Unraveling the Growth, Evolution and Disappearance of the Snow Creek Irrigation Company

Unraveling the Growth, Evolution and Disappearance of the Snow Creek Irrigation Company.

8:00 Am to 5:00PM

September 19, 2025

Trip Leaders: Bob Timmer & Brad Lemmon

Registration starts on Monday, September 8th

The trip is limited to 20 participants

Early homesteaders in the area along Highway 20, between Tumalo and Sisters that is now called Plainview, realized that irrigation was essential to support cultivation and livestock in the dry summers. On this field trip, we will trace the history of irrigation efforts from the first recording of water rights in 1886, to establishment of the Snow Creek Irrigation Company, through the eventual expansion to 53 miles of canals and the construction of dams at Little Three Creek and Three Creek Lakes, and then to the disappearance of the Snow Creek Irrigation Company in the 1980’s.

We will gather at the Cascade Village Mall in Bend, between PetSmart and Ashley's Furniture at 8:00AM. We will then proceed to the Three Sisters Viewpoint on Highway 20 for an overview (stop 1). Then to Three Creek Lake (Stop 2) where, like a snowflake or water drop, commence travel from the lakes through the dams and down the canals. Those droplets not percolating into the porous volcanic soil could irrigate the fields and water the livestock. Stops will be made at Horse Camp (Stop 3), Upper Three Creeks SnoPark (Stop 4), Plainview (Stop 5), and along Sisemore Road (Stop 6), The final stop, 7, will be at the Tumalo Dam, where we will explore its “fiasco” and the early hopes of the Tumalo Irrigation District. We will return to Cascade Village Mall no later than 5:00PM, likely earlier.

There will be short walks on gravel roads or on flat ground at stops 2,3,4, 6 and 7. Total walking mileage for the day will be less than 1 mile. There is very little shade, but we will never be far from the vehicles. Please bring a sack lunch, water and shade protection such as a hat and sun screen. There are restroom facilities at Three Creek Lake and Three Creek SnoPark. Total driving distance is about 75 miles of which 15 miles is on graded gravel roads.

Please contact Bob TImmer at bobtimmer@yahoo.com with any questions.