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Cover photo: Closeup view of gasoline tank-truck trailer overturned on Interstate 80 bridge east of Truckee, Calif., on 

November 28, 1 978. Bridge spans Truckee River and transcontinental railroad right of way that parallels river for 

about 75 miles between Truckee and Wadsworth, Nev. (photograph by James Beazley, Reno Evening Gazette). See 

figure 1 for overall view of accident scene.
Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for 

Truckee River Between Truckee, California, and 

Marble Bluff Dam Near Nixon, Nevada, and for 

Truckee Canal in Nevada

SyLarry R. Bohman

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

Water-Resources Investigations Report 99-4226

Carson City, Nevada 

2000
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

BRUCE BABBITT, Secretary

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

CHARLES G. GROAT, Director

Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive 

purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government

For additional information Copies of this report can be 

contact: purchased from:

District Chief U.S. Geological Survey 

U.S. Geological Survey Information Services 

333 West Nye Lane, Room 203 Building 810 

Carson City, NV 89706-0866 Box 25286, Federal Center

Denver, CO 80225-0286

email: GS-W-NVpublic-info@ usgs.gov 

http://nevada.usgs.gov
CONTENTS

Abstract.........................................................................................................._^ 1

Introduction.............................................................................................._^ 1

Purpose and Scope..................................................................................................................................................... 2

Previous Dye-Tracing Investigations in Study Area ................................................................................................. 2

Description of Study Area .................................................................................................................................................... 4

Dye-Tracing Theory, Data Collection, and Results .............................;................................................................................ 6

Dye-Tracing Theory .................................................................................................................................................. 6

Data Collection..........................................................................................._^ 8

Dye-Tracing Results .................................................................................................................................................. 9

Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics ............................................................................................................................. 9

Traveltime-Distance Relations ................................................................................................................................. 12

Traveltime-Flow Relations ....................................................................................................................................... 13

Example Application................................................................................................................................................. 13

Limitations of Procedures Used and of Data Collected......................................................................................................... 14

Summary ........................................................................................................................._^ 18

References Cited ................................................................................................................................................................... 18

FIGURES

1. Photograph showing gasoline tank-truck trailer overturned on Interstate 80 bridge east of Truckee, Calif.,

on November 28,1978 .......................................................................................................................................... 3

2. Map showing general location of Truckee River, Truckee Canal, gaging stations and sampling/injection

sites used in traveltime studies............................................................................................................................... 5

3. Sketch of idealized response curves along selected streamline resulting from instantaneous dye injection......... 7

4. Graph showing observed response curves for Truckee River reach between Steamboat Creek at mouth

near Sparks, Nev., and Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., November 29-December 1, 1993 ........................... 12

5-6. Graphs showing traveltime-distance relations and dispersion characteristics:

5. Truckee River at high, medium, low, and very low flows........................................................................... 15

6. Truckee Canal at medium and low flows .................................................................................................... 16

7-11. Graphs showing peak-concentration traveltimes:

7. Truckee River between State Route 267 bridge at Truckee, Calif., and Boca Bridge near Truckee

plotted against streamflow at index gaging station Truckee River near Truckee........................................ 43

8. Truckee River between Boca Bridge near Truckee, Calif., and index gaging station Truckee River 

at Vista, Nev., plotted against streamflow at index gaging station Truckee River at Farad 

(near Floriston, Calif.)................................................................................................................................. 44

9. Truckee River between Steamboat Creek near Sparks, Nev., and Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev.,

plotted against streamflow at index gaging station Truckee River at Vista, Nev........................................ 45

10. Truckee River between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev.,

plotted against streamflow at index gaging station Truckee River below Derby Dam............................... 46

11. Truckee Canal between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and U.S. Highway 50 above 

Lahontan Reservoir, plotted against streamflow at index gaging station Truckee Canal 

near Wadsworth........................................................................................................................................... 47

CONTENTS III
TABLES

1. Dye-tracing studies on Truckee River and Truckee Canal, 1979-80 and 1993 .................................................... 2

2. Traveltime-study injection and sampling sites....................................................................................................... 10

3-16. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River:

3. Between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., May 31-June 1, 1979............................................................... 20

4. Between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., May 21-22, 1980..................................................................... 21

5. Between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., October 14-16, 1980................................................................ 22

6. Between Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev., and Derby Dam near

Wadsworth, Nev., May 29-30, 1979........................................................................................................... 24

7. Between Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev., and Derby Dam near

Wadsworth, Nev., September 4-5, 1979..................................................................................................... 25

8. Between Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev., and Derby Dam near

Wadsworth, Nev., January 18, 1980............................................................................................................ 26

9. Between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev.,

May 23-25, 1979......................................................................................................................................... 27

10. Between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Dead Ox Wash near Nixon, Nev.,

August20-24, 1979..................................................................................................................................... 28

11. Between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev.,

January 16, 1980.......................................................................................................................................... 29

12. Between old U.S. Highway 40 bridge at Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev.,

September 21-26, 1980 ............................................................................................................................... 30

13. Between Steamboat Creek at mouth near Sparks, Nev., and Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev.,

November 29-December 1, 1993................................................................................................................ 31

14. Between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and old U.S. Highway 40 bridge at Wadsworth, Nev.,

November 15-23, 1993................................................................................................................................ 32

15. Between old U.S. Highway 40 bridge at Wadsworth, Nev., and Dead Ox Wash near Nixon, Nev.,

November8-11, 1993.................................................................................................................................. 33

16. Between Dead Ox Wash and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev., November 4-7, 1993........................ 34

17. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River and Truckee Canal between Reno-Sparks 

sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev., and U.S. Highway 95A near Fernley, Nev., 

May 29-30, 1979 ........................................................................................................_^ 35

18-19. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee Canal between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., 

and U.S. Highway 50 above Lahontan Reservoir near Fallon, Nev.:

18. September 4-6, 1979 ................................................................................................................................... 35

19. May 12-15, 1980 ....................................................................................................... 36

20-22. Summary of traveltime data for Truckee River:

20. Between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., 1979 and 1980.......................................................................... 37

21. Between Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall at Reno, Nev., and Derby Dam near

Wadsworth, Nev., 1979, 1980, and 1993..................................................................................................... 38

22. Between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev.,

1979, 1980, and 1993................................................................................................................................... 39

23. Summary of traveltime data for Truckee Canal between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and

Lahontan Reservoir near Fallon, Nev., 1979, 1980, and 1981 .............................................................................. 41

24. Index gaging stations used in traveltime studies.................................................................................................... 42

IV Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
CONVERSION FACTORS, ABBREVIATED WATER-QUALITY UNITS, AND VERTICAL DATUM

Multiply

foot (ft)

mile (mi)

square mile (mi2)

pound (Ib)

gallon (gal)

cubic foot (ft3)

foot per mile (ft/mi)

foot per second (ft/s)

cubic foot per second (fr^/s)

mile per hour (mi/h)

ounce (oz)

By

0.3048

1.609

2.590

0.4536

3.785

0.02832

0.1894

0.3048

0.02832

1.609

29.57

To obtain

meter

kilometer

square kilometer

kilogram

liter

cubic meter

meter per kilometer

meter per second

cubic meter per second

kilometer per hour

milliliter

Abbreviated water-quality units used in this report:

g/L, gram per liter

, microgram per liter

Sea level: In this report, "sea level" refers to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD of 1929, formerly called 

"Sea-Level Datum of 1 929"), which is derived from a general adjustment of the first-order leveling networks of the United States and Canada.

SYMBOLS AND UNITS

Symbol Definition

n Number of sampling site

tb Interval of time for dye concentrations to build up from leading edge to peak, in hours

tc Traveltime of centroid of dye-response curve, in hours

t\ Traveltime of leading edge of dye-response curve, in hours

tp Traveltime of peak of dye-response curve, in hours

tt Traveltime of trailing edge of dye-response curve, in hours

Cp Observed peak dye concentration, in micrograms per liter (^ig/L)

Tc Elapsed time to centroid of dye-response curve, in hours

Td Duration in time for tracer cloud to pass any one point in section, in hours

TI Elapsed time to leading edge of dye-response curve, in hours

Tp Elapsed time to peak of dye-response curve, in hours

Tt Elapsed time to trailing edge of dye-response curve, in hours

	CONTENTS
Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River 

Between Truckee, California, and Marble Bluff Dam 

Near Nixon, Nevada, and for Truckee Canal in Nevada

ByLR. Bohman

Abstract

Traveltime characteristics were estimated 

from dye-study measurements made during 1979- 

81 and in 1993 along the Truckee River between 

Truckee, Calif., and Marble Bluff Dam near 

Nixon, Nev., and along the Truckee Canal in 

Nevada. Fluorescent rhodamine WT dye was 

injected into various reaches for average flows 

ranging from 8.4 to 3,700 cubic feet per second 

along the Truckee River and from 191 to 664 cubic 

feet per second along the Truckee Canal.

Tabular data from all the studies and graphical relations between traveltime and distance and 

between traveltime and flow are presented. Such 

data or plots may be useful to water-quality modelers or water-resources managers concerned with 

predicting arrival times of soluble contaminants 

accidentally spilled into the Truckee River or 

Truckee Canal. The data provided in this report 

also could be used to study the dispersion-related 

characteristics of duration and magnitude of pollutant concentrations that may be expected in the 

Truckee River and Truckee Canal. In the investigations summarized in this report, the values 

obtained from relations between traveltime of 

peak concentrations and flow are additive for 

successive subreaches. The report also contains 

examples of applications of the data and a discussion of the limitations and assumptions used in 

interpreting the data.

INTRODUCTION

The use of dyes and tracing techniques provides a 

means of measuring the traveltime and dispersion characteristics of streams. Traveltime may be defined as the 

time it takes for water or soluble constituents introduced into a river to move downstream from one point

to another. Introduced constituents also tend to disperse 

(dilute) as they move downstream, causing peak concentrations to decrease and the length of the solute 

plume to increase. Dye tracing involves the instantaneous injection of a nontoxic, fluorescent dye at a location along the stream and measurement of the resulting 

dye plume at locations downstream (Buchanan, 1964; 

Wilson, 1968). The dye mixes with the flow and moves 

in the same manner as the flow. A plot of the dye concentration in discrete water samples against time 

defines a dye-response curve at each sampling site. 

Traveltime is measured as the time required for movement of the centroid or center of mass of the dye plume 

between sampling sites. Dispersion is characterized by 

the time of passage of the solute plume and attenuation 

of the peak concentration as the plume moves downstream. Dye studies typically are made over a range 

of flows that are indexed to flows at selected streamgaging stations.

Information on traveltime of solutes may be 

required for water-quality modeling and waste-transport studies and also provides an objective means for 

determining an appropriate course of action in response 

to the spilling of a soluble toxic substance. For the 

former purpose, the model results are usually no better 

quantitatively than the traveltime data used in their 

development because simulation of biochemical processes in water-quality models involves the calculation 

of time-dependent reactions. Although mean flow 

velocity may be computed from flow measurements 

made at gaging stations, such point data may not adequately characterize an entire stream reach. Extrapolation of such point data may be subject to large errors. 

For the latter purpose, officials responsible for public 

safety (including water-supply managers and regulators) and others interested in transient water-quality 

problems need to predict passage and arrival times or 

peak concentration of a noxious substance released or 

spilled upstream. Such a spill happened on November 

28,1978, when a tank-truck trailer overturned on Interstate 80, on a bridge over the Truckee River, east

Abstract
of Truckee, Calif, (fig. 1). Accurate traveltime information is needed to provide a reasonable basis for 

deciding whether, when, and how long to suspend operations of public water-supply intakes or how best to 

handle any perceived threat to the river environment.

Competition for the limited water throughout 

the Truckee River Basin has increased the need by 

resources planners for traveltime data and interpretation. The Truckee River in eastern California and western Nevada provides a variety of benefits serving as 

a municipal water supply for communities in Nevada, 

supporting fish and wildlife habitats, generating hydroelectric power, furnishing river and reservoir recreational opportunities, and supplying water for 

agriculture. The Truckee Canal diverts large amounts 

of water from the Truckee River for irrigation use by 

the farmers of the Newlands Project near Fernley and 

in Lahontan Valley. In addition, Lahontan Reservoir is 

used for recreation and fishing and is the secondmost 

visited State park in Nevada. Consideration of traveltime characteristics is fundamental for modeling flow 

and water-quality characteristics in order to meet 

desired goals for water quantity and quality at specific 

points along the Truckee River. Results from previous 

studies need to be collated with recently collected 

information to expand the range of flows for which 

data are available. Comparisons between hydrology 

data layers within current and previous geographic 

information systems need to be made to determine if 

major changes in channel geometry (length, width, or 

depth) resulted from floods on the Truckee River during the spring of 1983 and winter of 1986. If so, 

whether or not the traveltime relations derived from the 

preflood studies are still valid for current use must be 

assessed.

The need for this type of information led the Truckee-Carson Program of the U.S. Geological Survey 

(USGS) to make additional traveltime studies during 

the extremely low flows experienced during the fall of 

1993 to supplement and verify the results obtained 

from earlier studies. The Truckee-Carson Program had 

been established in 1991 to assist the U.S. Department 

of the Interior in implementation of the many complex 

provisions of Title II of Public Law 101-618, the 

Truckee-Carson-Pyramid Lake Water Rights Settlement Act of 1990. The objectives of the program are to 

expand and improve the existing gaging-station network and to develop, test, and apply physically 

based river-basin simulation models in support of 

water-resources planning and management. Data and

relations derived from this summary of dye studies 

along the Truckee River and Truckee Canal are useful 

in the development of water-quality models of the system.

Purpose and Scope

This report describes the techniques and results of 

dye-tracing studies (table 1) made over a range of flows 

on the Truckee River between State Route 267 at Truckee, Calif., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev. 

(approximately 3 mi upstream from Pyramid Lake) 

during 1979-80 and 1993, and on the Truckee Canal 

during 1979-81. Data from these studies were used to 

derive traveltime characteristics in support of waterquality modeling and for use in estimating the behavior 

of soluble contaminants that may be introduced into the 

Truckee River or Truckee Canal. The report presents

 descriptions of the methods used in data collection and analysis,

 tabulations of basic data from the studies,

 summaries of computed traveltime characteristics,

 graphs depicting traveltimes (from points of 

injection to subsequent locations downstream) 

for specific flows and the relation of traveltime 

to discharge at an index gaging station,

 limitations associated with relations presented 

in the report, and examples of applications.

Table 1 . Dye-tracing studies on Truckee River and 

Truckee Canal, 1979-80 and 1993

Dates Number 

Dates of studies

Range of flows 

(cubic feet 

per second)

Truckee River

May 1979-October 1980 

November-December 1993

10 

4

32-3,800 

8.7-161

Truckee Canal

May 1979-May 1980 3 110-700

Previous Dye-Tracing Investigations in Study 

Area

La Camera and others (1985) published, in tabular form, the physical, chemical, and biological data 

collected as part of the Truckee-Carson river-quality 

assessment (Nowlin and others, 1980) in support of

2 Estimation of Traveitime Characteristics for Truckee River
Figure t-. Gasoline tank-truck trailer overturned on Interstate 80 bridge east of Truckee, 

Calif., on November 28,1978. Bridge spans Truckee River and transcontinental railroad 

right of way that parallels river for about 75 miles between Truckee and Wadsworth, Nev. 

(photograph by James Beazley, Reno Evening Gazette).

INTRODUCTION
water-quality modeling and investigations of troutspawning habitats in the Truckee River system. 

La Camera and others (1985) reported the results from 

13 dye-tracer studies during the period 1979-81 for a 

wide range of flows in three reaches along the Truckee 

River from Truckee, Calif, to Vista, Nev.; Vista to 

Derby Diversion Dam (hereafter, "Derby Dam") near 

Wadsworth, Nev.; and Derby Dam to Marble Bluff 

Dam near Nixon, Nev. and in the Truckee Canal 

from Derby Dam to Lahontan Reservoir.

Brown and others (1986) analyzed the data published by La Camera and others (1985) and provided an 

overview of the hydrologic system of the Truckee 

River and Carson River Basins; presented data and 

computed relations in graphical, tabular, and map 

form; and interpreted the raw and computed data. 

The computed relations then were used in equations to 

relate velocities to flows in 43 reaches of the Truckee 

River from Sparks to Pyramid Lake and 9 reaches of 

the Truckee Canal for water-quality modeling (Nowlin, 

1987). The velocity-flow relations developed by Nowlin (1987) also were used in more recent water-quality 

models of the Truckee River (Caupp and others, 1997). 

The data from Nowlin (1987) and Caupp and others 

(1997) and from the dye-tracing studies made during 

November-December 1993 form the basis for the relations presented in this report.

DESCRIPTION OF STUDY AREA

A detailed description of the physical and hydrologic characteristics of the Truckee River was given by 

Van Denburgh and others (1973), Brown and others 

(1986), and Jones and others (1991). The following 

paragraphs briefly describe the physical setting of the 

Truckee River. A general location map of the study 

area, including the flow-gaging stations and dye-study 

sites mentioned later in this report, is shown in figure 2.

The Truckee River watershed is a topographically 

enclosed basin on the eastern slope of the Sierra 

Nevada along the California-Nevada border. In the 

part of the basin that surrounds Lake Tahoe, headwater 

altitudes exceed 10,000 ft above sea level. The lowest 

part of the basin is at the river's terminus at Pyramid 

Lake, where the altitude is approximately 3,795 ft 

above sea level. The total drainage area of the basin is 

3,120 mi2, but only 1,940 mi2 contributes streamflow 

to the 116-mi-long stretch of the Truckee River 

between the outlet of Lake Tahoe and Marble Bluff 

Dam (about 3 mi upstream from the mouth at Pyramid 

Lake).

From the outlet of Lake Tahoe, the Truckee River 

flows generally north about 15 mi to Truckee, Calif, 

then northeasterly for about 28 mi across the State line 

to Verdi, Nev. Downstream from Verdi, the river flows 

to the east about 21 mi to Vista, Nev. Several major 

tributaries, all of which are controlled by Federal reservoirs, join the Truckee River downstream from Truckee; they include Prosser Creek, Martis Creek, and the 

Little Truckee River. Just downstream from the mouth 

of the Little Truckee River, the Truckee River flows 

through a deeply incised canyon to the CaliforniaNevada State boundary. About 8 mi east of the State 

line, the river passes through an alluvial valley 

bounded by mountain ranges; this area, known as the 

Truckee Meadows, includes the rapidly growing cities 

of Reno and Sparks. Although the current economy of 

the area is dominated by gaming and tourism, Truckee 

Meadows still contains irrigated agricultural lands. 

Both municipal and agricultural water needs are satisfied by diversions at several locations along the river 

within and upstream from the Truckee Meadows.

EXPLANATION

 Hydrographic-area boundary

A 32 Dye-injection or sampling site Number is site number (see below 

and table 2) 

On or near Truckee River:

1 State Highway 267

2 Old U.S. 40 bridge below Truckee

3 Boca Bridge near Truckee

4 Below Farad powerplant

5 Mayberry Drive

6 Near Sparks

7 Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant

8 Steamboat Creek

9 Vista

10 Lockwood

11 Patrick

12 Below Tracy

13 Clark

14 Derby Dam

15 Painted Rock Bridge

16 Old U.S. 40 bridge at Wadsworth

17 S-Bar-S Ranch

18 Below S-Bar-S Ranch

19 Dead Ox Wash

20 Numana Dam

21 State Highway 447

22 Marble Bluff Dam

23 Below Marble Bluff Dam

On Truckee Canal:

24 Derby Dam

25 Pyramid Check Dam

26 Near Wadsworth

27 U.S. 95A

28 Anderson Check Dam

29 Allendale Check Dam

30 Mason Check Dam

31 Bango Check Dam

32 U.S. Highway 50

A U.S. Geological Survey index streamflow-gaging station Number 

10350000 is station number (see table 24)

Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
120°

40° 

IP-.- ~---:-BA - ~" 'v*

jLLawton^ 5 'to

__ PLACER 

_ / EL DORADO

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1 -.24,000 and

1:100,000, 1969-85

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 11

39°30' 

30 MILES

30 KILOMETERS

Figure 2. General location of Truckee River, Truckee Canal, gaging stations, and sampling/injection sites used in traveltime studies. Old U.S. Highway 40 (or State Route 427 in parts of Nevada) is not shown on map; at map scale, it roughly 

parallels Interstate 80. See table 2 for full site names and other alternate route names.

DESCRIPTION OF STUDY AREA
Irrigation return flows from diversions originating on 

the north side of the river between Verdi and Reno and 

some natural flow enter the Truckee River via the 

North Truckee Drain near Vista, just east of Sparks. 

Treated municipal-sewage effluent, irrigation return 

flows from diversions farther upstream on the south 

side of the river, and additional natural flows enter the 

river from Steamboat Creek, also near Sparks. The 

Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant, now known as 

the Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility, is 

near the mouth of Steamboat Creek.

Downstream from the Truckee Meadows, the 

river parallels Interstate 80 eastward for about 29 mi 

through arid canyon terrain to Wadsworth, Nev. At 

Wadsworth, the river turns north and continues for 

about 23 mi through the Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation to Marble Bluff Dam downstream from Nixon, 

Nev. Tributaries below Vista, Nev., are ephemeral; 

large flows are mostly in response to heavy precipitation, usually as summer thunderstorms. Downstream 

from Wadsworth, the channel is unstable in many areas 

and therefore is subject to lateral shifting during major 

floods. Population is sparse, limited to the communities 

of Wadsworth and Nixon and a few private ranches. 

The irrigation needs of small ranches bordering the 

lower Truckee River below Vista are served by 13 

diversions. At Derby Dam (17 mi downstream from 

Vista), the Truckee Canal diverts water from the river 

southeastward into Lahontan Reservoir in the Carson 

River watershed. The approximately 31-mi-long canal 

was constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation (U.S. 

Department of the Interior) as part of the Newlands 

Project, the Nation's first project completed under the 

authority of the Reclamation Act of 1902 (Jones and 

others, 1991, p. 23). Water released from Lahontan 

Reservoir is used to supplement Carson River water 

to irrigate Newlands Project lands.

River gradients vary between the steeper mountain-block area and the lower basin. The gradient of 

the river is fairly steep above Reno, averaging about 

35 ft/mi. Within the 8-mi reach of the river between 

Reno and Vista, the gradient is relatively flat (about 

1.6 ft/mi). From Vista to Marble Bluff Dam, the Truckee River channel slope averages less than 10 ft/mi. 

The numerous diversion structures have important 

localized effects on the channel slope. Resultant 

decreases in flow velocities and increases in flow 

depths undoubtedly influence both traveltime and dispersion characteristics of the river. The average slope 

of the Truckee Canal is about 1.1 ft/mi (Nowlin, 1987).

DYE-TRACING THEORY, DATA 

COLLECTION, AND RESULTS

This report presents the results of four dye-tracing 

studies made under low-flow conditions between Vista 

and Marble Bluff Dam during November-December 

1993 to verify or extend the relations derived from previous studies. Previous studies include 10 along the 

Truckee River between State Route 267 at Truckee, 

Calif., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev., and 

3 along the Truckee Canal (La Camera and others, 

1985; Brown and others, 1986). This section of the 

report provides an overview of dye-tracing theory, field 

and laboratory procedures used to collect and analyze 

the data, and the results of the tracer studies.

Dye-Tracing Theory

Fluorescent dye injected into a river is transported 

in solution in the same manner as water particles themselves. By measuring the movement of the dye, one can 

ascertain the traveltime and dispersion (dilution) characteristics of any soluble constituent introduced into 

the stream. The dispersion and mixing of the tracer in 

the river takes place in all three dimensions of the channel. Vertical mixing normally is completed first, and 

lateral mixing later; which happens first depends on 

stream-channel characteristics and resultant localized 

variations in vertical and horizontal velocity. Longitudinal dispersion, the increasing dilution and attenuation 

of a solute plume as it moves down a channel, continues indefinitely and is the dispersion component of primary interest (Kilpatrick and Wilson, 1989).

Once dye is injected at a point in the stream, a 

response curve can be defined at each downstream 

sampling site within the channel cross section for a 

given stream line by plotting concentration against 

elapsed time (fig. 3). Response curves for the dye 

plume depict the time of arrival (leading edge), the 

maximum concentration (peak), the center of mass 

(centroid), and the time when the dye was no longer 

detectable (trailing edge). A typical dye plume commonly travels faster in the center of the stream than 

along the banks. Complete definition of a stream's 

response to a dye injection may involve measurement 

at more than one point or along more than one stream 

line at each of the several sampling sections involved.

The following equations summarize relations 

among traveltime measurements (fig. 3; Kilpatrick and 

Wilson, 1989). The mean traveltime for the flow is the

Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
ELAPSED TIME

Figure 3. Idealized response curves along selected streamline resulting from instantaneous dye injection (modified 

from Kilpatrick and Wilson (1989)). Open circles under response curves represent centers of mass, or centroids, of 

response curves; corresponding times are used to sompute ^ traveltime. Symbols are explained in "Symbols and 

Units."

difference in elapsed time of the centroids of the timeconcentration (response) curves defined upstream and 

downstream on the same stream line:

(5)

-Tc . c(1)

(Symbols are explained in "Symbols and Units.")

Similarly, the traveltimes of the leading edge, 

peak concentration, and trailing edge along a given 

stream line are, respectively,

= T

= T

tt = T 1

-T , and P«

n+l) ln

(3)

(4)

The time necessary for the dye plume to pass a 

sampling point in a section is given by

Measurement of traveltimes for the leading edge, 

peak, centroid, and trailing edge provides insight into 

dispersion and dilution as well as flow velocity. Constituents in water disperse as they move downstream, 

some particles lagging along banks and in pools 

whereas others near the surface in the center of flow 

move downstream more rapidly. Thus, the plume will 

elongate or attenuate as it moves downstream. During 

periods of smaller, sluggish flows, constituents tend to 

spread out over great distances and remain in a given 

reach of the river for long periods. During larger, highvelocity streamflows, a plume tends to spread out more 

slowly and pass through a given reach of the river more 

quickly. Assuming complete vertical and lateral dispersion in a stream reach and no withdrawals or diversions, the area (corresponding to dye mass) under all 

response curves downstream from the injection point 

should be equal for a conservative dye (no losses).

DYE-TRACING THEORY, DATA COLLECTION, AND RESULTS
Unfortunately, commonly used fluorescent dyes are not 

completely conservative because they may be adsorbed 

on sediments, be absorbed by aquatic vegetation, or 

decay over time. Dye losses as the plume migrates 

downstream may be estimated if the entire dye plume 

is measured at each sampling point and the flow for the 

stream and all tributaries or diversions is known. The 

time-concentration curve, adjusted for dye losses, then 

represents the dispersion characteristics for flow conditions in the reach. Dispersion is quantified by differences in the time of passage and attenuation of peak 

concentrations from site to site as the dye plume moves 

downstream.

Data Collection

Field procedures for traveltime and dispersion 

studies on streams using dye tracers are well documented (Kilpatrick and Wilson, 1989). In general, 

those procedures were followed closely during the 

1979-81 and 1993 studies on the Truckee River and 

Truckee Canal.

The 1979-81 studies divided the Truckee River 

into three reaches: Truckee, Calif., to Vista, Nev.; 

Steamboat Creek to Derby Dam; and Derby Dam to 

Marble Bluff Dam. During low, sluggish streamflows, 

long traveltimes and the associated risk of changing 

flows due to inclement weather or upstream reservoir 

releases required that sampling reaches be subdivided 

into shorter subreaches. Under such circumstances, the 

river below Derby Dam was divided further into two 

overlapping subreaches from Derby Dam to Dead Ox 

Wash and from Wadsworth to Marble Bluff Dam. The 

1993 studies included only the lower Truckee River 

below Steamboat Creek (site no. 8, fig. 2). Four shorter 

subreaches were designated because of the low-flow 

complications: Steamboat Creek to Derby Dam; Derby 

Dam to Wadsworth; Wadsworth to Dead Ox Wash; and 

Dead Ox Wash to Marble Bluff Dam (all in Nevada).

A minimum of two sampling sites downstream 

from the injection point for each reach (or subreach) 

were selected. Accessibility and suitability for making 

streamflow measurements over a range of flows were 

considered in site selection. Sampling and injection 

sites for the 1993 study on the lower Truckee River 

were chosen to coincide generally with sites from the 

earlier study. Sampling sites for the 17 traveltime studies (table 1) were far enough downstream from the 

injection sites that complete lateral mixing could be

assumed. Tributary inflows, analogous to a side injection of clear water, cause lateral-mixing problems at 

nearby downstream sampling sites. Dye-measurement 

sites were chosen to be sufficiently downstream from 

tributary inflows for the water and dye to be fully 

mixed. Despite these precautions, Martis Creek and the 

Little Truckee River inflows may have caused poor 

mixing below Truckee at the bridge on old U.S. Highway *40 (site no. 2) and at Boca Bridge near Truckee 

(site no. 3), respectively, during some of the studies. 

(All sampling and dye-injection sites are listed in table 

2 and shown in figure 2.)

Single-slug (instantaneous) dye injections 

usually were made in the center or main thread of flow. 

Rhodamine WT dye was used in the studies because it 

is less susceptible than other dye types to loss by contact with aquatic plants, suspended clays, and the streambed and streambanks. For each injection, the type 

and amount of dye, time and location of injection, and 

the measured flow were recorded. Concentrations of 

rhodamine WT dye were 160 g/L and 128 g/L of solution in the 1979-81 and 1993 studies, respectively. 

The amount of dye to be injected at the upstream end 

of each study reach was determined by using general 

empirical relations (Kilpatrick and Wilson, 1989) that 

are dependent upon the maximum flow anticipated for 

the reach, velocity, reach length, and dye concentration. These dye amounts typically were chosen so peak 

concentrations at the downstream end of each study 

reach or at municipal water intakes did not exceed 

10|J,g/L.

Fluorometers were used in the field and in the laboratory to determine the presence and concentration of 

dye in the samples collected. Fluorometers measure the 

luminescence of a fluorescent substance when that substance is subjected to a light source of an appropriate 

wavelength. The higher the concentration of the fluorescent substance, the more emitted light the fluorometer detects. Background samples taken at each site 

before arrival of the dye indicated that no detectable 

dye was in the river. When the dye plume arrived at a 

given site, 15 to 50 samples were taken in the main 

flow of the river at time intervals adequate to define the 

time-concentration (response) curve. Samples were 

collected manually at single points in the river or canal 

in all studies. In some of the 1993 studies, automated

1 Route is called old U.S. Highway 40 in California, 

but parts of route in Nevada now are called State Route 427.

8 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
samplers were used to define trailing edges of long 

response curves. This allowed members of the field 

crew to proceed sooner to the next downstream site. 

Fluorometer measurements were made in the field at 

the time of sampling to guide the frequency and duration of sampling for each dye plume. After field measurement, samples were stored out of sunlight in 1-oz 

glass bottles for later analysis under laboratory conditions.

Flow measurements were made at the injection 

site and at each sampling site. In those instances where 

direct flow measurments were not made while dye was 

present, flow-gaging-station data were substituted or 

were used to determine a mean index flow within a 

reach during the period when dye was present.

The samples collected in the field were retested 

under more-controlled laboratory conditions because 

sample temperatures experienced in the field varied 

and were different from those used to calibrate the fluorometer. Aside from dye concentration, sample temperature is the most significant factor affecting the 

fluorescence of a dilute solution. The fluorometer was 

calibrated in the lab according to procedures described 

by Wilson and others (1986) using standard solutions 

prepared from the same dye lot that had been used in 

the field. The raw data shown in tables and used in 

figures in this report are the actual dye-concentration 

values that were obtained under laboratory conditions; 

they were not adjusted to conservative values on the 

basis of dye-recovery percentages.

Dye-Tracing Results

Compilations of data for the 1993 and previous 

USGS dye studies are shown in tables 3 through 19. 

These include 10 dye studies along the Truckee River 

made from May 1979 through October 1980,4 along 

the lower Truckee River during November-December 

1993, and 3 along the Truckee Canal from May 1979 

through May 1980 under various flow conditions. The 

May 1979 canal study was a continuation of a Truckee 

River traveltime study initiated at the Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility. By plotting the data in 

tables 3 through 19, a series of response curves for each 

dye study may be generated. For example, the attenuation of the dye plume as it proceeded downstream during the period November 29, 1993, to December 1, 

1993, between Steamboat Creek and Derby Dam is 

shown in figure 4. Traveltime information computed 

from the data in tables 3 through 19 is summarized in

tables 20 through 23. The cumulative traveltimes since 

injection, the durations of dye-plume presence, and the 

dye-recovery values for the pre-1993 studies are from 

La Camera and others (1985) and were derived from 

graphical analyses of the raw data according to the 

methods described by Kilpatrick and Wilson (1989). 

For the 1993 studies, the leading edge of the dye plume 

was considered to be the value of the first-detected dye 

just prior to a notable increase in concentration over 

background levels. The trailing edge was estimated to 

be the time when dye concentrations measured 0.2 

jiig/L or lower.

River miles used in this report are those used by 

the previous Truckee Carson River Quality Assessment 

(Brown and others, 1986; La Camera and others, 1985; 

Nowlin, 1987). River miles for new locations sampled 

in this study are referenced to an unpublished database 

and maps from that assessment (J.O. Nowlin, U.S. 

Geological Survey, written commun., 1999). An extensive geographic information system was developed in 

support of river modeling studies in the current Truckee-Carson Program. Sources included digital hydrography, aerial photographs, and satellite imagery 

compiled for varying dates and scales. Comparison of 

channel locations in these two databases showed that 

certain reaches of the Truckee River below Wadsworth 

had localized changes in channel alignment of as much 

as several hundred feet that were probably caused by 

floods (1983, 1986) subsequent to the 1979-81 dye 

studies. However, a comparison of the two river mile 

databases shows that differences in total channel length 

over reaches of 5 miles or more are generally less than 

two percent. River mile differences in active channel 

migration reaches below Wadsworth between the two 

databases were also about 2 percent, the same magnitude as for the rest of the river and canal. Compilation 

of an updated digital geographic database of consistent 

scale and accuracy for the entire Truckee River would 

be of great benefit to future hydrologic research and 

river restoration projects but was beyond the scope of 

this current study.

ESTIMATION OF TRAVELTIME 

CHARACTERISTICS

The data in tables 20 through 23 can be presented 

graphically to show relations that are useful in predicting traveltimes at other locations and for flows not 

measured in the studies. This section shows how traveltime-distance and traveltime-flow relations are used

ESTIMATION OF TRAVELTIME CHARACTERISTICS 9
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ELAPSED TIME SINCE INJECTION, IN HOURS

Figure 4. Observed response curves for Truckee River reach between Steamboat Creek at mouth 

near Sparks, Nev. (site 8), and Derby Dam (site 14) nearWadsworth, Nev., November 29-December 1, 

1993. See table 2 for full site names.

to predict traveltime properties for various reaches of 

the Truckee River and Truckee Canal and illustrates 

proper use of the relations by example. Limitations on 

the use of these relations, the assumptions used to interpret traveltime from the dye-study data, the unique features of the Truckee River, and the manner and 

conditions under which the data were collected are 

provided in the section titled "Limitations of Data 

and Procedures Used in Study."

Traveltime-Distance Relations

Traveltimes of the leading edge, centroid, and 

trailing edge of the dye-response curve are plotted 

against distance upstream from Marble Bluff Dam and

Lahontan Reservoir, respectively, in figures 5 and 6. 

Although one could combine the traveltime-distance 

data for adjacent reaches and plot cumulative traveltime against total distance, streamflows varied considerably from reach to reach. Therefore, the traveltimes 

are not cumulative, and results are shown only for individual reaches and not for the entire length of the river. 

The streamflows shown are the average flow over the 

study period at representative (index) gaging stations in 

or near the study reach. The index gaging stations used 

for these studies are shown in figure 2 and are listed in 

table 24.

These traveltime-distance relations may be used 

only for the individual reaches when streamflows are 

equal to or nearly the same as those observed during the

12 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
studies. (For estimates of traveltimes at streamflows 

other than those measured in the study, see the section 

titled "Traveltime-Flow Relations.") As an example of 

using the traveltime-distance relations, suppose an 

injection or spill happens at State Route 267 in Truckee, Calif, (in the farthest upstream reach, fig. 5), during a time when streamflows are about 380 ft3/s and 

centroid traveltime information is desired at Mayberry 

Drive below Lawton, Nev. Entering the abscissa of the 

low-flow graph (fig. 5Q at Mayberry Drive (site 5,65- 

70 mi upstream from Marble Blufif Dam), the elapsed 

time for the centroid is about 37 h. Similarly, elapsed 

time for the centroid near Truckee at the Boca Bridge 

(site 3,91.24 mi above Marble Blufif Dam) is about 17 

h. Thus, the centroid traveltime between the two sites 

in this example would be about 20 h.

Traveltime-Flow Relations

Because the dye studies were made over a range 

of flows, the traveltime data can be graphed to show the 

variation with flow through a reach. These data are 

plotted in figures 7 through 11 as families of curves 

(one for each sampling site in the study) that depict 

centroid traveltime over a range of flows. For a range 

of flows (at an index flow-gaging station) along a reach 

that is fairly uniform with regard to geometry and 

roughness, the relations will typically plot as straight 

and approximately parallel lines on logarithmic graph 

paper. The Truckee Canal graph (fig. 11) contains several roughly parallel lines that reflect the fairly uniform 

channel characteristics of the canal. Therefore, the centroid will travel at a constant velocity for a given flow 

between any two points. To estimate traveltime 

between two locations not identified on the graph, a 

user need only determine the velocity between any two 

locations on the graph and apply that velocity to any 

desired distance along the canal to get a traveltime estimate.

Only the traveltimes for the response-curve centroids are truly additive when summing the data for 

individual subreaches. The peak and the leading and 

trailing edges are all affected by dispersion; however, 

the time interval between passage of the peak concentration at two successive sites is virtually the same as 

the time interval between the centroids of the timeconcentration curves and thus may be added to approximate the timing expected for a single injection.

Unfortunately, no conclusions can be drawn 

concerning any relation between the 1979-80 and 1993 

Truckee River studies. Although the graphed data 

(fig. 10) show a change in slope (between the old relations at greater streamflows and the new relations at 

smaller streamflows) representing a decrease in traveltimes between old U.S. Highway 40 at Wadsworth 

and Marble Blufif Dam from what would have been 

expected by simple extrapolation of relations from the 

older study, the exact reason cannot be determined 

from available information. Common preflood and 

postflood traveltime data were not available for analysis below Derby Dam at rates other than 50 ft3/s. 

Because the flows for the old and new studies do not 

overlap, no conclusions can be drawn on the validity 

of the old curves for making present-day estimates at 

streamflows greater than about 50 ft3/s. Put another 

way, the 1979-80 relations for streamflows greater 

than those during the 1993 studies may have changed 

and cannot be verified on the basis of the more recent 

results. The only viable conclusion is that extending the 

old curves to rates less than 50 ft3/s below Derby Dam 

results in overestimation of traveltimes and underestimation of velocities. Increased velocities can be 

explained for at least a part of the lower Truckee River. 

The pool behind Marble Blufif Dam was deeper and 

provided some storage during the 1979-80 studies. 

Because this pool has silted in and has provided little 

effective water storage since then, traveltimes in that 

reach have decreased. Therefore, the results for 

medium to low streamflows between Wadsworth and 

Marble Blufif Dam from the 1979-80 studies should be 

considered approximate only.

Example Application

The traveltime-distance plots in figures 5 and 6 

are useful primarily in presenting traveltime data for 

flows measured during the Truckee River and Truckee 

Canal dye-tracing studies. They also are useful in illustrating longitudinal dispersion by showing the everincreasing passage time of the solute plume (from leading to trailing edge) as it drifts downstream.

Most traveltime information required for practical applications, such as estimating the movement of 

contaminant spills, can be obtained from figures 7 

through 11, which depict peak concentration traveltime 

over a range of flows. The values obtained for each 

subreach are additive, which means the user can predict, for example, the arrival of the peak concentration

ESTIMATION OF TRAVELTIME CHARACTERISTICS 13
from a spill at Truckee, Calif, several subreaches 

downstream at Vista or Marble Bluff Dam. For example, suppose a spill happens at the State Route 267 

bridge at Truckee, Calif. Estimated streamflows at the 

two index gaging stations Truckee River near Truckee, 

Calif, (station no. 10338000) and Truckee River at 

Farad (station no. 10346000) can be obtained from the 

U.S. District Court Water Master or the USGS (World 

Wide Web address of Water Resources Division in 

Nevada, http://nevada.usgs.gov). For instance, an estimate of the arrival time of the peak concentration is 

desired at Vista, Nev., given estimated streamflows of 

600 ft3/s at the two index gaging stations. First enter the 

abscissa or horizontal axis of the graph in figure 7 at the 

estimated streamflow, 600 ft3/s in this example, and 

draw a vertical line to the Boca Bridge curve. From that 

point draw a horizontal line that intersects the ordinate 

or vertical axis and read the estimated peak traveltime, 

about 4.3 h in this example. Similarly, enter the graph 

in figure 8 on the abscissa at 600 ft3/s and draw a vertical line to the Vista gaging-station curve. From that 

point draw a horizontal line that intersects the ordinate 

and obtain an estimate of 28 h for the peak traveltime 

from Boca Bridge to the gaging station Truckee River 

at Vista, Nev. The traveltimes of 4.3 h from figure 7 and 

28 h from figure 8 are then added to get the cumulative 

total traveltime of about 32 h from Truckee to the Vista 

gaging station for a flow of 600 ft3/s. This example predicts the elapsed time to peak concentration, not the 

elapsed time to the leading edge of the contaminant 

plume, which also may be of interest for decisions 

relating to the closing of water intakes in the RenoSparks municipal area.

LIMITATIONS OF PROCEDURES USED 

AND OF DATA COLLECTED

The collection and presentation of data and techniques for this report required several assumptions that 

may influence the reliability of values estimated by 

using the described procedures. Differences between 

field conditions under consideration by the user, unique 

conditions experienced during field data collection for 

the summarized studies, and ideal conditions upon 

which the theories and techniques are based may be 

significant. Many subjective judgments may have to be 

made to apply the data and described relations successfully. As with any empirical relations, caution should 

be exercised in extrapolating the relations beyond the 

range of the data collected for this study.

The results presented herein are intended to complement water-quality modeling studies and to be used 

as a guide in estimating the movement of a soluble 

material in the Truckee River or Truckee Canal. In the 

event of an accidental spill, extensive technical and 

manpower resources would be necessary to collect and 

analyze samples, measure the flow in the river or canal, 

and to track the actual movement of the contaminant 

plume as it migrated downstream. The procedures presented in this report would allow a quick assessment of 

the potential magnitude of the problem and assist in 

scheduling the necessary monitoring activities.

Taylor and others (1984) concluded that "the 

ideal situation for studying longitudinal dispersion 

would be one in which: (1) the total reach could be 

studied without segmentation; and (2) complete lateral 

mixing could be assumed to exist after the initial mixing period." However, low-flow conditions (where 

traveltimes may be measured in weeks rather than 

hours), sampling logistics, possible flow changes (due 

to reservoir regulation or precipitation), and control of 

maximum dye concentrations at water intakes required 

that the Truckee River reach be divided into shorter 

subreaches.

Gaged and ungaged inflows and flow losses take 

place at numerous locations along the Truckee River 

in the form of diversions, return flows, tributaries, 

and gains from or losses to ground water. Inflows 

and outflows along a stream reach work against the 

ideal concept of having complete lateral mixing and

EXPLANATION 

Dye plume

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

19

20

21

22

Trailing edge 

Centroid 

Leading edge

Site (see table 2)

State Highway 267

Old U.S. 40 bridge below Truckee

Boca Bridge near Truckee

Below Farad powerplant

Mayberry Drive

Near Sparks

Steamboat Creek

Vista

Lockwood

Patrick

Below Tracy

Clark

Derby Dam

Painted Rock Bridge

Old U.S. 40 bridge at Wadsworth

S-Bar-S Ranch

Dead Ox Wash

Numana Dam

State Highway 447

Marble Bluff Dam

14 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
5 81

CO 

DC

z

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O

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UJ

UJ

C 120

100

80

60

40

20

0 

£)200

180

160

140

120

100

80

60

40

20

LOW FLOW

380 ft^s 

October 15 

1980 ,

VERY LOW FLOW 8.4 ft3/s ;

(12ft3/s) 

November 15 /

1993 ,'

150tt3/s , ...

(ISOft^s) x' ^ /'

November29X ^ I.

1993 X S^.s' \ll

0

100

I I I Novembers/ 

/ / / 1993 /

///

29ft3/s 

(50 ft3/s) ~ 

November 4 -' 

1993 /'

90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20

DISTANCE UPSTREAM FROM MARBLE BLUFF DAM, IN RIVER MILES

10

Figure 5. Traveltime-distance relations and dispersion characteristics for Truckee River at high (A), 

medium (B), low (C), and very low (D) flows. Dates and magnitudes of peak flow rates at nearest upstream 

index gaging stations are shown for each injection. Data for 1979-80 from La Camera and others (1985, 

p. 178-180). For 1993 data, flow rate in parentheses is estimate of actual flow in reach, including groundwater accretions. See table 2 for full site names and alternate route names and table 24 for more 

information about index gaging stations.

LIMITATIONS OF PROCEDURES USED AND OF DATA COLLECTED 15
A 3° Site 24 Site 27 Site 28 Site 29 Site 30 Site 31 Site 32

CO

O

z

UJ

o

CO 

UJ

UJ

20

10

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

35

MEDIUM FLOW

664ft3/s

May 30

1979

LOW FLOW

191 ft3/s 

May 13 

1980 /

30 25 20 15 10 5 

DISTANCE UPSTREAM FROM LAHONTAN RESERVOIR, IN CANAL MILES

EXPLANATION 

Dye plume

 Trailing edge

 Centroid

 Leading edge

Site (see table 2)

24 Derby Dam

27 U.S. 95A

28 Anderson Check Dam near Fernley

29 Allendale Check Dam near Fernley

30 Mason Check Dam near Hazen

31 Bango Check Dam near Hazen

32 U.S. Highway 50

Figure 6. Traveltime-distance relations and dispersion characteristics for Truckee Canal at medium (A) 

and low (B) flows. Data from La Camera and others (1985, p. 181). See table 2 for full site names and 

alternate route names.

16 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
conservation of mass. The most accurate definition of 

the time-concentration curve requires multiple point 

sampling across the river and weighting of each timeconcentration curve by the streamflow corresponding 

to that lateral subsection of the river. In this study, only 

one point in the river cross section was sampled at each 

sampling location. Complete lateral mixing was 

assumed, based on theoretical calculations.

Related to mixing is the type of substance under 

consideration. The behavior of immiscible substances 

such as oil or other floating materials cannot be determined using procedures derived from the data in this 

study. The peak concentrations for such floating substances tend to be greater than for soluble substances as 

the former tend to disperse in only two dimensions at 

the stream surface whereas solutes dilute and disperse 

in three dimensions as they proceed downstream. Similarly, the data in this report cannot be used directly to 

predict the concentration of biologically or chemically 

degraded substances such as nutrients and dissolved 

gases unless their decay properties are known.

Several factors contribute to decreased recovery 

of dye as it moves downstream. All computations and 

techniques concerning concentration assume conservation of mass. In reality, many physical, chemical, and 

biological processes, in addition to ordinary dilution, 

might cause decreasing concentrations. Unpredictable 

dye losses can take place within very long reaches of 

streams carrying very fine grained suspended sediment 

such as clay or flocculent organic particles (Kilpatrick 

and Cobb, 1985). Additionally, uptake by abundant 

algal growth in the lower Truckee River and lower 

Truckee Canal may contribute to dye losses in some of 

the studies. Concentration also can decrease unexpectedly over extended periods of time (several days). Tests 

by R.E. Rathbun (U.S. Geological Survey, written 

commun., 1983) indicated that losses of rhodamine 

WT dye may occur where diluted concentrations are 

exposed to sunlight for several hours. Photochemical 

decay rates tend to be large in rivers (about 5 percent 

per day), especially shallow ones such as the Truckee 

River, according to F.A. Kilpatrick (U.S. Geological 

Survey, written commun., 1988). Some Truckee River 

dye studies yielded traveltimes exceeding 5 days.

Traveltime or dispersion relations cannot be used 

reliably when flow conditions in the river are unstable. 

Diurnally varying effluent discharges from the Truckee 

Meadows Water Reclamation Facility caused unavoidable flow fluctuations during the 1993 low-flow dye 

studies on the Truckee River for the reach between

Steamboat Creek and Derby Dam that may have 

affected study results. The effects of flood waves on 

water-particle movement are indeterminate within the 

scope and dye-tracing procedures used in these studies. 

The techniques presented in this report should be used 

with caution when flow conditions in the system are 

unstable. Large changes in reservoir releases or sudden 

runoff from an intense thunderstorm upstream may 

cause such conditions.

Abrupt changes in flow along the Truckee River 

or Truckee Canal are possible as a result of multiple 

diversions such as for municipal or irrigation use. Traveltime estimates and recovery percentages in such 

instances may not be valid. About 30 to 40 diversions 

may have been active during some of the Truckee River 

dye studies made in 1979-80.

Changes in the physical configuration of the 

watercourse also may affect the relations presented. 

The addition, removal, or modification of check dams 

may change relations in certain subreaches. Lateral 

channel shifts resulting from major floods may also 

alter relations. The user is encouraged to investigate 

these potential sources of error if accurate estimates are 

imperative. Finally, many of the graphs in this report 

show log-linear relations, which assume uniform channel characteristics for the reach under consideration.

The data from these traveltime studies also could 

be used to derive graphical relations that would provide 

a tool for predicting certain dispersion properties at 

locations and for flows not measured in the studies. The 

most-detailed effort would involve calibration of a onedimensional diffusion model as described by Jobson 

and Schoellhamer (1987). A simpler approach would 

be to use tracer-response curves (Kilpatrick and Taylor, 

1986; Kilpatrick, 1993) as building blocks in conjunction with the superposition principle (from the unithydrograph theory (Linsley and others, 1958)) to simulate the downstream change in loading pattern resulting from any soluble contaminant input upstream. 

Kilpatrick (1993) also explained how to handle dispersion estimates in situations involving either steady or 

variable loadings into a reach over extended time periods. Such situations might result from continuous but 

variable effluent discharge from a sewage-treatment 

facility or a prolonged leak from an industrial operation 

adjacent to the river.

LIMITATIONS OF PROCEDURES USED AND OF DATA COLLECTED 17
SUMMARY

Traveltime characteristics were determined for 

reaches along the Truckee River and Truckee Canal on 

the basis of 17 dye studies done during 1979-81 and 

1993. The 1993 studies were associated with extremely 

low streamflows in the Truckee River downstream 

from Steamboat Creek near Sparks, Nev. Data from 

the 1993 study were collated with the previous study 

results to expand the range of measured flows over 

which the relations may apply.

The results of the dye studies include both measured and computed traveltime properties for the Truckee River. In general, these results indicate that lowflow extension of the 1979-80 traveltime-discharge 

relations, based on the 1993 studies, is possible for the 

reach from Vista, Nev., to Derby Dam near Wads worth, 

Nev. The results indicate that extending the previous 

curves to less than 50 ft3/s overestimates traveltimes 

for the reach below Derby Dam for 1993. Additionally, 

because the ranges of streamflows in the 1979-80 and 

1993 studies do not overlap, no verification of the relations from the earlier study was possible. Stream 

lengths measured in 1993 confirm that in spite of some 

localized channel shifting downstream from Wadsworth over the previous decade, total stream lengths 

remain mostly unchanged. Graphical relations are presented for the user to predict peak-concentration traveltimes at various levels of flow. Because the values 

obtained by using the traveltime-flow relations for 

reaches are additive, arrival of the peak concentration 

(not the leading edge) can be predicted after a spill in 

an upstream reach.

A limitation of the dye-study results is that they 

are not applicable to chemically or biologically degradable substances or to insoluble materials. Additionally, 

the following assumptions were made in collection and 

interpretation for the dye studies:

 Conservation of mass

 Instantaneous injection

 Physical stability of channel characteristics 

over time

 Tracer solubility

 Complete lateral mixing at sampling sites

 Steady flows

 Channel uniformity (ability to use log-linear 

relations)

Insofar as such conditions may not have prevailed 

during the studies, the accuracy of the derived relations 

may have been compromised. However, the data and 

graphs in this report are intended to complement moredetailed water-quality modeling studies and may be 

used as a rule-of-thumb guide in assessing contaminant 

spills and in planning associated monitoring activities.

REFERENCES CITED

Brown, W.M., III, Nowlin, J.O., Smith, L.H., and Flint, 

M.R., 1986, River-quality assessment of the Truckee 

and Carson River system, California and Nevada 

Hydrologic characteristics: U.S. Geological Survey 

Open-File Report 84-576,201 p.

Buchanan, T.J., 1964, Time of travel of soluble contaminants 

in streams: American Society of Civil Engineers Proceedings, Journal of the Hydraulics Division, v. 90, no. 

SA3,p. 1-12.

Caupp, C.L., Brock, J.T., and Runke, H.M., 1997, Application of the dynamic stream simulation and assessment 

model (DSSAMt) to the Truckee River below Reno, 

Nevada Model formulation and overview: Boise, 

Idaho, Rapid Creek Research Technical Report No. 

RCR96-1.1,107 p.

Jobson, H.E., and Schoellhamer, D.H., 1987, Users manual 

for a branched Langrangian transport model: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 

87-4163, 73 p.

Jones, Jeanine, Maxwell, S.R., and Hayward, Patricia, 1991, 

Truckee River atlas: California Department of Water 

Resources, 128 p.

Kilpatrick, F.A., 1993, Simulation of soluble waste transport 

and buildup in surface waters using tracers: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations, bk. 3, chap. A20, 37 p.

Kilpatrick, F.A., and Cobb, E.D., 1985, Measurement of discharge using tracers: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations, bk. 3, chap. 

A16, 52 p.

Kilpatrick, F.A., and Taylor, K.R., 1986, Generalization and 

applications of tracer dispersion data: Water Resources 

Bulletin, v. 22, no. 4, p. 537-548.

Kilpatrick, F.A., and Wilson, JP., Jr., 1989, Measurement of 

time of travel in streams by dye tracing: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations, bk. 3, chap. A9,27 p.

La Camera, R.J., Hoffman, R.J., Nowlin, J.O., Smith, L.H., 

and Lima, S.M., 1985, Data on surface-water quality 

and quantity, Truckee River system, Nevada and California, 1979-81: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File 

Report 84-238, 191 p.

Linsley, R.K., Kohler, M.A., and Paulhus, J.L.H., 1958, 

Applied hydrology: New York, McGraw-Hill, 340 p.

18 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Nowlin, J.O., 1987, Modeling nutrient and dissolved-oxygen 

transport in the Truckee River and Truckee Canal 

downstream from Reno, Nevada: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 87-4037, 

487 p.

Nowlin, J.O., Brown, W.M., HI, Smith, L.H., and Hof&nan, 

R.J., 1980, Planning and design of studies for riverquality assessment in the Truckee and Carson River 

Basins, California and Nevada: U.S. Geological Survey 

Open-File Report 80-435, 75 p.

Taylor, K.R., James, R.W., Jr., and Helinsky, B.M., 1984, 

Traveltime and dispersion in the Potomac River, Cumberland, Maryland, to Washington, D.C.: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 83-861, 55 p.

Van Denburgh, A.S., Lamke, R.D., and Hughes, J.L., 1973, 

A brief water-resources appraisal of the Truckee River 

Basin, western Nevada: Nevada Division of Water 

Resources Reconnaissance Report 57,122 p.

Wilson, JJ7., Jr., 1968, Time-of-travel measurements and 

other applications of dye tracing, in International Union 

of Geodesy and Geophysics Commission of Surface 

Waters, Hydrological aspects of the utilization of water: 

International Association of Scientific Hydrology Publication 76, p. 252-265.

Wilson, JP., Jr., Cobb, E.D., and Kilpatrick, F.A., 1986, Fluorometric procedures for dye tracing: U.S. Geological 

Survey Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations, 

bk. 3, chap. A12,41p.

REFERENCES CITED 19
Table 3. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., 

May31^June1,1979

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 11). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at State Highway 267 at Truckee, Calif, (site number 1) 

Date and time of injection: May 31,1979, at 0935 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 10.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee River 

at old U.S. 40 bridge 

below Truckee, Calif.

2

4.69

440

May 31, 1979

Truckee River 

at Boca Bridge 

near Truckee, Calif.

3

9.62

520

May 31 ,1979

Truckee River below 

Farad 

powerplant near 

Floriston, Calif.

4

19.77

680

May 31 ,1979

Truckee River 

at Mayberry Drive 

below Lawton, Nev.

5

35.16

510

June 1,1 979

Truckee River 

at Vista, Nev.

9

48.63

450

June 1,1 979

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concenofday tration of day tration of day (ration of day (ration of day tration

1158 0.00

1200 .4

1202 .8

1204 1.6

1206 3.5

1208 6.9

1210 12

1212 20

1214 25

1216 34

1218 42

1220 44

1222 52

1224 44

1226 58

1228 51

1230 61

1232 59

1234 62

1236 56

1238 52

1240 49

1242 44

1244 40

1248 29

1252 22

1256 16

1300 11

1304 9.7

1308 5.7

1312 4.0

1436 0.00

1438 .1

1440 .1

1442 .3

1444 .5

1446 .8

1448 1.3

1450 2.0

1452 3.3

1454 4.7

1456 13

1458 13

1502 8.8

1504 7.5

1506 6.5

1508 ' 14

1510 20

1512 18

1515 21

1520 32

1525 33

1530 33

1535 30

1545 24

1555 16

1605 8.6

1615 6.5

1626 2.1

1635 1.8

1645 1.0

1655 .6

1705 .5

1715 .5

1730 .3

1940 0.00

1952 .3

2000 .9

2010 2.3

2020 4.0

2030 6.4

2040 8.4

2050 10

2100 11

2110 10

2120 9.6

2140 7.8

2200 6.3

2220 4.4

2240 2.5

2300 1.7

2320 .9

2340 .6

2400 .4

0343 0.00

0354 .2

0403 .2

0413 .5

0423 .8

0433 1.0

0443 1.5

0453 2.0

0503 2.6

0513 3.2

0523 3.1

0533 3.8

0543 3.8

0553 4.2

0603 4.1

0613 4.3

0623 4.3

0634 4.3

0644 4.3

0653 4.1

0703 3.8

0723 3.7

0743 3.2

0803 2.9

0823 2.1

0843 1.8

0903 1.5

0926 1.0

0943 .8

1003 .6

1350 0.00

1420 .4

1440 .6

1500 1.0

1525 1.2

1540 1.6

1600 1.9

1620 2.2

1640 2.4

1700 2.2

1720 2.2

1825 1.6

1910 1.2

1950 .9

2030 .7

2125 .4

2200 .4

2230 .2

2300 .2

2330 .0

20 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 4. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., 

May 21-22,1980

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 11). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at State Highway 267 at Truckee, Calif, (site number 1) 

Date and time of injection: May 21,1980, at 0735 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 21.5

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee Rive rat old 

U.S. 40 bridge below 

Truckee, Calif.

2

4.69

740

May 21, 1980

Truckee River at 

Boca Bridge near 

Truckee, Calif.

3

9.62

1,700

May 21, 1980

Truckee River below 

Farad powerplant 

near Floriston, Calif.

4

19.58

2,300

May 21, 1980

Truckee River at 

Mayberry Drive 

below Lawton, Nev.

5

35.16

2,300

May 21, 1980

Truckee Rive rat 

Vista, Nev.

9

48.63

2,400

May 21-22, 1980

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concenofday tration of day tration of day tration of day tration of day tration

0915 0.00

0917 .06

0919 .5

0921 1.9

0923 5.5

0925 11

0927 19

0929 29

0931 36

0933 44

0935 51

0937 57

0939 59

0941 59

0943 56

0945 50

0949 40

0953 29

0957 20

1001 14

1005 8.0

1009 5.0

1013 2.8

1017 1.9

1021 1.2

1025 .7

1029 .5

1030 0.00

1045 .01

1056 .03

1100 .2

1104 .9

1110 4.6

1112 7.0

1114 9.6

1116 13

1118 17

1122 23

1124 26

1126 30

1128 31

1130 32

1132 34

1134 34

1136 32

1138 31

1140 28

1142 26

1144 25

1146 23

1148 20

1150 18

1154 13

1156 11

1158 9.6

1200 8.3

1202 6.7

1206 4.8

1210 3.3

1214 2.2

1222 1.0

1330 0.00

1340 .01

1345 .01

1350 .1

1355 .4

1400 1.0

1405 2.0

1410 3.9

1415 6.1

1420 4.3

1425 10

1430 12

1435 13

1440 14

1445 13

1453 10

1455 9.6

1500 8.0

1510 5.0

1520 2.7

1530 1.6

1540 .9

1550 .6

1600 .4

1610 .3

1625 .2

1755 0.00

1810 .03

1818 .1

1823 .2

1828 .3

1833 .6

1838 1.0

1843 1.5

1848 2.3

1853 3.1

1858 4.2

1903 5.1

1908 5.8

1913 6.6

1918 7.2

1923 7.6

1928 7.6

1933 7.6

1938 7.2

1948 6.6

1958 5.1

2008 3.7

2018 2.6

2028 1.8

2038 1.3

2048 1.3

2255 0.00

2300 .2

2305 .4

2310 .5

2315 .8

2325 1.2

2330 2.1

2350 4.5

0005 5.4

0010 5.5

0015 5.5

0020 5.4

0025 5.1

0051 3.0

0120 1.3

0135 2.9

0205 .4

0220 .3

TABLES 3-24 21
Table 5. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 13).

Injection site: Truckee River at State Highway 267 at Truckee, Calif, (site number 1) 

Date and time of injection: October 14, 1980, at 0722 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 12.5

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream 

from injection site, in 

river miles.

Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge 

below Truckee, Calif.

2

4.69

Truckee River at Boca Bridge 

near Truckee, Calif.

3

9.62

Truckee River below 

Farad powerplant 

near Floriston, Calif.

4

19.58

Estimated streamflow 

during sampling period, 

In cubic feet per second.

Date

40

October 14,1980

310

October 14,1980 October 15,1980

380

October 15,1980

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time

of day

1430

1434

1446

1510

1514

1518

1520

1524

1528

1532

1538

1544

1550

1554

1556

1600

1602

1604

1608

1610

1612

1614

1616

1618

1620

1622

1624

1626

1628

1630

1632

1634

1636

1638

1640

1642

Concentration

0.00

.03

.13

3.5

5.4

7.7

8.9

12

16

21

29

39

50

56

61

68

71

71

79

82

86

90

92

93

94

"95

a !01

a !01

a !01

a !01

a !01

a ioo

aioo

aioo

a ioo

a ioo

Time

of day

1644

1646

1648

1650

1652

1654

1656

1658

1700

1710

1720

1730

1740

1750

1800

1810

1820

1831

1840

1850

1900

1910

1920

Concen- Time

tration of day

a ioo

aioo

399

399

a99

"95

"95

^5

93

86

78

67

57

49

40

33

27

21

18

14

12

9.8

8.2

2135

2140

2145

2150

2155

2200

2205

2215

2220

2225

2230

2235

2240

2245

2250

2255

2300

2305

2310

2315

2320

2325

2330

2335

2340

2345

2350

2400

Concentration

0.00

.03

.03

.06

.10

.16

.16

.57

.79

1.2

1.6

2.1

2.5

3.4

4.3

5.2

6.5

7.4

8.8

10

11

13

15

16

18

20

20

22

Time

of day

0005

0010

0015

0020

0025

0030

0035

0040

0045

0050

0055

0100

0110

0120

0130

0140

0150

0200

0210

0220

0230

0240

0250

0300

0310

0320

0330

0340

0350

0400

0410

Concen- Time of

tration day

23

23

24

25

25

25

26

25

25

24

24

23

21

18

17

15

13

11

10

8.9

7.6

6.4

5.6

4.7

4.0

3.4

3.0

2.6

2.3

2.1

1.8

0435

0525

0535

0545

0555

0605

0615

0625

0635

0645

0655

0705

0715

0725

0735

0745

0755

0805

0815

0825

0835

0845

0855

0905

0925

0945

1005

1025

1045

1105

1125

1145

1205

1225

1320

1340

Concentration

0.00

.03

.06

.06

.13

.22

.35

.60

.92

1.4

2.0

5.9

6.9

7.8

8.6

9.3

9.6

9.5

9.5

9.5

9.2

8.5

8.2

7.8

6.6

5.4

4.2

3.2

2.5

2.0

1.6

1.3

1.0

.86

.57

.51

Concentration less accurate because above range of instrument calibration.

22 Estimation of Traveitime Characteristics for Truckee River
River between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., October 14-16,1980

See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Truckee River at Mayberry Drive 

below Lawton, Nev.

October 15, 1980

5

35.16

240

October 16, 1980

Truckee River Truckee River 

near Sparks, Nev. at Vista, Nev.

6

44.71

240

9

48.63

420

October 1 6, 1 980 October 1 6, 1 980

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concenof day tration

1800

1810

1825

1840

1855

1910

1925

1940

1955

2010

2025

2040

2055

2110

2125

2140

2155

2210

2225

2240

2255

2310

2325

2340

2355

2.2

2.5

3.0

3.5

3.9

4.2

4.3

4.4

4.4

4.2

4.2

4.0

3.8

3.4

3.1

2.8

2.5

2.3

2.0

1.8

1.6

1.5

1.3

1.3

1.1

Time 

of day

0015

0030

0045

0100

0115

0130

0145

0200

0215

0230

0245

0300

0315

0330

0345

0400

0415

0430

0445

0500

0515

0530

0545

0600

Concen- Time 

tration of day

1.1

1.1

1.0

1.0

.98

.95

.92

.89

.83

.78

.78

.72

.66

.63

.56

.53

.53

.50

.47

.44

.44

.41

.38

.38

0010

0030

0050

0110

0130

0150

0210

0230

0250

0310

0330

0350

0410

0430

0450

0510

0530

0550

0610

0730

0750

0810

0830

0850

0910

0930

0950

1010

1030

1050

1110

1130

1150

1210

1230

1250

Concen- Time Concen- Time of 

tration of day tration day

0.00 1310 0.70

.03 1330 .70

.03 1350 .63

.03 1410 .60

.03 1430 .54

.06 1450 .51

.13 1510 .48

.22 1525 .41

.38 1605 .38

.66 1645 .35

.98 1725 .32

1.4 1805 .29

1.8 1845 .25

2.3 1925 .22

2.6 2005 .19

3.0

3.2

3.3

3.4

2.8

2.7

2.4

2.2

2.0

.7

.6

.5

.3

.2

.1

.0

.0

.95

.89

.83

.76

0620

0640

0700

0720

0740

0800

0820

0840

0900

0920

0940

1000

1020

1040

1100

1120

1140

1145

1220

1300

1340

1420

1500

1540

1620

1700

1740

1820

1900

1940

2020

2100

2140

2220

2300

2340

Concentration

0.00

.04

.10

.19

.26

.45

.64

.83

1.0

.3

.4

.6

.6

.7

1.6

1.5

1.4

1.4

1.2

1.0

.80

.67

.58

.51

.48

.45

.42

.38

.32

.32

.26

.26

.23

.23

.19

.16

TABLES 3-24 23
Table 6. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Renc Sparks sewage-treatment plant 

outfall near Reno, Nev., and Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., May 29-30,1979

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 13). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev. (site number 7) 

Date and time of injection: May 29,1979, at 1158 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 12.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee River at 

Vista, Nev.

9

1.43

800

May 29, 1979

Truckee River at 

Lockwood, Nev.

10

3.61

780

May 29, 1979

Truckee Rive rat 

Patrick, Nev.

11

8.74

770

May 29, 1979

Truckee River below 

Tracy, Nev.

12

13.04

770

May 29, 1979

Truckee River at 

Derby Dam

14

18.78

760

May 30, 1979

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time ConcenofdaV tration ofdaV tration ofdaV tration ofdaV tration ofdaV tration

1302 0.00

1304 .8

1306 5.7

1307 14

1310 19

1312 41

1314 43

1316 47

1319 48

1324 44

1329 32

1334 25

1339 19

1341 12

1345 8.0

1355 4.2

1400 1.8

1410 1.2

1414 0.00

1419 .8

1424 5.1

1429 12

1439 23

1444 28

1446 29

1449 28

1454 29

1501 28

1504 22

1517 18

1522 13

1527 10

1537 7.6

1547 4.5

1557 2.4

1607 1.2

1617 .7

1627 .2

1630 .1

1657 0.00

1700 .5

1702 .6

1704 1.0

1706 1.3

1708 2.0

1710 2.4

1712 2.9

1714 3.9

1716 4.9

1718 5.9

1720 6.5

1722 7.7

1724 8.5

1726 9.3

1728 11

1730 11

1732 12

1734 13

1736 14

1738 16

1740 16

1742 18

1744 18

1747 20

1750 21

1755 19

1800 18

1805 16

1810 14

1815 13

1826 10

1830 8.5

1835 7.7

1840 6.7

1845 5.3

1850 4.6

1855 3.9

1900 3.0

1905 2.2

1925 .9

1943 0.00

1953 .8

2003 2.6

2013 5.6

2023 8.0

2033 12

2043 12

2053 14

2103 14

2115 12

2123 10

2153 6.0

2213 3.2

2235 1.5

2253 .7

2313 .3

0013 0.00

0018 1.2

0023 1.4

0028 2.4

0033 3.1

0038 4.0

0048 5.6

0053 5.8

0103 7.6

0113 8.5

0123 10

0133 11

0143 12

0153 9.4

0213 7.4

0233 4.6

0302 3.4

0320 2.0

0340 1.0

24 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 7. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Renc-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall 

near Reno, Nev., and Derby Dam nearWadsworth, Nev., September 4-5,1979

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 15). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev. (site number 7) 

Date and time of injection: September 4,1979, at 0900 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 4.5

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee River at 

Vista, Nev.

9

1.43

260

September 4, 1 979

Truckee River at 

Lockwood, Nev.

10

3.61

240

September 4, 1979

Truckee River at 

Patrick, Nev.

11

8.74

230

September 4, 1 979 September 5, 1 979

Truckee River at 

Derby Dam

14

18.78

220

Septembers, 1979

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concenofday tration of day tration of day tration of day tration of day (ration

1036 3.8

1039 8.6

1042 18

1044 24

1046 26

1048 29

1050 29

1052 32

1054 32

1056 31

1058 31

1100 29

1102 28

1104 28

1106 25

1108 24

1110 23

1115 19

1120 15

1125 14

1130 10

1135 9.2

1140 6.8

1145 5.6

1150 4.4

1155 3.8

1200 2.5

1205 2.5

1215 1.9

1220 1.3

1225 .7

1230 .7

1305 0.00

1345 6.5

1350 8.7

1355 10

1400 11

1405 13

1410 14

1415 14

1420 14

1425 14

1430 14

1440 13

1450 11

1500 9.5

1510 8.1

1520 6.7

1530 5.2

1540 4.5

1550 3.5

1600 2.8

1610 2.1

1620 1.6

1630 1.1

1640 .9

1850 0.00

1900 1.0

1910 1.8

1920 2.6

1930 3.4

1940 4.4

1950 4.4

2000 6.0

2010 6.7

2020 7.1

2030 7.1

2040 7.2

2050 7.2

2100 7.3

2110 6.9

2120 6.4

2130 6.0

2140 5.5

2150 5.2

2200 4.7

2210 4.2

2220 3.8

2230 3.3

2240 2.9

2250 2.6

2300 2.3

2310 1.9

2320 1.7

2330 1.4

2340 1.2

2355 1.0

0005 0.7

0015 .7

0025 .6

0035 .4

0045 .3

0055 .2

0845 0.00

0902 .1

0917 .1

0930 .4

0945 .5

1000 1.0

1015 1.2

1030 1.7

1045 2.0

1100 2.5

1115 2.8

1130 3.0

1145 2.9

1200 3.3

1215 3.7

1230 3.6

1245 3.6

1300 3.6

1315 3.4

1330 3.3

1345 3.1

1400 2.9

1415 2.8

1430 2.7

1445 2.2

1500 2.1

1515 1.9

1530 1.8

1545 1.6

1600 1.3

1630 1.3

1700 .9

1730 .7

1800 .4

TABLES 3-24 25
Table 8. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant 

outfall near Reno, Nev., and Derby Dam near Wads worth, Nev., January 18,1980

[Modified from La Camera and others (198S, table IS). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev. (site number 7) 

Date and time of injection: January 18,1980, at 0820 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 16.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee River at 

Vista, Nev.

9

1.43

2,900

January 18, 1980

Truckee River at 

Lockwood, Nev.

10

3.61

2,900

January 18, 1980

Truckee River at 

Patrick, Nev.

11

8.74

3,200

January 18, 1980

Truckee River below 

Tracy, Nev.

12

13.04

3,200

January 18, 1980

Truckee River at 

Derby Dam

14

18.78

3,300

January 18, 1980

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time ConcenofdaV tration ofdaV tration ofdaV tration ofdaV tration ofdaV tration

0900 0.00

0901 .2

0902 .6

0903 1.9

0904 3.0

0905 5.6

0906 10

0907 13

0908 16

0909 19

0910 19

0911 19

0913 21

0915 21

0916 19

0917 19

0918 17

0920 15

0922 13

0924 11

0926 8.7

0928 7.2

0930 5.7

0932 4.4

0934 3.6

0936 3.0

0938 2.3

0940 1.9

0942 1.7

0944 1.3

0946 1.1

0900 0.00

0942 .09

0944 .2

0945 .3

0946 .7

0947 1.7

0948 3.0

0949 4.7

0950 6.0

0951 7.3

0952 8.2

'0953 9.7

'0954 10

'0956 12

'0957 12

'0958 13

'0959 14

'1000 14

J 1001 15

1012 7.3

1013 6.4

1015 6.0

1016 5.3

1018 4.8

1019 4.6

1020 4.2

1022 3.6

1024 2.9

1026 2.5

1028 1.8

1030 1.5

1032 1.4

1034 1.0

1036 .9

1038 .8

1040 .6

1042 .5

1044 .4

1058 0.00

1100 .03

1102 .2

1104 .4

1106 1.0

1108 1.7

1110 2.8

1112 3.7

1114 5.8

1116 6.8

1118 8.0

1120 8.6

1122 9.6

1124 10

1126 10

1128 10

1130 10

1132 10

1135 10

1140 8.6

1145 6.8

1150 5.2

1155 3.9

1201 2.5

1205 1.9

1210 1.4

1215 1.0

1220 .7

1210 0.00

1220 .06

1228 .3

1230 .6

1235 1.4

1240 2.9

1245 5.2

1250 7.4

1256 8.4

1303 8.4

1308 7.4

1313 6.2

1318 5.2

1323 4.4

1330 3.3

1340 2.3

1350 .9

1400 .5

1410 .3

1420 .3

1430 .2

1440 .1

1450 .09

1500 .06

1422 0.00

1425 .06

1432 .3

1445 2.8

1455 5.8

1500 5.8

1505 6.1

1510 6.4

1515 6.4

1520 6.2

1525 5.8

1530 4.8

1540 3.5

1550 2.0

1600 1.5

1610 1.1

1620 .7

1630 .4

'Approximate time based on graphical analysis of data.

26 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 9. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble 

Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev., May 23-25,1979

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 17). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at Derby Dam (site number 14) 

Date and time of injection: May 23,1979, at 1136 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 15.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee River at 

Painted Rock Bridge

15

4.91

370

May 23, 1979

Truckee River at old 

U.S. 40 bridge at 

Wadsworth, Nev.

16

11.19

370

May 23, 1979

Truckee River at 

Dead Ox Wash 

near Nixon, Nev.

19

21.70

310

May 24, 1979

Truckee River at 

State Highway 447 

at Nixon, Nev.

21

31.66

270

May 24, 1979

Truckee River at 

Marble Bluff Dam

22

34.48

240

May 24, 1979

Truckee River 

below Marble 

Bluff Dam

23

34.93

May 25, 1979

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concenof tration of day tration of tration of tration of tration of tration 

day day day day day

1430 0.00

1435 1.8

1440 10

1445 24

1450 35

1455 60

1500 66

1505 67

1510 69

1515 65

1520 61

1525 54

1535 41

1544 30

1550 19

1602 12

1610 7.7

1620 4.7

1630 2.6

1640 2.6

1822 0.00

1832 .8

1842 4.1

1852 9.3

1902 20

1912 24

1922 34

1932 37

1942 39

1952 29

2002 27

2012 23

2022 20

2032 16

2042 12

2102 6.2

2122 3.3

2123 3.0

0123 0.00

0138 .3

0153 1.6

0208 3.7

0223 7.0

0238 10

0253 15

0308 20

0323 22

0338 23

0353 22

0408 20

0425 15

0438 14

0453 11

0508 8.0

0538 5.4

0608 3.4

0638 2.9

0713 1.4

0741 1.0

0810 .7

1035 0.00

1050 .2

1105 .6

1120 1.4

1135 2.3

1150 3.6

1205 5.2

1220 6.8

1235 8.5

1250 10

1305 11

1320 14

1322 15

1350 15

1405 16

1425 16

1440 12

1645 0.00 0010 2.9

1710 .3 0030 3.0

1730 .9 0050 3.0

1750 1.8 0110 3.0

1810 2.8 0130 2.8

1830 4.7 0150 2.8

1850 6.2 0210 2.7

1910 5.3 0250 2.9

1930 6.1 0312 2.9

1950 5.6 0350 2.7

2010 4.0 0430 2.6

2030 2.5 0510 1.3

2050 3.5 0550 1.5

2110 4.0 0712 1.3

2130 3.8 0750 1.2

2150 3.8 0850 1.5

2210 3.9 0950 1.5

2230 4.0 1057 1.0

2250 3.9 1127 1.0

2330 3.1 1150 .5

2350 3.1 1220 .8

1250 1.1

1320 .3

1350 .2

TABLES 3-24 27
Table 10. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and 

Dead Ox Wash near Nixon, Nev., August 20-24,1979

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 17). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at Derby Dam (site number 14) 

Date and time of injection: August 20,1979, at 0900 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 2.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee River at 

Painted Rock Bridge

15

4.91

47

August 20, 1 979 August 21 , 1 979

Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge 

at Wadsworth, Nev.

16

11.19

38

August 21 , 1 979 August 22, 1 979

Truckee River at Dead Ox Wash 

near Nixon, Nev.

19

21.70

36

August 23, 1979 August 24, 1979

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time

of

day

2123

2200

2210

2220

2230

2240

2250

2300

2310

2320

2330

2340

2350

2400

Concentration

0.00

.2

.4

.7

1.1

1.5

2.0

2.4

2.9

3.5

3.9

5.2

5.7

7.0

Time

of

day

0010

0020

0030

0040

0050

0100

0110

0120

0130

0140

0150

0200

0210

0230

0250

0310

0330

0350

0400

0430

0450

0510

0530

0610

0630

0700

0732

Concentration

6.2

5.8

6.2

6.5

6.5

6.3

6.6

6.5

6.4

6.2

6.0

5.8

5.3

4.9

4.5

3.8

3.3

2.8

2.4

2.1

1.8

1.4

1.2

1.0

.8

.6

.5

Time

of

day

1945

2000

2015

2025

2030

2050

2100

2115

2130

2145

2200

2215

2230

2245

2300

2330

2400

Concentration

0.00

.1

.1

.1

.2

.2

.2

.2

.2

.2

.3

.3

.4

.4

.4

.5

.8

Time

of

day

0030

0100

0130

0200

0230

0300

0330

0400

0430

0500

0530

0600

0630

0700

0800

0900

1000

1100

1200

1300

1400

1500

1600

1700

1800

1900

2100

Concentration

0.9

1.1

.3

.4

.6

.7

.8

.7

.7

.7

.6

.6

.5

.3

.2

.2

.9

.6

.5

.4

.6

.5

.5

.4

.3

.3

.2

Time

of

day

1030

1145

1230

1330

1430

1530

1630

1745

1830

2000

2100

2203

2310

Concentration

0.00

.1

.2

.2

.3

.4

.5

.4

.5

.4

.5

.5

.3

Time

of

day

0040

0203

0307

0405

0501

0610

0718

0810

Concentration

0.3

.3

.3

.1

.1

.1

.1

.1

28 Estimation of Traveitime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 11 . Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble 

Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev., January 16,1980

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 19). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at Derby Dam (site number 14) 

Date and time of injection: January 16,1980, at 0914 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 20.0

Sampling site:

Name 

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee Rive rat 

Painted Rock Bridge

15

4.91

3,700

January 16, 1980

Truckee River at old 

U.S. 40 bridge at 

Wadsworth, Nev.

16

11.19

3,700

January 16, 1980

Truckee River at 

S-Bar-S Ranch near 

Wadsworth, Nev.

17

17.06

3,800

January 16, 1980

Truckee River at 

Dead Ox Wash 

near Nixon, Nev.

19

21.70

3,800

January 16, 1980

Truckee River at 

State Highway 447 

at Nixon, Nev.

21

31.66

3,800

January 16, 1980

Truckee River 

below Marble 

Bluff Dam

23

34.93

3,800

January 16, 1980

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concenof tration of tration of day tration of tration of tration of tration 

day day day day day

0915 0.00

1020 .03

1022 .5

1024 2.6

1026 4.9

1029 11

1030 13

1032 16

1034 19

1036 20

1038 20

1040 19

1045 15

1050 10

1055 6.8

1100 4.4

1105 3.1

1110 1.9

1115 1.4

1120 1.0

1125 .7

1130 .5

1134 0.00

1150 .06

1152 .2

1154 .2

1156 .4

1158 .7

1200 .9

1204 8.9

1206 8.9

1208 12

1210 12

1213 13

1215 13

1217 13

1219 13

1221 12

1223 12

1225 12

1227 11

1229 10

1230 9.5

1236 7.7

1241 6.5

1246 5.8

1251 3.4

1256 2.4

1301 1.6

1324 0.00

1330 .1

1335 .3

1340 .8

1345 1.6

1350 2.7

1355 4.0

1400 5.5

1405 6.8

1410 7.7

1415 8.0

1420 8.0

1425 8.1

1430 6.8

1440 5.0

1450 3.5

1500 2.5

1510 1.7

1520 1.1

1530 .8

1540 .6

1550 .5

1600 .3

1442 0.00

1457 .09

1500 .2

1505 .4

1510 .7

1515 1.3

1520 1.9

1525 2.9

1530 3.7

1535 4.4

1540 5.0

1545 5.8

1550 6.0

1555 6.1

1600 5.9

1605 5.7

1610 5.1

1615 4.8

1620 4.4

1630 3.4

1640 2.3

1650 1.7

1700 1.2

1710 .9

1720 .6

1730 .5

1740 .4

1750 .4

1800 .3

1725 0.00

1750 .01

1800 .08

1810 .3

1820 1.0

1830 2.0

1840 3.0

1850 4.2

1900 4.8

1910 5.0

1930 3.2

1940 2.6

1950 2.0

2003 1.5

2010 1.2

2020 .9

2030 .8

2045 .6

2100 .5

2115 .3

2135 .2

2200 .2

2237 .1

1950 1.1

2001 1.4

2010 1.9

2023 2.7

2040 2.6

2050 2.9

2110 2.2

2130 1.9

2145 1.2

2200 1.0

2217 .7

2230 .5

2245 .4

2300 .3

2315 .3

TABLES 3-24 29
Table 12. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between old U.S. Highway 40 bridge at Wadsworth, 

Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev., September 21-26,1980

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 19). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge at Wadsworth, Nev. (site number 16) 

Date and time of injection: September 21, 1980, at 1900 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 10.00

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from injection 

site, in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during sampling 

period, in cubic feet per second.

Date

Truckee River at

Dead Ox Wash 

near Nixon, Nev.

19

10.51

76

September 22-23, 1980

Truckee River at

Numana Dam 

near Nixon, Nev.

20

15.58

80

September 23-24, 1980

Truckee River at

State Highway 447 

at Nixon, Nev.

21

20.47

71

September 23-24, 1980

Truckee River below

Marble Bluff Dam

23

23.74

71

September 24-26, 1980

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time of Concen- Time of Concen- Time of Concen- Time of Concenday tration day tration day tration day tration

1345 0.00

1400 .02

1415 .03

1430 .21

1445 .56

1500 1.1

1515 2.0

1530 2.9

1545 4.5

1600 6.2

1615 8.2

1630 10

1645 12

1700 14

1715 16

1730 17

1745 18

1800 19

1815 18

1830 18

1845 18

1900 18

1915 16

1930 16

2000 14

2030 12

2100 11

2130 9.8

2200 8.8

2230 8.2

2300 7.5

2330 6.3

2400 5.8

0030 5.0

0100 4.2

0130 3.6

0200 2.9

0230 2.4

0300 1.9

0330 1.7

0400 1.4

0430 1.1

0620 0.00

0640 .01

0700 .10

0720 .19

0740 .38

0800 .76

0820 1.1

0840 1.6

0900 2.1

0920 3.0

0940 4.0

1000 5.4

1020 6.6

1040 7.8

1100 8.8

1120 9.7

1140 11

1200 11

1220 11

1240 12

1300 12

1320 12

1340 11

1400 11

1420 11

1440 10

1500 10

1520 9.4

1540 9.1

1600 8.8

1620 8.1

1640 7.8

1700 7.5

1720 6.9

1740 6.2

1800 6.3

1820 5.7

1900 4.6

1940 3.8

2020 3.0

2100 2.5

2140 1.9

2220 1.6

2300 1.4

2340 1.1

0020 .92

1900 1.9

1930 3.0

2000 4.2

2030 5.3

2100 6.0

2130 7.3

2200 8.0

2230 8.6

2300 8.6

2330 8.6

2400 8.6

0030 8.3

0100 8.0

0130 7.3

0200 6.7

0230 6.4

0300 5.9

0330 5.3

0400 4.7

0430 4.1

0500 3.6

0530 3.1

0600 2.7

0705 1.9

0805 1.5

0905 1.1

1005 .85

1105 .55

0935 1.4

1020 1.6

1105 1.7

1150 1.9

1235 2.0

1320 2.1

1405 2.1

1500 2.0

1545 2.0

1630 2.1

1715 2.2

1800 2.1

1845 2.0

1930 1.9

2015 1.7

2100 1.6

2230 1.3

2400 1.2

0130 1.1

0300 1.1

0430 1.1

0600 1.1

0730 .98

1115 .98

1245 .86

1415 .73

1545 .54

1715 .37

1845 .37

2015 .34

2145 .28

2315 .22

0045 .15

0215 .15

0345 .12

0515 .15

0645 .15

0815 .12

30 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 13. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Steamboat Creek at mouth near Sparks, 

Nev., and Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., November 29-December 1,1993

[See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Steamboat Creek at mouth near Sparks, Nev. (site number 8) 

Date and time of injection: November 29,1993, at 1015 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 4.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from

injection site,

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during

sampling period,

in cubic feet

per second.

Date

Truckee River at

Vista, Nev.

9

1.30

134

November 29, 1993

Truckee River at

Lockwood, Nev.

10

3.43

135

November 29, 1993

Truckee River at

Patrick, Nev.

11

8.61

154

November 30, 1993

Truckee River

below Tracy, Nev.

12

12.91

159

November 30, 1993

Truckee River at

Clark, Nev.

13

14.97

159

November 30-

December 1, 1993

Truckee River at

Derby Dam

14

18.68

161

November 30-

DecembeM, 1993

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concenof {ration of {ration of {ration of {ration of (ration of {ration 

day day day day day day

1215 ^.0

1231 5.7

1240 16

1250 23

1302 26

1310 25

1320 23

1330 21

1351 14

1410 9.6

1430 6.6

1450 3.6

1510 2.4

1530 1.3

1550 .8

1610 .4

1630 .3

1650 .2

1710 .2

1530 0.0

1600 .1

1615 .6

1630 3.4

1645 7.8

1700 10

1715 12

1730 14

1745 15

1800 14

1815 12

1830 11

1845 9.8

1900 7.9

1915 6.4

1930 5.4

1945 4.0

2000 3.3

2015 3.0

2030 2.2

2045 1.8

2100 1.4

2130 1.1

2200 .7

2230 .5

2300 .3

2330 .2

2400 .2

0015 0.0

0035 .1

0100 .4

0130 1.5

0200 3.4

0230 5.8

0300 7.8

0330 8.7

0400 8.7

0430 7.7

0500 6.2

0600 3.5

0700 1.7

0800 .9

0900 .5

1000 .3

1100 .2

0730 0.0

0800 .1

0830 .3

0900 .7

0930 1.7

1000 2.9

1030 4.3

1100 5.4

1130 6.3

1200 6.2

1230 5.7

1300 5.0

1330 4.2

1400 3.3

1430 2.5

1500 1.9

1600 1.3

1700 .8

1800 .6

1900 .3

2000 .2

2100 .2

1000 0.0

1100 .1

1200 .2

1245 .8

1330 2.3

1415 4.3

1500 5.7

1545 6.0

1630 5.5

1715 4.5

1800 3.3

1845 2.5

1930 1.7

2015 1.2

2100 .9

2145 .6

2230 .5

2315 .4

2400 .3

0045 .2

1600 0.0

1700 .1

1800 .3

1900 1.1

2000 2.4

2100 4.1

2130 4.6

2200 4.9

2230 4.6

2300 4.4

2330 3.9

2400 3.3

0030 2.8

0100 2.2

0200 1.4

0300 1.0

0400 .6

0500 .5

0600 .3

0700 .3

0800 .2

0830 .2

''Trace (less than 0.05 micrograms per liter) was present in first sample.

TABLES 3-24 31
Table 14. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Derby Dam near 

Wadsworth, Nev., and old U.S. Highway 40 bridge at Wadsworth, Nev., November 15-23,1993

[See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at Derby Dam (site number 14)

Date and time of injection: November 15,1993, at 1105

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 2.0_____________ ___ _________________________________

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream 

from injection site, in 

river miles.

Truckee River at 

Painted Rock Bridge

15

4.90

Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge at 

Wadsworth, Nev.

16

11.19

Estimated streamflow 

during sampling period, 

in cubic feet per second.

Date

12

November 16-17,1993 November 18,1993

14

November 19-20,1993 November 21-23,1993

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Timeof

day

2200

2300

2400

0100

0200

0300

0400

0500

0600

0638

0700

0730

0800

0830

0900

0930

1000

1030

1100

1130

1200

1230

1300

1330

1400

1500

1600

1700

1800

1900

2000

2100

2200

2300

2400

Concentration

0.0

.1

.2

.7

1.5

2.8

4.8

6.2

8.0

9.2

9.4

9.8

10

10

10

10

10

10

10

9.5

9.2

8.9

8.4

8.0

7.3

6.7

5.7

5.0

4.2

3.4

2.5

2.3

2.0

1.6

1.3

Timeof

day

0100

0200

0300

0400

0500

0600

0700

0800

0900

1000

1100

1200

1300

1400

1500

1600

1700

1800

Concentration

1.1

.9

.8

.7

.6

.5

.5

.4

.4

.3

.3

.3

.3

.3

.2

.2

.2

.2

Timeof

day

1340

1400

1500

1600

1700

1800

1900

2000

2100

2200

2300

2400

0100

0200

0300

0400

0500

0600

0700

0800

0900

1000

1100

1200

1300

1400

1500

1600

1700

1800

1900

2000

2100

2200

2300

2400

Concentration

0.0

a.O

.1

.1

.2

.2

.3

.3

.3

.4

.5

.6

.7

.7

.8

.9

.9

.0

.2

.4

.5

.7

.7

.8

.9

2.0

2.2

2.2

2.2

2.4

2.4

2.5

2.6

2.6

2.6

2.6

Timeof

day

0100

0200

0300

0400

0500

0600

0700

0800

0900

1000

1100

1200

1300

1400

1600

1800

2000

2200

2400

0200

0400

0600

0800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

2000

2200

2400

0200

0400

Concentration

2.6

2.6

2.6

2.6

2.5

2.4

2.3

2.2

2.2

2.0

2.0

2.0

1.9

1.6

1.5

1.4

1.2

1.0

.8

.7

.6

.5

.5

.4

.4

.3

.3

.3

.3

.3

.3

.2

.2

'Trace (less than 0.05 micrograms per liter) was present in this sample.

32 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 15. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study 

on Truckee River between old U.S. Highway 40 bridge at 

Wadsworth, Nev., and Dead Ox Wash near Nixon, Nev., 

November 8-11,1993

[See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge at Wadsworth, Nev. (site number 16)

Date and time of injection: November 8,1993, at 0920

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 1.5_________________________

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Truckee River below

S-Bar-S Ranch 

near Wadsworth, Nev.

18

6.70

Truckee River 

at Dead Ox Wash 

near Nixon, Nev.

19

10.68

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

29

November 9-10,1993

31

November 10-11,1993

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time of 

day

1330

1400

1430

1500

1530

1600

1630

1700

1730

1800

1830

1900

1930

2000

2030

2100

2130

2200

2230

2300

2330

2400

0100

0200

0300

0400

0500

0600

0700

1000

1100

1200

1300

1330

Concen- Time of 

tration day

0.0

a.O

.1

.3

.5

.6

.9

1.5

1.9

2.4

3.1

3.6

4.1

4.4

4.9

5.0

5.1

5.0

4.9

4.5

4.2

3.5

3.2

2.6

2.0

1.6

1.2

.9

.8

.4

.4

.3

.2

.2

0130

0215

0300

0345

0430

0515

0600

0645

0730

0815

0900

0945

1030

1115

1200

1300

1430

1600

1730

1900

2030

2200

2330

0100

0230

0400

0530

0700

0830

Concentration

0.0

.1

.3

.5

.8

1.4

1.8

2.4

3.1

3.5

3.8

3.9

4.0

3.8

3.5

2.9

2.4

1.7

1.3

.9

.6

.5

.4

.3

.3

.3

.3

.2

.2

Trace (less than 0.05 micrograms per liter) was present in this sample.

TABLES 3-24 33
Table 16. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee River between Dead Ox Wash and Marble 

Bluff Dam near Nixon, Nev., November 4-7,1993

[See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee River at Dead Ox Wash near Nixon, Nev. (site number 19) 

Date and time of injection: November 4, 1993, at 1010 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 2.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from injection 

site, in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during sampling 

period, in cubic feet per second.

Date

Truckee River at 

Numana Dam 

near Nixon, Nev.

20

4.89

49

November 5-6, 1993

Truckee River at 

State Highway 447 

at Nixon, Nev.

21

9.81

50

November 5-7, 1 993

Truckee River below 

Marble Bluff Dam

23

13.06

50

November 6-7, 1993

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time

of day

0600

0630

0700

0730

0800

0830

0900

0930

1000

1030

1100

1130

1200

1230

1300

1330

1400

1430

1500

1600

1700

1800

1900

2000

2100

2200

2300

2400

0100

Concen- Time

tration of day

0.0

.1

.2

.5

1.3

2.2

3.4

5.1

8.0

9.1

9.9

9.9

10

9.1

8.5

7.7

6.8

6.7

4.6

3.4

2.8

2.0

1.3

.9

.8

.6

.4

.3

.2

2200

2230

2300

2330

2400

0030

0100

0130

0200

0230

0300

0330

0400

0430

0500

0530

0600

0630

0700

0730

0800

0830

0900

0930

1000

1100

1200

1300

1400

1500

1600

1700

1800

1900

2000

2100

2200

2300

2400

0100

Concen- Time

tration of day

0.0

.1

.2

.3

.5

.7

1.2

1.6

2.2

2.6

3.2

3.7

4.3

4.7

5.3

5.4

5.7

5.8

5.7

5.7

5.3

5.2

4.9

4.5

3.4

2.9

2.5

1.9

1.7

1.3

1.1

.9

.7

.6

.5

.4

.3

.3

.3

.2

0500

0600

0700

0800

0900

1000

1100

1130

1200

1230

1300

1330

1400

1430

1500

1530

1630

1730

1830

1930

2030

2130

2230

2330

0030

0130

0230

0330

0430

1500

Concentration

0.0

.1

.4

.8

1.4

2.1

3.0

3.3

3.7

4.0

4.3

4.2

4.4

4.4

4.4

3.4

3.4

3.0

2.8

2.4

2.0

1.7

1.5

1.2

1.0

.9

.8

.6

.5

.1

34 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 17. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on 

Truckee River and Truckee Canal between Reno-Sparks 

sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev., and U.S. 

Highway 95A near Fernley, Nev., May 29-30,1979

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 21). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Nev. (site 

number 7)

Date and time of injection: May 29,1979, at 1158 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 12.0

Sampling site:

Table 18. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on 

Truckee Canal between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., 

and U.S. Highway 50 above Lahontan Reservoir near Fallen, 

Nev., September 4-6,1979

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 22). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee Canal at Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev. (site number 24) 

Date and time of injection: September 4,1979, at 1119 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 7.5

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, in river miles.

Truckee Canal at U.S. 95A 

near Femley, Nev.

27

31.94

Sampling site: 

Name

Number

Distance downstream from injection 

site, in river miles.

Truckee Canal at U.S. Highway 

50 above Lahontan Reservoir

32

30.98

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

630

May 30,1979

Estimated streamflow during sampling 

period, in cubic feet per second.

Date

140

Septembers, 1979

Rhodamine WT dye, 

in micrograms per liter

Rhodamine WT dye, 

in micrograms per liter

Time of day

0750

0800

0810

0820

0830

0840

0850

0900

0910

0920

0930

0940

0950

1000

1010

1020

1030

1050

1113

1130

1150

1213

1233

1250

Concentration

0.0

.2

.5

1.2

2.2

3.1

4.3

5.6

7.0

7.7

8.7

9.5

10

10 .

9.5

7.5

6.6

4.9

3.5

2.4

1.6

.8

.4

.3

Time of day Concentration

1130

1200

1230

1300

1330

1400

1430

1500

1530

1600

1630

1700

1730

0.0

.2

.6

4.6

12

18

19

14

7.9

3.9

1.5

.6

.1

TABLES 3-24 35
Table 19. Dye-concentration data from traveltime study on Truckee Canal between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and 

U.S. Highway 50 above Lahontan Reservoir near Fallon, Nev., May 12-15,1980

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 23). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations]

Injection site: Truckee Canal at Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev. (site number 24) 

Date and time of injection: May 12,1980, at 2315 

Volume of injected dye, in liters: 8.0

Sampling site:

Name

Number

Distance downstream from 

injection site, 

in river miles.

Estimated streamflow during 

sampling period, 

in cubic feet 

per second.

Date

Truckee Canal 

at U.S. 95A 

near Femley, Nev.

27

13.19

170

May 13, 1980

Truckee Canal 

at Anderson 

Check Dam 

near Femley, Nev.

28

16.35

140

May 13-1 4, 1980

Truckee Canal 

at Allendale 

Check Dam 

near Hazen, Nev.

29

20.35

120

May 14, 1980

Truckee Canal 

at Mason 

Check Dam 

near Hazen, Nev.

30

25.03

120

May 14-15, 1980

Truckee Canal 

at Bango 

Check Dam 

near Hazen, Nev.

31

28.17

110

May 14-1 5, 1980

Truckee Canal 

at U.S. Highway 50 

above Lahontan Reservoir

32

30.98

110

May 15, 1980

Rhodamine WT dye, in micrograms per liter

Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concen- Time Concenof tration of tration of tration of tration of tration of tration of tration 

day day day day day day day

1400 0.0

1440 a.O

1450 .1

1500 .3

1510 1.0

1520 2.6

1530 5.1

1540 8.2

1550 12

1600 15

1610 17

1620 17

1630 16

1640 14

1700 4.5

1720 4.3

1740 1.6

1800 .7

1820 .4

1840 .2

1900 .1

2200 0.0

2230 a.O

2240 a.O

2255 .2

2310 1.1

2325 2.9

2340 6.5

2355 10

0010 14

0025 14

0040 14

0055 12

0130 5.6

0200 2.4

0230 .9

0300 .3

0701 0.0

0716 a.O

0731 .2

0746 .6

0801 1.9

0816 4.0

0831 6.8

0846 10

0901 13

0916 13

0931 11

0946 9.1

1001 6.8

1033 5.3

1045 3.6

1100 2.4

1115 1.6

1145 .9

1200 .6

1215 .4

1230 .3

1532 0.0

1547 a.O

1602 .1

1617 .1

1632 .5

1647 1.0

1702 1.8

1717 3.1

1732 5.0

1747 6.6

1802 8.0

1817 9.2

1832 11 

1847 12

1902 12

1917 11

1932 9.9

1945 8.9

2000 8.0

2015 6.6

2030 5.8

2045 4.6

2100 3.9

2115 3.1

2130 2.4

2145 2.0

2200 1.5

2215 1.2

2230 .9

2245 .7

2300 .5

2315 .4

2330 .4

2345 .4

2400 .3

0015 .3

0045 .2

0100 .2

0115 .2

2155 0.0

2210 a.O

2225 a.O

2240 .1

2255 .1

2310 .2

2325 .5

2340 .9

2355 1.5

0010 2.1

0025 3.1

0040 4.3

0055 5.6

0110 6.6

0125 7.3

0210 9.3

0225 9.9

0240 9.9

0255 9.3

0310 8.6

0325 7.6

0340 6.9

0355 6.1

0410 5.0

0440 3.4

0455 2.9

0510 2.1

0525 1.7

0540 1.4

0555 1.0

0610 .8

0625 .7

0640 .5

0655 .4

0710 .3

0725 .3

0740 .3

0755 .2

0810 .2

0825 .2

0840 .1

0855 .1

0043 0.0 1215 0.2

0058 a.O 1230 .2

0113 .1 1245 .2

0128 .1 1300 .2

0143 .2 1315 .1

0258 .5 1330 .1

0313 .8 1345 .1

0328 1.3 1400 .1

0343 2.0 1415 .1

0358 2.8 1430 .1

0413 3.8

0428 5.0

0443 6.0

0458 7.0

0513 7.9

0528 8.8

0543 8.8

0558 9.2

0613 9.2

0628 8.5

0643 8.5

0658 7.6

0713 7.0

0728 6.1

0743 5.0

0800 4.0

0815 3.4

0830 2.8

0845 2.3

0900 2.0

0915 1.6

0930 1.3

0945 1.1

1000 .9

1015 .8

1030 .6

1045 .5

1100 .4

1115 .4

1130 .3

1145 .2

1200 .2

1 Trace (less than 0.05 micrograms per liter) was present in this sample.

36 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 20. Summary of traveltime data for Truckee River between Truckee, Calif., and Vista, Nev., 1979 and 1980

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 29). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations. , no data or not applicable]

00

&

Distance 

Site down-stream

Number

j " """ "~ llWHI IIIJQlvllWII

Name point Date

Streamflow

(cubic feet

per second)

Traveltime of dye plume since injection 

(hours)

Leading Peak Centroid Trailing

Mean ve

of cent

between 

(mites 

May-June 1979 (injection at site 1)

1

2

3

4

5

9

Truckee River at State Highway

267 at Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge

below Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River at Boca Bridge near

Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River below Farad powerplant near Floriston, Calif.

Truckee River at Mayberry Drive

below Lawton, Nev.

Truckee River at Vista, Nev.

0.0

4.69

9.62

19.77

35.16

48.63

May 31

May 31

May 31

May 31

June 1

June 1

440

520

680

510

450

2.3

4.9

10.3

18.3

27.8

2.9

5.8

11.5

20.8

31.2

0.0

3.0

6.0

11.9

21.4

32.3

4.0

8.5

14.8

25.4

39.1

1.6

1.6

1.7

1.4

1.5

May 1980 (injection at site 1)

1

2

3

4

5

9

Truckee River at State Highway

267 at Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge

below Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River at Boca Bridge near

Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River below Farad powerplant near Floriston, Calif.

Truckee River at Mayberry Drive

below Lawton, Nev.

Truckee River at Vista, Nev.

0.0

4.69

9.62

19.58

35.16

48.63

May 21

May 21

May 21

May 21

May 21

May 21-22

640

740

1,700

2,300

2,300

2,400

1.7

3.4

6.2

10.3

15.3

2.1

4.0

7.1

11.9

16.6

0.0

2.1

4.1

7.2

12.1

16.9

3.1

6.0

9.1

14.2

20.6

2.2

2.5

3.2

3.2

2.8

October 1980 (injection at site 1)

1

2

3

4

5

6

9

Truckee River at State Highway

267 at Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River at old U.S. 40 bridge

below Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River at Boca Bridge near

Truckee, Calif.

Truckee River below Farad powerplant near Floriston, Calif.

Truckee River at Mayberry Drive

below Lawton, Nev.

Truckee River near Sparks, Nev.

Truckee River at Vista, Nev.

0.0

4.69

9.62

19.58

35.16

44.71

48.63

Oct. 14

Oct. 14

Oct. 14-15

Oct. 15

Oct. 15-16

Oct. 16

Oct. 16

32

40

310

380

240

240

420

7.2

14.5

22.1

32.5

42.1

47.3

9.2

17.1

24.7

36.4

46.8

51.3

0.0

9.7

17.5

25.7

38.3

48.9

53.7

14.3

22.0

33.1

48.3

60.6

69.0

0.48

.63

1.2

1.2

.9

.8

a Injected dye mass.
s

I

s

8

Table 21 . Summary of traveltime data for Truckee River between Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall near Reno, Ne

Wadsworth, Nev., 1979,1980, and 1993

[1979 and 1980 data modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 30). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations. , no data or not applicabl

Number

Site

Name

Distance 

down-stream 

from injection 

point 

(river mites) Date

Streamfiow 

(cubic feet 

per second)

Traveitime of dye piume since injection 

(hours)

Leading 

edge Peak Centroid

Trailing 

edge

Mean velo

of centr

between 

(mites p

hour)

May 1979 (injection at site 7)

7

9

10

11

12

14

Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment 

plant outfall near Reno, Nev.

Truckee River at Vista, Nev.

Truckee River at Lockwood, Nev.

Truckee River at Patrick, Nev.

Truckee River below Tracy, Nev.

Truckee River at Derby Dam

0.0

1.43

:3.61

8.74

13.04

18.78

May 29

May 29

May 29

May 29

May 29

May 30

a81

800

780

770

770

760

1.1

2.3

4.9

7.8

12.3

1.3

2.8

5.9

8.9

13.6

0.0

1.5

3.1

6.1

9.2

13.9

2.3

4.7

8.2

11.5

16.1

0.95

1.4

1.7

1.4

1.2

September 1979 (injection at site 7)

7

9

10

11

14

Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment 

plant outfall near Reno, Nev.

Truckee River at Vista, Nev.

Truckee River at Lockwood, Nev.

Truckee River at Patrick, Nev.

Truckee River at Derby Dam

0.0

1.43

3.61

8.74

18.78

Sept. 4

Sept. 4

Sept. 4

Sept. 4-5

Sept. 5

a78

260

240

230

220

1.5

4.3

9.8

24.0

1.9

5.3

11.8

27.5

0.0

2.2

5.7

12.2

28.1

4.0

8.2

15.9

32.8

0.65

.62

.79

.59

January 1980 (injection at site 7)

7

9

10

11

12

14

Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment 

plant outfall near Reno, Nev.

Truckee River at Vista, Nev.

Truckee River at Lockwood, Nev.

Truckee River at Patrick, Nev.

Truckee River below Tracy, Nev.

Truckee River at Derby Dam

0.0

1.43

3.61

8.74

13.04

18.78

Jan. 18

Jan. 18

Jan. 18

Jan. 18

Jan. 18

Jan. 18

^220

2,900

2,900

3,200

3,200

3,300

0.7

1.3

2.7

4.0

6.0

0.9

1.8

3.2

4.7

6.9

0.0

1.0

1.8

3.3

4.8

7.0

1.7

2.8

4.3

6.7

8.5

1.4

2.7

3.4

2.9

2.6

November-December 1993 (injection at site 8)

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

Steamboat Creek at mouth near

Sparks, Nev.

Truckee River at Vista, Nev.

Truckee River at Lockwood, Nev.

Truckee River at Patrick, Nev.

Truckee River below Tracy, Nev.

Truckee River at Clark, Nev.

Truckee River at Derby Dam

0.0

1.30

3.43

8.61

12.91

14.97

18.68

Nov. 29

Nov. 29

Nov. 29

Nov. 30

Nov. 30

Nov. 30-Dec.

Nov. 30-Dec.

124

134

135

154

159

1 159

1 161

2.0

5.2

14.0

21.2

23.8

29.8

2.8

7.5

17.5

25.2

29.5

35.8

0.0

3.1

8.0

17.8

26.2

30.4

36.7

_

6.9

13.8

24.8

34.8

38.5

46.2

_

0.42

.43

.48

.49

.49

.51

a Combined discharge of sewage-treatment plant and Steamboat Creek. 

b Injected dye mass. 

c Estimated.
Table 22. Summary of traveltime data for Truckee River between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam nea

and 1993

[1979 and 1980 data modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 31). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations. , no data or not applicable]

00

m

CO

Number

Site

Name

Distance downstream from

- injection point 

(river mites) Date

Streamfiow

(cubic feet

per second)

Traveltime of dye plume since injection 

(hours)

Leading edge Peak Centroid Trailing edge

Mean veloc

of centroi

RafufAAn ftlt

MOIVVWII 9II

(miles per ho

May 1979 (injection at site 14)

14

15

16

19

21

22

23

Truckee River at Derby Dam

Truckee River at Painted

Rock Bridge.

Truckee River at old U.S. 40

bridge at Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee River at Dead Ox

Wash near Nixon, Nev.

Truckee River at State Highway 447 at Nixon, Nev.

Truckee River at Marble

Bluff Dam.

Truckee River below Marble

Bluff Dam.

0.0

4.91

11.19

21.70

31.66

34.88

34.93

May 23

May 23

May 23

May 24

May 24

May 24-25

May 24-25

370

370

370

310

270

240

240

3.0

6.9

14.0

22.9

29.2

29.4

3.5

8.0

16.1

26.7

31.8

32.7

0.0

3.7

8.3

16.4

27.0

37.2

37.3

5.4

10.2

20.8

33.4

50.7

51.2

1.3

1.4

1.3

.92

.32

b.32

August 1979 (injection at site 14)

14

15

16

19

Truckee River at Derby Dam

Truckee River at Painted

Rock Bridge.

Truckee River at old U.S. 40

bridge at Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee River at Dead Ox

Wash near Nixon, Nev.

0.0

4.90

11.19

21.70

Aug. 20

Aug. 20-21

Aug. 21-22

Aug. 23-24

48

47

38

36

12.5

35.0

73.3

16.0

43.0

82.3

0.0

17.0

46.3

83.7

25.0

60.0

96.0

0.29

.21

.28

January 1980 (injection at site 14)

14

15

16

17

19

21

23

Truckee River at Derby Dam

Truckee River at Painted

Rock Bridge.

Truckee River at old U.S. 40

bridge at Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee River at S-Bar-S

Ranch near Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee River at Dead Ox

Wash near Nixon, Nev.

Truckee River at State Highway 447 at Nixon, Nev.

Truckee River below Marble

Bluff Dam.

0.0

4.91

11.19

17.06

21.70

31.66

34.93

Jan. 16

Jan. 16

Jan. 16

Jan. 16

Jan. 16

Jan. 16

Jan. 16

3,700

3,700

3,700

3,800

3,800

3,800

3,800

1.1

2.6

4.2

5.7

8.6

10.1

1.4

3.0

5.1

6.7

9.9

11.5

0.0

1.5

3.2

5.3

6.9

10.2

11.9

2.6

4.1

7.4

9.3

13.7

15.0

3.3

3.7

2.8

2.9

3.0

1.9
o

00 

TO

TO

I

(0

O

1 

CQ 

<D

(0

*

(0

58

H H

o

40 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
Table 23. Summary of traveltime data for Truckee Canal between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev., and Lahontan Reservoir near 

1981

[Modified from La Camera and others (1985, table 32). See table 2 for detailed information about sites and current road designations. , no data or not applicable]

Site c

1

Number Name

Hstance downstream from 

injection point ( 

(river miles) Date p

1

Flow 

cubic feet 

er second)

fraveltime of dye plume since injection 1

(hours)

i

Leeding 

edge Peak Centrold

Trailing 

edge

I/le

of 

>et

(m

May 1979 (injection at site 7)

24

27

Truckee Canal at Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee Canal at U.S. 95A near Fernley, Nev.

a !8.78 May 30

a31.94 May 30

700

630

12.3

19.9

13.6

21.9

13.9

22.1

16.1

26.1 

September 1979 (injection at site 24)

24

32

Truckee Canal at Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee Canal at U.S. Highway 50 above Lahontan Reservoir

0.00 Sept. 4

30.98 Sept. 6

200

140 49.0 51.1

0.0

51.2 56.6 

May 1980 (injection at site 24)

24

27

28

29

30

31

32

Truckee Canal at Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee Canal at U.S. 95A near Fernley, Nev.

Truckee Canal at Anderson Check Dam near Fernley, Nev.

Truckee Canal at Allendale Check Dam near Hazen, Nev.

Truckee Canal at Mason Check Dam near Hazen, Nev.

Truckee Canal at Bango Check Dam near Hazen, Nev.

Truckee Canal at U.S. Highway 50 above Lahontan Reservoir

0.00 May 12

13.19 May 13

16.35 May 13-14

20.35 May 14

25.03 May 14-15

28.17 May 14-15

30.98 May 15

200

170

140

120

120

110

110

15.3

23.1

32.1

40.5

46.7

49.8

17.0

25.2

34.0

43.7

51.3

54.7

0.0

17.2

25.4

34.3

44.2

51.5

55.2

20.1

28.6

38.0

50.8

58.2

63.5

October 1981 (injection at site 24)

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

Truckee Canal at Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev.

Truckee Canal at Pyramid Check Dam near Wadsworth, Nev. c

Truckee Canal near Wadsworth, Nev.c

Truckee Canal at U.S. 95A near Fernley, Nev.c> d

Truckee Canal at Anderson Check Dam near Fernley, Nev.c

Truckee Canal at Allendale Check Dam near Hazen, Nev.c

Truckee Canal at Mason Check Dam near Hazen, Nev.c

0.00 Oct. 20

6.04 Oct. 20

8.88 Oct. 20

13.40 Oct. 20

16.35 Oct. 20

20.35 Oct. 20-21

25.03 Oct. 21

655

640

635

620

605

590

570

4.0

5.1

8.1

10.5

13.6

16.8

4.4

5.7

9.0

11.6

14.6

18.4

0.0

4.5

5.8

9.1

11.7

14.8

18.5

5.6

6.9

11.2

13.9

18.7

21 .4

October 1981 (injection at site 30)

TABLES 3-24

30 

31 

32

Truckee Canal at Mason Check Dam near Hazen, Nev.c 

Truckee Canal at Bango Check Dam near Hazen, Nev.c 

Truckee Canal at U.S. Highway 50 above Lahontan Reservoir

0.00 Oct. 21 

3.14 Oct. 21 

5.95 Oct. 21

570 

560 

550

1.9 

3.4

2.2 

3.8

0.0 

2.2 

3.9

2.9 

4.9

a Continuation of record from injection at Reno-Sparks sewage-treatment plant outfall (on Truckee River) near Reno, Nev. (See table 21.)

' Injected dye mass.

0 Cumulative traveltime, mean velocity, and duration of dye plume based on uncalibrated field-fluorometer readings rather than laboratory determinations of dye concentration.

d Data shown are for samples collected at Fernley Check Dam, which is 0.21 mile downstream from U.S. Highway 95A bridge.
Table 24. Index gaging stations used in traveltime studies

Station 

number Site name Period of record

10338000 Truckee River near Truckee, Calif.

10346000 Truckee River at Farad1

10350000 Truckee River at Vista, Nev.2

10351600 Truckee River below Derby Dam3

10351300 Truckee Canal near Wadsworth, Nev.

December 1944-September 1961 

June 1977-September 1982 

October 1992-September 1995 

October 1996-present 

January 1909-present 

August 1899-December 1907 

January 1932-December 1954 

October 1958^>resent 

January 1909-December 1910 

January 1916-December 1916 

January 1918-July 1958 

October 1958^>resent 

October 1966-present

'Near Floriston, Calif.

2See table 2 for detailed information about this site.

3Near Wadsworth, Nev.

42 Estimation of Traveitime Characteristics for Truckee River
100

50

20

o

z

UJ 10

Sites

Boca Bridge 

near Truckee

Site 2

Old U.S. 40

bridge below

Truckee

10 20 50 100 200 500 1,000 

INDEX-GAGING-STATION STREAMFLOW, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

EXPLANATION 

Index-gaging-station streamflow and sampling dates

O 27.8 flrVs, October 14-16,1980 

A 294 ftVs, May 31-June 1,1979 

D 672 ftVs, May 21-22,1980

Figure 7. Traveltime for Truckee River between State Route 267 bridge at Truckee, Calif, (site 1), and 

Boca Bridge near Truckee (site 3) plotted against streamflow at index gaging station (no. 10338000) 

Truckee River near Truckee. Data from La Camera and others (1985, p. 178). See table 2 for full site 

names and alternate route names and table 24 for more information about index gaging stations.

FIGURES 7-11 43
100

50

20

cc 

o 

z

UJ 10

LU

>

' > I

Example 

in text

Site 9 Vista

Site 6 Near Sparks

Site 5 Mayberry Drive

Site 4 Below Farad powerplant _

i i i i

100 200 500 1,000 2,000 5,000 10,000 

INDEX-GAGING-STATION STREAMFLOW, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

EXPLANATION 

.......... Estimated streamflow-traveltime relation

Index-gaging-station streamflow and sampling dates

O 380 tf/s, October 14-16,1980 

A 694 tf/s, May 31-June 1,1979 

D 2,405 ft3/s, May 21-22,1980

Figure 8. Traveltime for Truckee River between Boca Bridge near Truckee, Calif, (site 3), and index 

gaging station (no. 10350000) Truckee River at Vista, Nev. (site 9), plotted against streamflow at index 

gaging station (no. 10346000) Truckee River at Farad (near Floriston, Calif.). Data from La Camera 

and others (1985, p. 178). See table 2 for full site names and table 24 for more information about 

index gaging stations.

44 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
100

50

20

10

z 

III 2

LU 2

0.5

0.2

0.1

i i i r

Site 14 Derby Dam 

Site 13 Clark 

Site 12 Below Tracy

Site 11 Patrick

Site 10 Lockwood

Site 9 Vista

100 200 500 1,000 2,000 5,000 

INDEX-GAGING-STATION STREAMFLOW, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

EXPLANATION 

.......... Estimated streamflow-traveltime relation

Index-gaging-station streamflow and sampling dates

O 150 tf/s, November 29-December 1,1993 

A 260 fP/s, September 4-5,1979 

D 800 tf/s, May 29-30,1979 

<> 2,900 tf/s, January 18,1980

10,000

Figure 9. Traveltime for Truckee River between Steamboat Creek at mouth near Sparks, Nev. (site 8), 

and Derby Dam (site 14) near Wadsworth, Nev., plotted against streamflow at index gaging station (no. 

10350000) Truckee River at Vista, Nev. Data for 1979-80 from La Camera and others (1985, p. 179). 

See table 2 for full site names and table 24 for more information about index gaging stations.

FIGURES 7-11 45
1,000

500

200

100

1

2

UJ

5

I

50

20

10

Site 20 Numana Dam

Site 16 Old U.S. 40 

bridge at Wadsworth

Site 23 Below Marble Bluff Dam 

Site 21 State Highway 447

Site 19 Dead Ox Wash

Site 18 Below S-Bar-S Ranch

Site 15 Painted Rock Bridge

CM in a" s s

^" CM IOOO Q 9 Q ^ ^ 

 r- CM Uj O O O Q

INDEX-GAGING-STATION STREAMFLOW, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

EXPLANATION 

.......... Estimated streamflow-traveltime relation

Index-gagjng-station streamflow and sampling dates

O 8.4 ft3/s, November 15-23,1993 

A 14 ft3/s, November 8-11,1993 

X 29 frVs, November 4-7,1993 

D 48 tf/s, August 20-21,1979 

<£> 75 tf/s, September 21-26,1980 

 360 tf/s, May 23-25,1979 

+ 3,700 frVs, January 16,1980

Figure 10. Traveltime forTruckee River between Derby Dam (site 14) near Wadsworth, Nev., and Marble Bluff Dam (site 22) 

near Nixon, Nev., plotted against streamflow at index gaging station (no. 10351600) Truckee River below Derby Dam. Data for 

1979-80 from La Camera and others (1985, p. 180). See table 2 for full site names and alternate route names and table 24 for 

more information about index gaging stations.

46 Estimation of Traveltime Characteristics for Truckee River
100

50

20

8

z

UJ" 10

I

2 -

Site 32 U.S. Highway 50 

Site 30 Mason Check Dam

Site 28 Anderson Check Dam 

Site 27 U.S. 95A

Site 23 Pyramid Check Dam -.

Site 31 Bango Check Dam 

Site 29 Allendale Check Dam

Fernley Check Dam

Tunnel no. 3 near station no. 10351300

10 20 50 100 200 500 1,000 2,000 5,000 10,000

INDEX-GAGING-STATION FLOW, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

EXPLANATION 

.......... Estimated flow-traveltime relation

Index-gaging-station flow and sampling dates

D 191 tf/s, May 12-15,1980 

A 643 tf/s, October 20-21,1981 

O 664 tf/s, May 30,1979

Figure 11. Traveltime for Truckee Canal between Derby Dam near Wadsworth, Nev. (site 24), and U.S. Highway 50 above 

Lahontan Reservoir (site 32) near Fallen, Nev., plotted against flow at index gaging station (no. 10351300) Truckee Canal 

near Wadsworth. Femley Check Dam is 0.21 mile downstream from U.S. Highway 95A. Data from La Camera and others 

(1985, p. 181). See table 2 for full site names and alternate route names and table 24 for more information about index 

gaging stations.

FIGURES 7-11 47