Whether a water manager or a water enthusiast, those in the field of water resources welcome October 1 as more than just the start October, but as the start of the new water year. What is a water year you might ask? When dealing with water supply, the period from October 1 – September 30 has been agreed upon to be better suited than the traditional calendar year for capturing patterns of water availability, water demand, and water use common in much of the northern hemispher

Stream Tracker participants made over 2,267 observations of streamflow presence/absence at 381 sites in 2017*. These observations both confirmed the locations of stream channels as well as created baseline flow records of changing flow conditions at each site. Stream Trackers established sites along roads, local hiking trails, urban river corridors, irrigation ditches, and on the land where they live and work. These sites included streams that flowed all season, streams that

For hydrologists, the new year comes three months early, when October 1 marks the start of the new water year. But why? Why not just have the water year start on January 1st? This is due to patterns of water availability, water demand, and water use common in much of the northern hemisphere. October marks a transition time, when the growing season is ending, and snow is starting to accumulate in the mountains. The mountain snowpack builds up through the fall, winter, and spr

September marks the final weeks of summer but it also is a transition period for streamflows in Colorado where water demand from the hot summer months lessen and higher elevations prepare for the arrival of snow. September also marks the start of the Stream Track-a-thon, a two week challenge to visit every Stream Tracker point at least once! What this will create is a snapshot in time describing the flow conditions during this transitional period of the sites that have been m

Smartphones are changing how we can collect data. Within our devices in the capacity to navigate using the phone GPS system, take photos, access datasheets, input time and date stamps, and then upload all of this information to an online database where it can be viewed by all. Stream Tracker has adopted an application that allows the user to navigate to Stream Tracker sites, even in remote locations and an application that connect the user to the project datasheets in the fie

Interested community members, practitioners, and researchers joined the Steam Tracker crew for the inaugural kick-off and information session at Innosphere June 21, 2017. This night was a chance to learn more about the project as well as connect with those who share an interest in contributing to improving the scope of stream monitoring in our watersheds. Thank you to all who attended. We are looking forward to seeing the network grow. Tell us why you Stream Track? Is it a w