USGS Water-Year Summary 2024
11523000 Klamath River at Orleans, CA
LOCATION - Lat 41°18'13", long 123°32'00" referenced to North American Datum of 1927, in SW 1/4 NE 1/4 sec.31, T.11 N., R.6 E., Humboldt County, CA, Hydrologic Unit 18010209, in Six Rivers National Forest, on right bank at Orleans, 25 ft upstream from highway bridge at Orleans, and 0.2 mi downstream from Cheenitch Creek.
DRAINAGE AREA - 8,475 mi². not including Lost River or Lower Klamath Lake Basins.
REVISIONS HISTORY - WSP 1565: 1935 (instantaneous maximum discharge), 1949.
SURFACE-WATER RECORDS
PERIOD OF RECORD - October 1927 to current year. Monthly discharge only for some periods, published in WSP 1315-B. Prior to October 1965, published as "at Somesbar."
GAGE - Water-stage recorder and crest-stage gage. Datum of gage is 353.98 ft above NGVD of 1929 and 357.43 ft above NAVD of 1988. Prior to Oct. 1, 1965, at site 6.7 mi upstream at different datum. Oct. 1, 1965, to July 14, 1992, water-stage recorder at datum 2.00 ft higher, at present site.
EXTREMES FOR PERIOD OF RECORD - Maximum discharge, 307,000 ft³/s, Dec. 22, 1964, gage height, 76.5 ft, from floodmarks, site and datum then in use, from rating curve extended above 80,000 ft³/s, on basis of slope-conveyance study, gage height, 59.4 ft; minimum daily, 320 ft³/s, Aug. 25, Sept. 1, 1931.
WATER-QUALITY RECORDS
PERIOD OF RECORD -
DISCRETE WATER-QUALITY DATA:
CHEMICAL DATA: Water years 1951-1981, 2002-2003, 2016-2017 (seasonal only).
SEDIMENT DATA: Water years 1956-1959, 1966-1981, 2019 to current year (storm season only).
CONTINUOUS WATER-QUALITY DATA:
DISSOLVED OXYGEN: Water years 2002-04 (seasonal records only).
pH: Water years 2002-04 (seasonal records only).
SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE: Water years 2002-04 (seasonal records only).
WATER TEMPERATURE: Water years 1966-82 (daily), 2002-04 (seasonal records only), 2013 to current year (daily).
SEDIMENT DATA: Water years 1967-79.
TURBIDITY DATA: Water years June 19, 2019 to current year (seasonal records only November 1 to May 31).