Tenaya Canyon water levels
Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2011 5:18 am
I have a question about Tenaya Canyon in Yosemite. The SummitPost route description for Tenaya Canyon states that the route should only be attempted when water levels are low enough. It is not clear what constitutes a low enough water level to safely descend the canyon via the usual routes. According to USGS water data (http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ca/nwis/uv/?s ... cy_cd=USGS) the current stream flow on the Merced River at Pohono Bridge is about 700 cubic feet per second. This is much more than the historical median of 29 cfs for October 11, but much less than the 2011 maximum flow of 7000 cfs during the spring snowmelt in June.
If anyone here who has experience descending Tenaya Canyon can give us a better idea of what stream flow levels are suitable for descending the canyon, please let us know what you think. Thanks.
If anyone here who has experience descending Tenaya Canyon can give us a better idea of what stream flow levels are suitable for descending the canyon, please let us know what you think. Thanks.