Spada resevoir is spilling over...  probably be a chance to get on this Sunday.

Is it spilling? Maybe I'm not reading this correctly but it looks like it spills at 1450' according to AW. Here is a link to the current elevation of the reservoir:
http://www5.snopud.com/water/SnoPUDWaterDataPage.xml

Currently, it looks like water is coming in from the sides, driving the mid-run gauge higher. My super precise, somewhat accurate ;-) UW forecast shows most of the rain hitting very late Saturday night/early Sunday (see http://www.atmos.washington.edu/mm5rt/ - I like the 4km WRF-GFS western washington 1-hr model)

I'd like to run this for the first time and am looking forward to the guaranteed releases but I'm not sure this weekend is going to be a natural event (and personally, am time constrained on Sunday anyway).

You guys better be ready to meet by around 7AM if you plan to do it. With the short days, the long hike in, and the possibility of landslides, it pays to start super-early.

recall there are scheduled releases on the sultan starting this year....

Ideally, wouldn't be puttin in at the spada res.  Rather use the road that goes into the diversion dam.  Not sure if that road is open but if it were that would be the best and easiest access for the most quality stretch. 

I'm game and stayed in index last night, figuring out plans now

I've read through the flow study (which is extremely helpful to understanding what is happening). I thought I understood how the pieces and gauges fit together but now I'm not so sure. I'm using actual data as of about Noon today just to help my understanding with an example. Hopefully, someone can elaborate.

Spada reservoir will spill when the level gets above 1450'. Currently, it is about 10' below that level though has come up 10' in the past two days. There is no gauge below the reservoir.

There is a put-in somewhat downstream of the reservoir at river mile 15.7.

Midway through the run at RM 9.7, there is a diversion dam (that Mike references above). There is a gauge here - or really two gauges. One is the "downstream" transducer. Currently, it measures 569. There is also a "discharge" - currently at 800. How do you interpret these numbers? AW says to look at the downstream transducer. What does the other number represent?

Okay, sometime later you get to the Lower run (RM 4.3) - currently at 2600 cfs. AW flow study says that the maximum flow out of the powerhouse is 1400 which would imply that 1200 cfs (or more) is flowing from the Upper Sultan.

My interpretation of these numbers is that at RM 15.7 we have an undefined flow. Water if flowing in the sides until we get to RM 9.7 (Mike's put-in). At this point, how much water is in the river (ideally, just upstream and downstream of the transducer)? Then, we continue paddling downstream, water is continuing to come in from side creeks and just above the put-in for the Lower run, we have at least 1200 cfs. Just after the put-in, we have 2600 cfs.

Comments?

Arno ... you raised some good questions but I got no answers.

As it is now Fall, does anyone have any fresh beta about the Sultan "releases"?