Hydrological partitioning of ungaged mountain basins
Anne Weekes
Forest Resources
In
the mountainous landscapes of North Cascades and Mt. Rainier National Parks,
complex geology and/or geomorphology, steep topography and variable climate
create patchy ecological communities. The channel networks that drain these
regions are divided into process zones distinguished by a mosaic of different
disturbance regimes. Typically a majority of the channel network in these
regions is composed of headwater streams with flow regimes that are as varied
as the landscape. With the exception of large USGS gaging stations along
main stem rivers generally outside park boundaries, there is little gage
data available to model or predict channel flows, especially the numerous
headwater channels.
In an effort to monitor ongoing changes in the aquatic attributes of the
park, monitoring staff would like to ascertain the flow regimes characteristic
of community types 
found
in the parks. Using partitioning to test relationships between hydrological
response, physical processes and biological mosaics, the NPS Hydrograph Project
seeks to characterize the surficial hydrology of this complex and variable
terrain. The results of hydrological partitioning will be tested at a variety
of scales using stream gages, GIS remote sensing and other tools.
Above: Tree scar showing maximum water level of Thunder Creek after several days of record rainfall. Right: Thunder Creek recently after the same event.