Mckenzie SOUTH FORK

Bull Trout Population Study in the Middle Fork Willamette and McKenzie River Drainage Basins June - November 1994 Stephen D. Hammond Giles C. Thelen Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife 3150 East Main Street Springfield, OR 97478 November 1994 CONTENTS Page MAINSTEM McKENZIE POPULATION SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 1 JUVENILE SURVEYS: Lower Separation Creek ................................................................................. 2 Upper Separation Creek and Separation Lake............................................... 4 Harvey Creek.................................................................................................. 5 George Creek ................................................................................................. 6 Anderson Creek.............................................................................................. 7 Olallie Creek ................................................................................................... 8 Creek 58 ......................................................................................................... 9 Buck Side Channel ......................................................................................... 10 Sweetwater Creek........................................................................................... 11 ADULT SURVEYS: McKenzie Standard Pool Check ..................................................................... 12 SPAWNING SURVEYS: Separation Creek............................................................................................ 18 Anderson and Ollalie ...................................................................................... 19 SOUTH FORK McKENZIE POPULATION SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 24 JUVENILE SURVEYS: South Fork ...................................................................................................... 25 Elk Creek ........................................................................................................ 28 Roaring River.................................................................................................. 29 French Pete Creek.......................................................................................... 32 ADULT SURVEYS: South Fork ..................................................................................................... 33 Standard Pools ............................................................................................... 40 MIDDLE FORK WILLAMETTE POPULATION SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 45 JUVENILE SURVEYS Beaver Creek.................................................................................................. 46 Chuckle Spring ............................................................................................... 49 Found Creek................................................................................................... 50 Indigo Creek ................................................................................................... 51 Pioneer Gulch................................................................................................. 52 Middle Fork Willamette ................................................................................... 53 ADULT/SPAWNING SURVEYS Middle Fork Willamette and Simpson Creek Spawning.................................. 54 Found and Swift Creek Spawning................................................................... 58 North Fork of Middle Fork Willamette Adults .................................................. 61 MAINSTEM McKENZIE POPULATION SUMMARY Historically, bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) were either a contiguous population ranging from the lower McKenzie River up to Tamolitch Falls and extending up the larger tributaries, or two populations with overlapping distributions and some genetic interchange. If two populations did exist, one may have spawned in the upper reaches of the South Fork and one in the upper reaches of the mainstem. Spawning habitat is thought to be a limiting factor for this populations. Culvert modification to allow migration of spawning adults has been completed on Sweetwater Creek. Modification of the Olallie Creek culvert under highway 126 is scheduled for summer 1995. Angling is also a concern for the bull trout. Catch and release regulations are in effect, and identification signs have been posted at campsites and fishing holes. There is some possibility for a bull trout hybridization with brook trout S. fontinalis above Trail Bridge Reservoir and in the Horse Creek Basin, where a hybrid was identified in 1992 by Forest Service biologists. conducted juvenile surveys in Creek 58, Buck Side Channel and in the Horse Creek basin, including Separation, Harvey, and George Creeks. The 1994 field surveys during the summer have provided important and useful information. Spawning surveys on Anderson Creek were expanded to include the entire stream. Thirty redds were documented, and their depths and water velocities measured. Three redds were observed on Olallie Creek, one of which had two bull trout on it. This is the first time bull trout have been observed spawning in Olallie Creek. Twenty three age 0 bull trout in Olallie Creek that had been transferred there in March 1994. Juvenile bull trout were also transferred to Sweetwater Creek in 1993 and 1994. A night snorkel survey located 11 age 1+ and seven age 0 bull trout all within 50m of the stocking point. Surveys on lower Separation Creek located one 6-8" bull trout. Fish identified last year as bull trout were actually spring chinook. In the Three Sisters Wildlerness, Upper Separation, Harvey,and George Creeks were surveyed, but no bull trout were located. Creek 58 and Buck Side Channel surveys on the mainstem McKenzie also failed to locate any bull trout. Snorkeling the mainstem McKenzie River between Olallie Campground and Paradise Campground may prove to be a useful method to index bull trout populations. It appears that the adult bull trout seem to be staging in the deeper pools in the McKenzie before moving to spawning areas. SEPARATION CREEK (LOWER) 1<ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">July 12, 1994; 0900- 1400 </li></ul><ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">G. Thelen, S. Lewis </li><li style="flex:1">PERSONNEL: </li></ul>WEATHER: OBSERVATIONS: Sunny 85°F; water temperature 46°F 1 bull trout - 250mm Chinook fry: 65-75 observed Cutthroat trout (approx. 45) Rainbow trout (approx. 35) NOTES: We surveyed from the 100m below the confluence of Horse Creek and Separation Creek to 1.2 miles up Separation Creek. The water moved at a high velocity through much of the channel, but there were several side channels and margin areas which were prime bull trout habitat, which includes slower water, woody detritus, and good canopy cover. In these areas we observed a bull trout (Fig 1.), several chinook and many cutthroat. Stream habitat consisted of many log jams, woody debris, and root wads. The substrata was made up of large cobble and boulders, with areas of gravel and silt in the slower water. Much canopy cover was provided by the healthy old growth, mixed age stand of fir, hemlock, cedar, and vine maple. We located the bull trout in the second side channel about .3 miles up from the confluence of Separation Creek and Horse Creek. The water velocity here was medium to still, and varied in depth from six-36 inches. This area is covered by a vegetation bridge which provides much cover. We observed the trout about 10 meters up from the downstream side of this sided channel at the beginning of this vegetation bridge. He was in still water in a dark area, so a flashlight was necessary. Five yards downstream from this location on the North bank was an undercut of an old growth cedar which seemed to be prime juvenile habitat. Five chinook fry were observed here and one possible bull trout fry about 35mm in length. Cutthroat were the primary trout observed. Of the 45 observed 20 were below 100mm and 25 were between 100-250mm. The rainbow ranged in sizes between 30-100mm (15) and 100-300mm (20). The 70 chinook observed were between 25-100mm in length. 2SEPARATION CREEK (UPPER) and SEPARATION LAKE <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">September 7, 1994; 1900-2200 </li></ul>PERSONNEL: WEATHER: OBSERVATIONS: G. Thelen, S. Hammond, (D. Bickford, J. Capurso USFS) Clear, sunny. Water temperature: 8°C Cutthroat: 25mm - 230mm Sculpin: 50mm - 100mm NOTES: We sampled from where trail 3536 first nears Separation Creek downstream about 600m to the bottom of a large side channel. For lake, just continue on trail to marked lake turn off. The two teams split up at the bottom of a side channel and worked upstream, with Jim and Dave working the main channel and Steve and Giles going up the side channel. They reported that the main channel had swift water and a steep gradient, so not much good habitat in the margins or on the channel was seen - only one nice lateral scour pool with deep undercut banks. There were a few good plunge pools, but no bull trout seen. Their last 200m had log jams, pools, and decent cover and habitat for adults and juvenile bull trout. The side channel we went on had lots of nice rearing habitat for bull trout. There were many margins and side channels of this side channel that provided lots of cover via downed logs, and sunken woody debris. The last 200m here had lots of successive 1.8m - 2.4m deep pools caused by log jams, providing nice spawning gravel at the tail end of these pools. This stretch cuts through where a forest used to be, so there's many standing snags and islands of vegetation. This, however, opened up the canopy so there's not much protection provided from the elements. The substrata consisted mostly of sand and silt, with areas of gravel and cobble. Both teams than worked together up the main cannel for 50m, but this was mostly riffles with a cobble and boulder substrate, and no good habitat was observed for juvenile bull trout. We walked along Separation Cr. for several miles, and it was confined through much of this stretch, with exposed bedrock along the banks in many areas. Some decent marginal pockets, but not much. Separation Lake had ducks, heron, frogs, red-tailed hawks, and a brook trout about 200mm was caught, with many more biting on the line. The creek about 5m up from the trail junction had nice juvenile habitat, but no fish were observed. 3HARVEY CREEK <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">September 7, 1994; 1800-2000 </li></ul>PERSONNEL: WEATHER: G.Thelen, S. Hammond. D. Bickford, J. Capurso (USFS). Clear. Water temperature: 9°C OBSERVATIONS: Cutthroat: 25mm - 130mm Sculpin: 50mm - 75mm NOTES: From confluence of Harvey and Separation Cr. upstream 200m. Take Folley Ridge road to trailhead 3536. Follow trail to first close contact with Separation Cr. Follow side channel on left facing downstream (through the "dead forest") to the mouth of Harvey Cr. George Cr. has it's mouth downstream about 50m of the confluence of this side channel. The two teams worked from the confluence of the side channel up to the mouth of Harvey Cr. We than split up, with Dave and Jim working up Harvey Cr., and Steve and Giles working up the side channel, thinking that Harvey came in at two places. It doesn't, so we continued up the side channel and onto the main channel for 200m, finding no good habitat for juvenile bull trout up stream of the "dead forest". The other team reported that Harvey Cr. had poor spawning habitat, with little gravel available. Woody detritus in the channel was associated with high levels of silt. There is good rearing habitat in the multiple side channels, but few cutthroat were observed. There is wood available for cover, but no bull trout seen. 4GEORGE CREEK <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">September 7, 1994; 1800-2000 </li></ul>PERSONNEL: WEATHER: G.Thelen, S. Hammond, (D. Bickford, J. Capurso USFS). Clear. Water temperature: 9°C OBSERVATIONS: Cutthroat NOTES: Take Folley Ridge road to trailhead 3536. Follow trail to first close contact with Separation Cr. Follow side channel on left facing downstream (through the "dead forest") to the mouth of Harvey Cr. George Cr. has it's mouth downstream about 50m of the confluence of this side channel. The mouth of George Cr. was only three feet wide, so we did not snorkel. Only cutthroat were observed by a visual search. 5ANDERSON CREEK <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">August 1, 1994; 1500-1700 </li></ul>G. Thelen, S. Hammond Sunny, 80°F PERSONNEL: WEATHER: OBSERVATIONS: 7 bull trout observed: 5 0-year about 25mm; two 65mm. NOTES: Downstream from highway 126 culvert about 100m. We found five 0 year bull trout at the third major log jam below the culvert. They were on the left bank going downstream (west) in the slow moving water in the margin area. A 65mm bull trout was seen below this log jam on east bank margin in an undercut bank. The last bull trout observed was across from an old road used for stream habitat restoration, so it's the first road which comes to the water on the east bank side. The bull trout was on the west bank side in calm water behind a boulder on the margin. 6OLALLIE CREEK <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">August 17, 1994; 2140-2330 </li></ul>G. Thelen, S. Hammond Clear; water temp. 39°F PERSONNEL: WEATHER: OBSERVATIONS: Bull trout: 23 juveniles (stocked in March 1994) - 35mm-55mm NOTES: Beginning of Olallie Creek (where the water started) to major spring entering the creek from the west 30m from the confluence with a tributary entering from the east. FS rd. 2657 to primitive campsite to right just west to FS rd. 830. Follow rough trail southwest to creek (look for three standing metal fence posts and white water heater tank on its side). A visual surface search (no snorkeling) located five bull trout in very small pools where the trail met the creek (probably where it was stocked). We traveled 15m upstream to where the creek started and located two bull trout above the trail and the other three at the trail. We continued downstream and noticed the remaining bull trout became increasingly dispersed. The last one was observed just upstream of the first of two springs that entered the creek. The temperature of both springs was 37°F. The water flow from the second spring was 2-3 times the flow of the creek above the spring. The first spring was about 2/3 of the creek flow. Habitat above the first spring was good. Downed logs, woody debris, in-stream detritus, and canopy provided excellent cover (about 65% of the creek was completely covered). Old growth and younger cedar, Douglas fir, and hemlock lined both steep banks. There was little erosion and infrequent undercut banks in this section. Water velocity and volume below the first spring increased dramatically, which reduced the number of calm pools and backwater. The search was terminated at the second spring. This section was also stocked with juvenile chinook, but none were observed. 7CREEK 58 <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">July 14, 1994; 2130-2300 </li></ul>S. Lewis, U. S. Forest Service Clear, 50°F. Night snorkel PERSONNEL: WEATHER: OBSERVATIONS: Approximately 20 cutthroat trout (50mm-200mm) 1 sculpin. NOTES: McKenzie Hwy 126, less than a mile west of McKenzie Ranger Station. Small wooden fence on north side of road is the only marking. From pool below Hwy 126 culvert to marshy source. No bull trout were observed. Only cutthroat were seen. Very shallow water. Most of area could not be snorkeled, only probed with lights. Cobbled creek with mostly exposed small rocks turning into tall grass cover toward source. Could not even probe with lights in the grass cover area. 8BUCK SIDE CHANNEL <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">August 31, 1994; 0800-1500 </li></ul>PERSONNEL: WEATHER: G. Thelen, eight members of Blue River USFS fish crew Sunny, 85°F OBSERVATIONS: No bull trout 250 chinook juveniles 125 cutthroat from 25-250mm red -legged frogs, sculpins, and a Pacific giant salamander NOTES: The entire length of Buck Side Channel, about 700m, was surveyed. Take highway 126 to road 2650, about two miles past Belknap Springs. This was a level 3 stream habitat survey to determine the length and position of each fish species found in the channel. We broke up into three groups consisting of two snorkelers and a recorder. Several 150mm bull trout were observed here earlier in the year, but no bull trout were observed this time (the water level was now much lower). There was good habitat in places on this channel, much of which was created by the USFS, such as log jams, which created nice glides, pools, and woody cover. There were also some good root wads and undercut banks, but cutthroat and chinook were the only fish seen. 9SWEETWATER CREEK NIGHT SNORKEL <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">July 6, 1994 </li></ul>PERSONNEL: WEATHER: OBSERVATIONS: S. Lewis, G. Thelen Clear, warm Bull Trout: 1 95mm - 125mm 10 25mm - 60mm Cutthroat: Numerous NOTES: All juvenile bull trout observed in mossy margins adjacent to the stocking site. Heavy blowdown throughout channel due to clearcut 30m to the west. <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">DATE: </li><li style="flex:1">September 14, 1994; 2030-2200 </li></ul>G. Thelen, S. Hammond, J. Karagavoorian (USFS) Clear PERSONNEL: WEATHER: OBSERVATIONS: Bull trout: 11 95mm-125mm 7 25mm-60mm Cutthroat: numerous 100mm-175mm NOTES: From below old bridge on Rd. 720 (stocking location) downstream 150m. McKenzie Hwy. east to Rd. 720 (adjacent to Trail Bridge Reservoir). This road has a locked gate - need Forest Service key. This section had excellent cover provided by heavy tree blowdown from adjacent clearcut to west. In-stream habitat was also good, provided by woody debris and overhanging and aquatic vegetation. All bull trout were observed in the last 50m below the bridge. All larger bull trout were out in the channel, many interspersed with cutthroat. The smaller ones were all near the bridge where they were stocked, up in the moss and vegetation in the margins. 10 MCKENZIE RIVER STANDARD POOL CHECK Olallie Boat Ramp to Paradise Campground July 7, 1994 <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">PERSONNEL: </li><li style="flex:1">M. Wade, G. Thelen, S. Lewis </li></ul>The purpose of this trip was to train Giles and Sandy on fish identification and to an explore the possibility of inventorying bull trout in the mainstem McKenzie by snorkeling. We got a rather late start at about 1:00 and consequently did not do a thorough job on counting fish besides bull trout. This trip should be repeated latter this year to obtain changes in bull trout distribution and to make a more complete count of other fish. The weather was clear and sunny with an air temperature of 90oF. Pool locations are on the attatched map (Fig. 2), and results displayed graphically (Fig. 3). 1. Olallie boat ramp: Saw 3 bull trout about 12, 12 and 18 inches. They were on the far side of the pool from the ramp mixed in with whitefish near the bottom. 2. Deer Creek: No bull trout. We just got a brief look before some anglers arrived. The water appeared too swift. but may be better later in the year as the flow drops. 3. Frissell Creek: No bull trout in a small shallow pool just above the mouth of Frissell Creek. 4. Highway pool: Saw 2 bull trout, 14 and 24 inches, in quiet water on the bottom. 5. Ledge pool: Saw 1 bull trout about 12 inches. Anglers were present so we did not get as good of a look as we wanted. 6. Upper Belknap: Saw 3 bull trout, 18, 24 and 24 inches. the smaller one was near the head of the pool and the other 2 were on the right near the tail of the pool. 7. Lower Belknap: No bull trout but 1 salmon. 8. Upper Bigelow: No bull trout but 2 salmon. 9. Bigelow Logjam: Did not sample but should in the future. 10. Bigelow Bridge: No bull trout. TOTAL: 9 bull trout observed McKENZIE RIVER - Olallie Boat Ramp to Paradise Campground - continued 11 July 27, 1994 <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">PERSONNEL: </li><li style="flex:1">M. Wade, G. Thelen, S. Lewis </li></ul>The same group returned and snorkeled the same holes, plus looked at a few additional ones between Paradise Campground and McKenzie bridge Campground, but none were snorkeled in this stretch. The water temperature was 7.5°C at Olallie Campground and it was 85°F and sunny outside. Time was 1100 - 1700. 1. Olallie boat ramp: Saw five bull trout here in about the same location. Sizes were: two 24”; one 20”; one 14”; and one 12”. The water here was very murky, and so our visibility was limited. 2. Deer Creek: One bull trout was observed about 24” in length off to the west bank at lower end of pool. 4. Highway pool: No bull trout seen. Visibility was better in these lower pools. 5. Ledge pool: Two bull trout observed, one 24” and one 18”. They were seen threefourths of the way through the pool; on the west bank side towards the middle of water.

Mckenzie SOUTH FORK

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