The boat ramp at Browns Draw has had some serious erosion issues for at least the last 10 years, maybe longer. The erosion makes it difficult for boats, especially smaller boats to launch. The reservoir is a coldwater trout fishery (Rainbow Trout and tiger trout) and does not see much in the way of "rec" boaters; however, it does have quite a bit of fishing visitation (anecdotal info, no recent creels). Improving the ramp will aid these anglers in accessing the reservoir for the open water season.

The goal of this project is to improve boat angler access at Browns Draw. We will do this by straightening the road leading down to the water, grading the parking lot to prevent water running down the ramp, adding a culvert to more appropriately deal with any water that does go down the ramp, adding and packing down 6" of road base to the road surface, and adding and packing down a layer of 3/4" minus gravel 2" thick. These simple measures should improve the ramp substantially and keep it operational far into the future.

The ramp has needed improvement for a long time; however, with recent fall rains, the erosion has gotten worse through time. It will continue to get worse until boats, especially small ones, are no longer able to launch. Just by improving drainage there and fixing the damage that has been done, we should be able to improve the ramp and keep it operational for a long time.

We do not have a finalized management plan for Browns Draw; however, the draft plan does include improving and increasing angler access as a goal. Repairing the ramp will improve angler access and allow all vehicles and all boats to more easily access the water, as access is difficult for some folks at this time due to the water erosion there.

This project will have no impact on fire or fuels.

Improving the boat ramp and reducing the potential for water damage may improve water quality locally around the boat ramp, at least immediately after storms. And while we do not typically see water quality issues at Browns Draw at this time, it would behoove us to maintain good water quality there into the future and not let it decline. It will not impact water quantity at all.

The land is not federally owned and no federal agencies are involved so NEPA is not required. This project will only improve the already existing boat ramp; it will not impact any undisturbed areas therefore an arch survey is not required. The project will be completed at low water when the entire boat ramp is exposed and dry. No work will be done below the water line and no fill material will be placed in the water; therefore an Army Corps permit is not required.

On November 18, 2021, we visited the site with the heavy equipment crew. We determined we would need to add material to and grade the parking area to prevent water from running down the ramp. We would also purchase a culvert and place it where the water naturally wants to flow across the ramp, preventing future erosion at this same location. Placing the culvert would require a bit of excavation to site it adequately. After placing the culvert, and filling it in with pit run and road base, straighten the ramp and knock out a small amount of fill material at the top and bottom of the ramp. This material would be placed on the ramp as it is basically pit run and would be helpful as a bottom layer on the ramp. Next, we will smooth out the surface and add 6" of road base over all of it and pack it down really well and then bring in 3/4" minus gravel and put that down 2" thick on top of the road base. The ramp would be packed in extensively to keep material in place. This would all be done in the fall (October) at low water.

Monitoring will be done annually and will be an assessment each fall of how the ramp is holding up and whether any issues need to be addressed (erosion, washboarding, loss of gravels below the high water mark).

Moon Lake Water Users Association is aware of and approves of this project. They will not be an active partner (they will not donate time or money to the project), but they are willing to allow it to happen as the landowner.

Any issues detected during annual monitoring will be addressed as quickly as possible. If issues are inexpensive to address, we will deal with them within the regional budget as possible. If it is too expensive to go that route, we'll apply for funds and complete any repairs needed as soon as we receive funding. Past improvements to the ramp have included application of 3/4 minus gravels and many of these have been washed away below the high water mark. We will therefore plan to bring in a load of new gravels every 3-5 years for application below the high water mark. Our monitoring will determine how often this will be required. No additional management prescriptions should be necessary to keep the ramp functional.

This project will directly improve recreation and boater access to fishing at a regionally important trout fishery. Without these improvements, the ramp will continue to experience water erosion and will become worse and worse. Eventually, no boats will be able to launch at this location. This project has been a long time coming and probably should have been done 10 years ago.

10/03/2022

10/20/2022

2023

I ordered 80 ft of culvert the first week of October; the culvert was delivered onsite and left there til Scott started the work. I also worked with Purchasing the first week of October to acquire two bids and proceed with purchasing the aggregate material and having it delivered to Browns Draw before the start of the project. We had 10 loads of road base and 4 loads of 1.5" minus gravel delivered on the 13th and 14th of October. Scott showed up bright and early the morning of the 17th and began by placing the culvert (by himself!), covering it and securing it with large boulders around the upstream end. After the culvert was placed, he excavated some pit run material from the surrounding area and started placing it as the base layer along with the road base. The gravel was laid down as well. Once the material was distributed, he watered and compacted all the material on the boat ramp and started applying the leftover material to the parking lot and the worst areas of the access road. These areas were also watered and compacted. The whole project took just three days and Scott did a great job.

Browns Draw is a small, regionally important water and is an opportunity fishery for both rainbow trout and tiger trout. Local anglers enjoy this waterbody extensively, though few folks from outside the basin even know it exists. Anglers have been launching small boats there for years, but the water erosion down the middle of the ramp was pretty bad and really needed to be repaired. In addition, the ramp didn't have a great base so any area near the water level was just mud. This project will help improve anglers' ability to launch any boat they wish without having to worry about bottoming out. It should also help reduce mud in the wheel wells from launching in 6" of mud at lower water levels.

We will monitor the work done annually and make any small repairs needed immediately using our Aquatics O&M technician. We foresee some amount of water damage potentially, but most likely we'll see tire rutting from folks trying to launch when the ramp is still saturated with snowmelt moisture. Anything requiring heavy equipment may take longer as we may have to acquire funding in that case.