At the request of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, PPL Montana next week will begin a drawdown of Hauser Lake to allow the federal agency to repair the boat ramp at Devil’s Elbow Campground.
Starting Thursday (7/31), the lake’s elevation will be gradually drawn down to 0.6 to 0.7 feet below current levels, in accordance with the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license for PPL Montana’s hydropower projects on the Missouri and Madison rivers.
The drawdown, which will take about four days, will affect some boat docks on the lake during the bureau’s two-month project at Devil’s Elbow. The area is about 15 miles east of Helena on York Road.
“We realize this action will not be welcome news for boaters during the height of the summer recreation season, but there are public safety issues at the boat ramp that the BLM needs to address, and we support that effort,” said David Hoffman, director of External Affairs for PPL Montana.
Like the other PPL Montana hydroelectric dams on the Madison and Missouri rivers, Hauser is a very popular location for boating, fishing, hiking and other outdoor activities.
Brad Rixford, recreation supervisor for the BLM’s field office in Butte, said he expects the project to be completed within 60 days.
“As soon as the project is completed, we will open that ramp back up,” Rixford said. “But we do have to address the safety concerns and replace the damaged concrete slab and extend the boat ramp, which has been worn away.”
During the project, he recommends that boaters use the access area at York Bridge on State Highway 280, about a mile from Devil’s Elbow.
The Devil’s Elbow boat launch is a joint project with the BLM and the Missouri-Madison River Fund, created through the collaborative efforts of PPL Montana; Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks; U.S. Forest Service; the BLM; Madison, Gallatin, Broadwater, Lewis and Clark, Cascade and Chouteau counties; and other public and private partners.
PPL Montana provides safe, reliable energy from coal-fired power plants at Colstrip and Billings, as well as 11 hydroelectric plants along West Rosebud Creek and the Missouri, Madison, Clark Fork and Flathead rivers. It has a combined generating capacity of more than 1,200 megawatts and has offices in Billings, Butte and Helena. PPL Montana and its 500 employees are dedicated to Montana and its communities, supporting educational, environmental and economic development programs across the state. PPL EnergyPlus operates a trading floor in Butte that markets and sells power for PPL Montana in wholesale and retail energy markets throughout the western United States. PPL Montana and PPL EnergyPlus are subsidiaries of PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL).