Most Delta drawbridges also are equipped with marine-band VHF radios and may be contacted on channel 9. They are a fact of life, let's face it. But the occasional droughts have almost no negative effect on California Delta recreation. Water depths in much of the Delta are controlled by the pressure from the ocean's tidal action. Except in the higher reaches of some area rivers and sloughs, water depths in the Delta are just about as deep during a drought year as they are during a normal year.
Floods can be devastating.
During heavy flood times, it might be wise just to stay away until things settle. But the actual period of danger or inconvenience usually is more brief than the public believes. The devastating floods of January 1997, for example, did heavy damage to fewer than a dozen resorts out of the Delta's total of over 100 resorts. Some of those affected were operational within just a few weeks, and all were operational before summer. You may encounter freighters transiting to or from the deepwater ports of Sacramento or Stockton.