Johnson Canyon Restoration Project / Truckee, CA

Johnson Canyon is a steep canyon within the Donner Lake and Truckee River Watershed. Historic logging impacts from timber removal and road construction had disrupted drainage patterns, forming gullies and eroding channels. Existing trails for hikers and mountain bikers created additional disruptions to drainage patterns.

Wildscape Engineering designed trail decommissioning and channel stabilization treatments focused around the intersections of drainages at roads and trails. The goal of the project was to reduce sediment loads to the Truckee River, which is listed as water quality impaired for this constituent. We developed design plans that integrated native materials and minimized construction impacts in less than a year’s time so that the project could be realized the following summer. Much of the design was approached as “field fit” to allow for construction flexibility and minimize the need for topographic surveys.