A spring creek is a type of free flowing

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

whose name derives from its origin: an underground

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season) Spring, also known as springtime, is one of the four temperate seasons, succeeding winter and preceding summer. There are various technical definitions of spring, but local usage of ...

or set of springs which produces sufficient

water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...

to consistently feed a unique river. The water flowing in a spring creek may additionally be fed by snow pack or rain run-off, as in most traditional free-flowing rivers, but often the entire water source for a spring creek is an

aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing, permeable rock, rock fractures, or unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Groundwater from aquifers can be extracted using a water well. Aquifers vary greatly in their characterist ...

or other underground water source. For this reason, spring creeks are often filled with very pure, clean water and also demonstrate water flows that are smooth, consistent, and unwavering throughout the seasons of the year - unlike rivers filled with run-off or spring and summer melt-off from snow pack, whose water flows, water clarity, and water conditions often vary highly over the course of the year. In addition, water temperatures in spring creeks tend to vary less throughout the seasons of the year than traditional creeks and rivers because they are fed by underground water sources. Because of the depths of these water sources, spring creeks often emerge from their source or headwaters very cold and stay that way over the length of their runs. In addition, due to the consistent water flows and the fact that spring creek water is "pushed" by the force of pressure from the source rather than "pulled" by the force of

gravity In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...

downhill, spring creeks can flow through very flat sections of land with minimal depths over grades that might not sustain run-off creeks and rivers. In these low-grade or flat sections of spring creeks, water flows can appear almost

laminar Laminar means "flat". Laminar may refer to: Terms in science and engineering: * Laminar electronics or organic electronics, a branch of material sciences dealing with electrically conductive polymers and small molecules * Laminar armour or "band ...

with the surface of the creek appearing to be nearly flat and without the prominent riffles and surface disturbances caused by more rough or uneven surface bottoms found below free-stone run-off creeks and rivers surfaces. Due to the characteristics described above, spring creeks are often well known in the context of

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salmoni ...

and other freshwater

fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. The light weight requires casting techniques significantly diffe ...

as excellent

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks a ...

habitats.

Trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salmoni ...

, particularly sport fish such as brown trout and rainbow trout, often thrive and grow rapidly in spring creeks due not only to the consistent water flows and low temperatures, but also due to the advantageous insect environments they foster. Insects such as mayflies (baetis and callibaetis, among others) and caddis flies find spring creek habitats very appealing and often live, mate, and hatch on these waterways in great numbers throughout the year. Because these insects in pupal and winged form represent the principal diet of freshwater trout, the fish living in spring creeks often have ample food supply throughout the year. This element of spring creek habitats, combined with the advantageous water conditions, can create the ideal conditions for large, healthy, hefty local populations of the kind of trout that fly fisherman pursue. Some examples of spring creeks famous for their fly fishing conditions are the Henrys Fork, in southeastern Idaho, the Silver Creek,{{cite web, url=http://nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/idaho/preserves/art415.html , title=Idaho - Silver Creek , date=2006-01-07 , accessdate=2012-11-08 , url-status=unfit , archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060107001020/http://nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/idaho/preserves/art415.html , archivedate=January 7, 2006 in central southern Idaho, and the

Metolius River The Metolius River (pronounced ''muh TOLL ee us'') is a tributary of the Deschutes River (through Lake Billy Chinook) in Central Oregon, United States, near the city of Sisters. The river flows north from springs near Black Butte, then turns sha ...

, in central Oregon. In this context, fly fisherman often refer to creeks and rivers as "like a spring creek" if the water flows and habitat display the characteristics described above.

References

Rivers Springs (hydrology)

See also

References