The Caspar Creek Experimental Watersheds

Caspar Creek experimental watersheds are located on the Jackson Demonstration State Forest. Sponsors are the Pacific Southwest Research Station (PSW), USDA Forest Service, and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF). Both organizations have been working cooperatively since 1962. 

The 483-ha North Fork of Caspar Creek and the 424-ha South Fork of Caspar Creek have been gaged continuously since 1962. The watersheds are Iocated about 7 km from the Pacific Ocean and about 10 km south of Fort Bragg in northwestern California at 39^o21'N 123^o43'W. Watersheds generally have a southwest orientation. Topographic development of the area is youthful, with uplifted marine terraces deeply incised by antecedent drainages. About 35 percent of the basins’ slopes are less than 17 degrees, and 7 percent are steeper than 35 degrees. Hillslopes are steepest near the stream channel and become more gentle near the broad, rounded ridgetops. Elevation ranges from 37 to 320 m. 

Soils of the basins are well-drained day-loams, 1 to 2 min depth. They are derived from Franciscan graywacke sandstone and weathered, coarse-grained shale of Cretaceous age. They have high hydraulic conductivities and subsurface stormflow is rapid, producing saturated areas of only limited extent and duration. The climate is typical of low-elevation watersheds on the central North American Pacific Coast. Winters are mild and wet, while summers are moderately warm and dry. Average annual precipitation is 1,200 mm, and about 90 percent falls during the months of October through April. Rainfall intensities are low. Snow is rare.