Deschutes River Basin – Streamflow, Canal & Reservoir Gages

About the Deschutes River Basin

The Deschutes River drains the east slope of the Oregon Cascades and the high desert of central Oregon, flowing north about 250 miles from Little Lava Lake to the Columbia River near Biggs. Spring-fed rivers such as the upper Deschutes, Fall River and Metolius run cold and steady, while the Crooked River and the eastern tributaries are snowmelt- and rain-fed with very low late-summer flows. Flows above Lake Billy Chinook are shaped by Crane Prairie, Wickiup, Crescent, Prineville and Ochoco reservoirs and by large irrigation diversions at Bend and Prineville; the Lower Deschutes below the Pelton Round Butte dams is one of Oregon’s most popular rafting and fly-fishing rivers. River Flow Planner covers 74 gages here: USGS gages such as the Deschutes River at Moody (record since 1897) and the Metolius River near Grandview, Oregon Water Resources Department gages throughout the upper basin and the Crooked River, Bureau of Reclamation reservoir levels, and the main irrigation canals.

What River Flow Planner shows for each gage

Each gage page turns the agency’s full daily record into planning tools for fishing, rafting, kayaking, swimming, irrigation and in-stream work:

• Summary hydrograph of typical flows or lake levels through the year
• Percent of time flows fall within a range you choose
• Likely range of flows on future dates you pick
• How a recent period compares with normal, plus a year-by-year spaghetti plot
• Flood frequency statistics for USGS gages with peak-flow records
• CSV downloads and links to current real-time data and short-term forecasts

Deschutes River

Listed upstream to downstream.

Upper Deschutes Tributaries

Tumalo & Whychus Creeks

Crooked River

Metolius & Lower Deschutes Tributaries

Lake & Reservoir Levels

Reservoir water surface elevation in feet; USBR reservoirs use the Bureau of Reclamation Hydromet daily (midnight) reading.

Canals & Diversions

Irrigation and water-supply canals; flows are usually zero or low outside the irrigation season.

Other basins

Rogue River Basin · Klamath River Basin · North Coast Basin · Mid Coast Basin · Umpqua River Basin · South Coast Basin · Willamette River Basin · Sandy River Basin · Hood River Basin · John Day River Basin · Umatilla River Basin · Grande Ronde River Basin · Powder River Basin · Malheur River Basin · Owyhee River Basin · Malheur Lake Basin · Goose & Summer Lakes Basin