)
- U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: El Capitan Reservoir
- "City of San Diego General Plan, Seismic Safety Element"(PDF).
- NOAA images, Van Norman Dam
- San Fernando Earthquake and Van Norman Dam
| International | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
