Lake Davis

Lake Davis is an artificial lake in Plumas County, California near the Sierra Nevada community of Portola. Its waters are impounded by Grizzly Valley Dam, which was completed in 1966. The lake is named for Lester T. Davis (1906-1952).HydrologyThe lake discharges into Big Grizzly Creek, a tributary of the Middle Fork Feather River.Grizzly Valley DamGrizzly Valley Dam is an earth-and-rock dam long and high, with of freeboard. The California Department of Water Resources owns the dam.RecreationLocated in Plumas National Forest, Lake Davis is the centerpiece of the Lake Davis Recreation Area, which supports boating, campground camping, cross-country skiing, fishing, hunting, mountain biking, picnicking, snowmobiling, swimming, and wildlife viewing.Northern pikeDuring 1996-97 Lake Davis was in the national spotlight due to controversy over northern pike and the possibility of poisoning the lake. Following an explosion of the pike population, and the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) decided to treat the reservoir with rotenone, a naturally occurring poison deadly to gilled creatures.In September 2007, the DFG again attempted to eradicate northern pike by lowering the water level and treating the remaining water with rotenone. DFG feared that pike might escape the lake and enter the Sacramento River system, potentially harming native anadromous fish species such as steelhead and salmon. The effort was controversial because pike are popular gamefish and considerable effort had already been spent on unsuccessful attempts to rid the lake of pike using explosives, nets, shocking, and poison.