Giving Back To The Truckee River - Truckee River Watershed Council "Snapshot Day 2014"

Though I'll never be able to match my Dad's relentless environmental work for our rivers and lakes, I still feel it is important to be able to give back to our natural resources. The Truckee River and its tributaries provides my guests with a bounty of beauty and bent rods, a gift for generations to experience for years to come. I've always been good at doing the field research for various projects revolving around water, aquatic insects, and trout. Even working with my dad it was understood that he would make the written filings, and I would gather photos, specimens, and accurate reports to complete the formal complaint.

So after a gorgeous evening fishing the Little Truckee River with Erin Casey, Director of Land Use Compatibility for the Truckee River Watershed Council, I was intrigued about participating in "Snapshot Day 2014". Snapshot Day is a citizen-based water quality-monitoring program. It’s a national program that TRWC is doing on Lake Tahoe, the Truckee River, and the streams that feed the lake and river.

small teams of volunteers go out to some 25 sites on or near the Truckee River, do a stream walk, take photos, and take water quality measurements and samples. All the data is collected, analyzed, collated and reported back to the community. It is also intended to provide important baseline data that could potentially be used in upcoming project identification, and to create a large-scale collaborative effort to prevent further degradation of water quality.

There is a real science when it comes to collecting accurate samples of data, water, and streamside conditions. Details count, being neat and organized is vital, along with making sure your sample is not contaminated. We collected samples from Donner Creek, and Prosser creek, then headed back to the main office to submit our findings. There's something magical about being on the banks of a Sierra stream, the birds and their glorious melody, lush green grass, and the therapeutic sound of running water is so moving. So special.

What a great day! I learned so much, and feel so good about volunteering my time for an awesome cause! I want to thank the entire Staff of the Truckee River Watershed Council for your undying love for the Truckee River, and allowing me to participate in "Snapshot Day 2104". I look forward to working with TRWC in the very near future, and beyond!

https://truckeeriverwc.org/