Bureau of Reclamation issues snowmelt forecast

BILLINGS — The Bureau of Reclamation’s February forecast of the April through July runoff predicted for the Big Horn River Basin is as follows:

• Big Horn Lake – Big Horn River April through July inflow to Big Horn Lake is forecast to be approximately 762,000 acre-feet (af), which is 60% of the 30-year average of 1,264,000 af.  As of February 1, Big Horn Lake is 86% full.

A reservoir is considered full when the pool elevation is at the top of active conservation or joint-use pool. The percentage is based on total reservoir volume below that level.

• Buffalo Bill Reservoir - Shoshone River April through July inflow to Buffalo Bill Reservoir is forecast at 530,000 af, which is 70% of the 30-year average of 754,000 af. As of January 1, Buffalo Bill is 74% full.

• Boysen Reservoir - Wind River April through July inflow to Boysen Reservoir is forecast at 520,000 af, which is 83% of the 30-year average of 625,000 af. As of January 1, Boysen Reservoir is 85% full.

• Bull Lake Reservoir - April through July snowmelt runoff into Bull Lake Reservoir from Bull Lake Creek is expected to be 120,000 af, which is 82% of the 30-year average of 146,000 af. As of January 1, Bull Lake Reservoir is 47% full.

The Big Horn Basin is a plateau region and intermontane basin, approximately 100 miles wide, in north-central Wyoming. It is bounded by the Absaroka Range on the west, the Pryor Mountains on the north, the Big Horn Mountains on the east and the Wind River and Granite Mountains on the south. It is drained to the north by tributaries of the Big Horn River, which enters the basin from the southwest, and passes through a gap between the Owl Creek and Bridger Mountains as the Wind River before changing its name to the Big Horn River at Wedding of the Waters, south of Thermopolis.

For additional information on Buffalo Bill, Boysen and Bull Lake Reservoirs, contact Wyoming Area Manager Lyle Myler at 307-261-5671. For additional information on Big Horn Lake, contact Montana Area Manager Ryan Newman at 406-247-7298.