VALE, Oregon — Visitors to the Owyhee River are being warned about dangerously high flows and cold water temperatures below the Owyhee Dam, according to the Bureau of Land Management’s Vale District.
“We are not closing the area, but we do want to advise the public of the conditions,” said Acting Malheur Field Manager Nikki Haskett in a press release. “Cold water can quickly cause hypothermia, and high flows can sweep a person off their feet.”
An unusually high amount of winter precipitation and runoff has necessitated early releases of water from the dam. BLM says that river flows above 1,000 cubic feet per second are considered "challenging" — flows this week have already exceeded 2,000 CFS and could reach 3,000 CFS by next week.
For more details on water releases and flows, visit owyheeirrigation.org.
