New Melones Lake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids New Melones Lake |
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 New Melones Lake
Location in California
New Melones Lake
Location in the United States
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| Location | Calaveras County, California Tuolumne County, California |
| Coordinates | 37°59′56″N 120°31′16″W / 37.9990°N 120.5212°W |
| Lake type | Reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Stanislaus River |
| Primary outflows | |
| Catchment area | 2,300 km2 (890 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Max. length | 12 km (7.5 mi) |
| Max. width | 4 km (2.5 mi) |
| Surface area | 5,100 ha (13,000 acres) |
| Water volume | 2,400,000 acre⋅ft (3,000,000 dam3) |
| Shore length1 | 160 km (99 mi) |
| Surface elevation | 331 m (1,086 ft) |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
New Melones Lake is a large, man-made lake (called a reservoir) in central California. It's located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The lake stretches across parts of both Calaveras County and Tuolumne County.
This lake and its dam are part of a big water system called the Central Valley Project. New Melones Lake helps provide water for farms, makes electricity using water power, and helps control floods. It also offers a home for wildlife. Many people enjoy visiting for fun activities like fishing, camping, and boating.
The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) gives advice about safely eating fish caught in New Melones Lake. This advice helps people know which fish are best to eat and how much, based on certain substances found in them.
Contents
Exploring New Melones Lake's Location
New Melones Lake is created by the New Melones Dam. When the lake is full, it can hold about 2.4 million acre-feet of water. Its surface area covers about 12,500 acres. The shoreline stretches for more than 100 miles, which is a very long distance!
The lake and dam are found west of the towns of Jamestown and Sonora. They are also south of Angels Camp. A special bridge, the Archie Stevenot Bridge, crosses the lake. This bridge carries Highway 49 and marks the border between Calaveras and Tuolumne Counties.
A Look Back: History of New Melones Lake
The area around the Stanislaus River changed a lot starting with the California Gold Rush in the 1840s. This spot was right in the middle of "Gold Country." Miners quickly started changing the river. They dug for gold, moved water, and built towns along the riverbanks. By the early 1900s, people were using the river's flowing water to make electricity. Some water was also sent through canals to help farms in the San Joaquin Valley.
The first Melones Dam was finished in 1926. This created a smaller lake, also called Melones Lake.
Building the New Melones Project
Plans for the much larger New Melones Project began in 1944. The goal was to build a bigger lake and a new hydroelectric power plant. It was also designed to be much better at preventing floods.
Building this new dam was a big debate. Some people were against it. They worried that the dam would flood the river valley. They said it would destroy natural whitewater rapids and unique limestone caves. Many important historical sites along the river would also be covered by water. An environmental group called Friends of the River was even created to try and stop the dam.
Archaeologists studied the area to find and record important historical items. Even with these concerns, the decision was made to build the dam. When the dam was finished, the valley filled with water. This covered the old mining town of Melones and the original Melones Dam.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built the lake. After it was finished in 1980, it was given to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to manage.
Visiting the New Melones Visitor Center and Museum
The New Melones Visitor Center and Museum is a great place to learn more. It has information about the local area's history, culture, and nature. You can see exhibits about how different groups of people used the Stanislaus River. This includes the Miwok Indians, Gold Rush miners, and ranchers. There are also displays about the old town of Robinson Ferry, which later became Melones. Other exhibits teach you about the area's geology, wildlife, and how the New Melones Project was built.
See also
