# moon lake



## Bhilly81 (Oct 18, 2009)

so i know this might not be a good thing to post here right now with the weather the way it is and has been but i am just wondering if anyone has by chance been up that way and has any idea of the conditions up there and if they will even be able to open memorial weekend as usual we normally go up there every memorial weekend but this year we find ourselves looking for another place to go so any info or thoughts about moon lake would be appreciated i wont have the time off work until a few days before or i would go myself


----------



## .45 (Sep 21, 2007)

bigboybdub said:


> so i know this might not be a good thing to post here right now with the weather the way it is and has been but i am just wondering if anyone has by chance been up that way and has any idea of the conditions up there and if they will even be able to open memorial weekend as usual we normally go up there every memorial weekend but this year we find ourselves looking for another place to go so any info or thoughts about moon lake would be appreciated i wont have the time off work until a few days before or i would go myself


Bill said they are gonna try their best to be open for Memorial Day Weekend....you ought to give 'em a call...

http://www.moonlakeresort.com/


----------



## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

They are predicting 24" of snow in the mountains between now and wed.


-DallanC


----------



## Bhilly81 (Oct 18, 2009)

thanks 45 my dad is going nuts he really wants to get up there so bad


----------



## .45 (Sep 21, 2007)

bigboybdub said:


> thanks 45 my dad is going nuts he really wants to get up there so bad


Me too !!!

Here's a link for the Ashley Nat'l Forest.....these guys know their stuff...

http://www.forestcamping.com/dow/intermtn/ash.htm


----------



## Kingfisher (Jul 25, 2008)

kelly bird - moon lake water users told me they were plowing the road to the dam a couple of weeks ago. getting in for maintenance and operations - so access to the lake should be open now. they have dropped and continue to drop the lake level. our rock creek and currant creek snotel sites have nearly melted out. our new site, lakefork #3 only has a couple of days worth of melt left (just east of moon lake up hells canyon but a bit higher elevation). moon lake access will definitely be open, likely is open now. most facilities should be open as well, but you never know what the usfs may have on its mind about campgrounds, etc. a double check with them would be wise.


----------



## .45 (Sep 21, 2007)

Kingfisher said:


> kelly bird -* moon lake water users told me they were plowing the road to the dam a couple of weeks ago*. getting in for maintenance and operations - so access to the lake should be open now. they have dropped and continue to drop the lake level. our rock creek and currant creek snotel sites have nearly melted out. our new site, lakefork #3 only has a couple of days worth of melt left (just east of moon lake up hells canyon but a bit higher elevation). moon lake access will definitely be open, likely is open now. most facilities should be open as well, but you never know what the usfs may have on its mind about campgrounds, etc. a double check with them would be wise.


This is what the road looked like _about _April 19th, 2011[attachment=0:1c57muvv]Road.jpg[/attachment:1c57muvv]

Courtesy of_ Moon Lake Resort_...


----------



## .45 (Sep 21, 2007)

For those a think'in about Moon Lake, Moon Lake Campground, Rock Creek, Rock Creek Campgrounds and the Yellowstone River area....they'll all be open this weekend. Of course, according to the F.S guy's I talked to, the rivers will all have potential for flooding. The Lake Fork is not too high, it's fish-able. The Rock is a little high but mostly clear, and the Yellowstone is high and muddy, they can all get worse...depending on weather.

Moon is way low with a lot of sandy beach, with _almost_ no water coming in. I'm not sure whats going on with the run-off. Maybe Kingfisher could help us out here. Again the cool weather must be holding it up. Here's a few pic's of Moon Lake.

Brown Duck Creek...









Looking across to Fish Creek...









Moon Lake....









I didn't fish it to-day, too much sand and mud to get to the water. Maybe in a week or so.


----------



## sawsman (Sep 13, 2007)

Wow... it's low for sure.

Good info .45. Thanks.


----------



## STEVO (Sep 13, 2007)

> I didn't fish it to-day, too much sand and mud to get to the water. Maybe in a week or so


Awwwh ya big wimp. It doesnt get too bad up there!!! :mrgreen:


----------



## Kingfisher (Jul 25, 2008)

just been too cold for snowmelt. lakefork basin, five points lake are ... still accumulating snow, not melting. both have 40 to 50 inches of water to melt off. even lakefork #1 has just lost a few inches of snow to melt. lower elevations stuff has melted off, but the snow that generates most streamflow on lakefork, yellowstone, uinta, whiterocks, swift creek, etc isnt moving yet. most folks are pretty much scared spitless at this point as that much snow to melt and we have compressed the melt season from april-june to basically just june at this point... from 12 weeks to 4 means some really high flows. expected inflow to moon lake for june/july is about 120 thousand acre feet, moon lake holds about 36 thousand.


----------



## .45 (Sep 21, 2007)

Thanks for that info Kingfisher....it really is scary thinking about all that water. 

Does the same go for the Rock Creek area? And what about Red Creek above Fruitland....this reservoir is at 100% capacity now, what is in store for it?


----------



## Kingfisher (Jul 25, 2008)

rock creek and upperstillwater are in for wild ride, upper stillwater dam is a roller compacted concrete structure, the first of its kind in the us and everyone is anticipating that the flow will eventuall crest the entire dam making quite the spectacle... its the kind of thing that one could sell tickets for. you can bet that when it does, the news crews will take some footage. never happened before. red creek on the other hand is not as high an elevation watershed and although it will have a lot of water, not to the degree that rock creek will have. trial lake as of today still has 51 inches of water to melt and will likely accumulate a couple more this weekend.


----------

