~ ~ te ~... Geology and Ground-Water ~"' 0... P-. P. p. Resources of the Greybull !Zl"' ~ 2 e::"' River-Dry Creek Area P-. ~ !Zl"' ";;; Wyoming 'b'j,""' 0 '¢ Cl:5"' 1. ;;:: GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1596 ~ Prepared in cooperation with the Wyoming Natural Resource Board and Wyoming State Engineer, and as part of the program of the Interior Department for the develop­ ment of the Missouri River basin Wl.SCONSIN - GeOLOGICAL SURVEY Geology and Ground-Water Resources of the Greybull River-Dry Creek Area Wyoming By CHARLES ]. ROBINOVE and RUSSELL H. LANGFORD GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1596 Prepared in cooperation with the Wyoming Natural Resource Board and Wyoming State Engineer, and as part of the program of the Interior Department for the develop­ ment of the Missouri River basin UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1963 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR STEWART L. UDALL, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Thomas B. Nolan, Director The U.S. Geolo!!.lcal Survey Library cards for this publication appear after pal!.e 88 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Println!l Office Washinl!.ton 25, D.C. CONTENTS Page Abstract__________________________________________________________ 1 Introduction______________________________________________________ 2 Purpose and scope of the investigation___________________________ 2 Location and extent of the area_________________________________ 3 Previous investigations_________________________________________ 3 Acknowledgments ____________________________________________ - 6 Climate______________________________________________________ 6 Well-numbering system________________________________________ 7 Landforms and drainage ________________ ~ ______________________ - ___ - 9 General geology_ _ _ __ __ _ __ _ _ __ __ _ __ _ __ _ __ _ _ __ _ __ _ __ __ __ _ __ __ _ __ _ _ __ 11 Summary of stratigraphy ____________________________________ --- 11 Post-Paleozoic geologic history_ _ __ __ _ __ __ __ __ _ _ __ _ __ _ __ _ __ __ _ __ _ 11 Mesozoic era___ _ __ __ _ __ _ __ __ _ _ __ _ _ __ _ __ __ __ __ _ __ __ _ __ _ __ __ 11 Cenozoic era _____________________________________________ - 13 Groundwater----------------------------------------------------- 15 Principles of occurrence _________________· ______________________ - 15 Water table___________________________________________________ 15 Itecharge_____________________________________________________ 19 Discharge____________________________________________________ 19 Evaporation and transpiration _______________ ------ _____ ---- 19 Seeps, springs, and drains___________________________________ 19 Wells __________________________________________ -.-________ 20 Subsurface outflow_________________________________________ 20 Utilization of water ___________________________________________ - 20 Public supplies____________________________________________ 20 Domestic and stock supplies ___________________ c ___________ - 20 Irrigation supplies_________________________________________ 21 Stratigraphic units and their water-bearing properties _______________ --- 21 Cretaceous system ___ c _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 22 Upper Cretaceous series____________________________________ 22 Mesaverde formation _________________________________ - 22 Lance and Meeteetse formations_________________________ 22 Tertiary system___ _ __ _ __ __ _ __ _ __ _ __ __ __ __ _ _ __ _ __ __ __ __ _ __ __ _ __ 22 Paleocene series __________________________________________ - 22 Fort Union formation _________________________________ - 22 Eocene series______________________________________________ 22 Willwood formation____________________________________ 22 Pliocene series_____________________________________________ 27 Deposits of the !tim terrace __________________________ --- 27 Quaternary system_ _ _ _ __ _ _ __ _ __ __ _ _ __ __ __ _ __ __ _ _ _ __ __ __ __ _ __ _ _ 31 Pleistocene and Itecent series ______________________________ - 31 Deposits of the Sunshine terrace_________________________ 31 Deposits of the Greybull terrace_________________________ 33 Deposits of the numbered terraces_______________________ 33 Alluvium_____________________________________________ 33 m IV CONTENTS Page Chemical quality of the water_______________________________________ 38 Method of study_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 38 Factors affecting water quality__________________________________ 40 Chemical characteristics of the water_____________________________ 42 Applied irrigation water____________________________________ 42 Greybull River________________________________________ 42 Dry Creek____________________________________________ 46 Buffalo Bill Reservoir__________________________________ 48 Relation of chemical characteristics and mineralization to water discharge__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ 48 Water diverted from Greybull River_____________________ 48 Groundwater_____________________________________________ 50 Rocks of Tertiary age__________________________________ 52 Deposits of Quaternary age_____________________________ 54 Deposits of the Sunshine terrace_____________________ 55 Deposits of the Greybull terrace_____________________ 55 Alluvium_________________________________________ 56 Deposits of the Rim terrace and unirrigated deposits of the Sunshine terrace___________________________ 57 Suitability of the water____________________________________ 58 Agricultural use_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 58 Domestic use ____ "_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 63 Summary_________________________________________________________ 65 References cited___________________________________________________ 68 Logs of test holes and wells_________________________________ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ 76 Index____________________________________________________________ 87 ILLUSTRATIONS [Plates are in pocket] PLATE 1. Map of the Greybull River-Dry Creek area, Wyoming, showing geology, depth to water (1956-57), and location of wells, springs, and test holes. 2. Map of the YU Bench showing contours on the bedrock surface. 3. Geologic map of the Emblem Bench showing thickness of deposits of the Sunshine terrace. 4. Geologic map of the Greybull River-Dry Creek area .showing sam­ pling sites and chemical characteristics of ground water. Page FIGURE 1. Map of Wyoming showing the area described in the report___ 4 2. Map of the Bighorn Basin and part of the Wind River Basin__ 5 3. Precipitation at Basin, Wyo., 1898-1957___________________ 7 4. Well-numbering system_________________________________ 8 5. Aerial photograph showing part of the Greybull River valley and the YU Bench____________________________________ 10 6. Photogeologic map of the central part of the Greybull River- Dry Creek area______________________________________ 16 7. Longitudinal (A) and cross profiles (B) of major benches____ 17 8. Occurrence of ground water in the alluvial deposits_________ 18 CONTENTS v Page FIGURE 9. Typical irrigation wells in the alluvial deposits_____________ 21 10. Stratigraphic section along Antelope Creek_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 23 11. Stratigraphic section of part of the Willwood formation and the deposits of the Rim terrace_________________________ 25 12. Deposits of the Rim terrace on south edge of YU Bench_____ 27 13. YU Bench and Emblem Bench___________________________ 28 14. View of Table Mountain, Emblem Bench, south wall of the Dry Creek valley, and Willwood formation______________ 32 15. View of Greybull River downstream from bridge in sec. 6, T. 50 N., R. 98 W., June, 1957_________________________ 36 16. View of Dry Creek valley west from sec. 6, T. 52 N., R. 94 W. 36 17. Map of part of northwestern Wyoming showing chemical characteristics of surface water_________________________ 43 18. Relation of specific conductance to discharge of Greybull River and Dry Creek_________________________________ 49 19. Relation of concentration of sulfate to mineralization of ground water________________________________________ 51 20. Classification of the water for irrigation___________________ 60 TABLES Page TABLE 1. Water levels in observation wells in the Willwood formation__ 26 2. Water levels in observation wells in deposits of the Sunshine terrace______________________________________________ 34 3. Water levels in observation wells in deposi.ts of the Greybull terrace______________________________________________ 35 4. Water levels in observation wells in Greybull River alluvium_ 37 5. Chemical analyses of surface water, Greybull River-Dry Creek area__________________________________________ 44 6. Chemical analyses of water from Bench Canal, Greybull River-Dry Creek area, August 8, 1957__________________ 50 7. Chemical analyses of ground water, Greybull River-Dry Creek area__________________________________________ 52 8, Records of wells, springs, and test holes in the Greybull River- Dry Creek area______________________________________ 70 GEOLOGY AND GROUND-WATER RESOURCES OF THE GREYBULL RIVER-DRY CREEK AREA, WYOMING By CHARLES J. RoBINOVE and RussELL H. LANGFORD ABSTRACT The Greybull River-Dry Creek area, in the central part of the Bighorn Basin, Wyo., is underlain by Quaternary and Tert\ary alluvial and terrace deposits and Tertiary and older bedrock formations. Part of the Emblem Bench, the Grey­ bull terrace, and the alluvial