Park Ranger Presentations at Lake Berryessa’s Monticello Dam

Written by: Todd Eggert

Visitors view the Glory Hole as part of the Lake Berryessa Monticello Dam Program.On May 7 and 14, 2016, Bureau of Reclamation Park Ranger Todd Eggert of Lake Berryessa offered some 45 visitors to Monticello Dam an opportunity to learn about the dam and reservoir. Over the two days, the sightseers and tourists learned about the history of the Solano Project and how water has affected the course of the Berryessa Valley. Many of the visitors came from Solano County and enjoyed discovering where their water comes from.

Park Rangers at the Lake Berryessa Field Office began the Monticello Dam Program in summer 2015 to help educate the public about the history of the lake and dam and the benefits they provide. Monticello Dam is located along Highway 128 in eastern Napa County, about 500 feet west of the Yolo County line. Many of the people driving along Highway 128 stop to take a look at the dam and reservoir.

Monticello Dam is a 304-foot-high concrete arch dam built in 1957 that impounds Putah Creek to create Lake Berryessa, a popular summer recreation area. The name “Berryessa” came from two brothers, Jose Jesus and Sisto Berryessa, who owned a large amount of land in and around the town of Monticello, now covered by the waters of Lake Berryessa.

In the 1940s, the Solano Irrigation District (SID) was formed to manage the water resources of Putah Creek. In November 1948, the Secretary of the Interior authorized Reclamation to build the Solano Project as part of the Central Valley Project (CVP). But local residents wanted the project to be financed and operated separately, and a Senate hearing in 1953 confirmed the Solano Project would be independent of the CVP. The project provides flood control and municipal, industrial, and irrigation water supply.

The Monticello Dam Powerplant, completed in 1983, has three generators with a total capacity of 11.5 megawatts. The powerplant is operated by SID with most of the electrical power sent to the North Bay area of San Francisco.

The dam’s Morning Glory Spillway, known as the Glory Hole, is a funnel-shaped outlet that allows water to bypass the dam when the lake reaches capacity (1,602,000 acre-feet). The last time the reservoir spilled through the Glory Hole was on May 18, 2006.

Park Rangers will continue to offer the Monticello Dam Program every Saturday through Labor Day 2016.

Published on May 27, 2016