North Canyon Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed September 2, 2016 southwestward-flowing stream originating on

Snow Valley Peak Snow Valley Peak is a mountain located in the Carson Range of the Sierra Nevada. The mountain lies within the city limits of Carson City, NV. At 9,214 feet in elevation it is also the city's highest point. From the peak Mound House, Carson Ci ...

in the

Carson Range The Carson Range is a spur of the Sierra Nevada in eastern California and western Nevada that starts at Carson Pass and stretches north to the Truckee River near Verdi, Nevada. Geography The mountain range is about 50 miles (80 km) long a ...

of the Sierra Nevada. Most of the stream is in Carson City, Nevada, United States. It is a tributary stream of Lake Tahoe culminating at Glenbrook in Douglas County on Tahoe's Nevada shore.

History

North Canyon Creek's lower portion is designated as Slaughterhouse Creek on USGS maps, the latter name referring to a place where cattle were butchered. The aggressive logging activities of the Comstock Era (1860–1900) had major impacts on North Canyon Creek. In 1870, a flume was constructed within North Canyon to transport fallen logs and supply water to Spooner Lake where lumber could be transported east to Spooner Summit where they could be sent down the Clear Creek Flume to the Carson City lumberyards. Originally a shingle and mill site, much of the Spooner Lake and Glenbrook area became controlled by the Carson Tahoe Lumber and Fluming Company (CTLFC), a monopoly lumber business during the Comstock Era owning nearly one-fifth of the basin lands. Large stands of timber along the east shore of Lake Tahoe were cut during the mid-1870s and most of the clear cutting was completed by the 1880s, with the Glenbrook Railroad transported logs from the lower elevations to Spooner Summit.

Watershed and course

Clear-cutting of the Carson Range at Spooner Summit in 1876 with Virginia and Truckee Railroad moving lumber

North Canyon Creek's source is on the western flank of Snow Valley Peak at , and flows southerly down North Canyon from just below

Marlette Lake The Marlette Lake Water System was created to provide water for the silver mining boom in Virginia City, Nevada. These structures are now listed as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers, and are ...

to Spooner Meadow, where it receives outflows from Spooner Lake. The upper reaches receive flows from a Comstock era man-made diversion from upper Secret Harbor Creek into North Canyon Creek. The diversion increased the watershed catchment area from to . Just north of the intersection of Highway 50 and Highway 28, North Canyon Creek enters Spooner Meadow where it receives outflows from Spooner Lake, a man-made reservoir formed by a dam built in the 1860s. The Spooner Lake watershed is approximately but peak flows from the lake are limited by Spooner Dam. Since the 1930s Spooner Lake has been used to store water for irrigation and recreational fishing. At Spooner Meadow, North Canyon Creek turns west and then northwest along Highway 28 before turning to the southwest and flowing down Slaughterhouse Canyon to Glenbrook and Lake Tahoe. The stream flows throw the Toiyabe National Forest and Lake Tahoe – Nevada State Park.

Habitat and wildlife

Historical beaver dams in Spooner Meadow indicate past use by this semi-aquatic mammal and would likely have acted to increase the watered area of the meadow. In the early 20th century, rancher Charles Fulstone hired a caretaker to control the beaver population, and construct fences and irrigation ditches in the meadow. This information is consistent with recent physical evidence that beaver were historically present in the Sierra Nevada, as well as historical observer records from the northern to southern ends of this mountain range. Mammals currently inhabiting North Canyon Creek include the American marten (''Martes americana''),

northern flying squirrel The northern flying squirrel (''Glaucomys sabrinus'') is one of three species of the genus '' Glaucomys'', the only flying squirrels found in North America.Walker EP, Paradiso JL. 1975. ''Mammals of the World''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Universit ...

(''Glaucomys sabrinus''), Douglas squirrel (''Tamiasciurus douglasii''), Allen's chipmunk (''Tamias senex''), alpine chipmunk (''Tamias alpinus''), golden-mantled ground squirrel (''Spermophilus lateralis''), gray squirrel (''Sciurus griseus''), and multiple bat species, snowshoe hare (''Lepus americanus''), mountain cottontail (''Sylvilagus nuttallii''), bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), Cougar, puma (''Puma concolor''), American black bear, black bear (''Ursus americanus''), gray fox (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus''), long-tailed weasel (''Mustela frenata''), coyote (''Canis latrans''), raccoon ''(Procyon lotor''), and Trowbridge's shrew (''Sorex trowbridgii''). Non-native brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is the only fish known to occupy North Canyon Creek in recent times. Brook trout prey on native Lahontan cutthroat trout (''Oncorhynchus clarkii henshawi'') and compete with them for food. Spooner Lake is stocked with multiple trout species but the native tui chub, Lahontan tui chub (''Gila bicolor'') has come to dominate the lake.

Trails and recreation

Marlette Lake Trail in North Canyon begins at Spooner Lake and climbs due north through aspen groves for about elevation to a ridge overlooking North Canyon, and finally down into

. Alternatively, one can ascend the west flank of Snow Valley Peak.

References

External links