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2014 Map of Wilson Reservoir

Name: 2014 Topographic Map of Wilson Reservoir
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 2014
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 2014

About this map

Wilson Reservoir and the surrounding high-desert hydrology define this section of Elko County, where seasonal and perennial waters are carefully managed across the sagebrush landscape. The central importance of water storage in this arid region is visible through the positioning of both Wilson Reservoir and Rawhide Reservoir within the drainage basins of Silver Cr and Wilson Cr. These water bodies serve as vital landmarks for local navigation and land management in a landscape otherwise dominated by the geological formations of Silver Creek Valley and the steepening walls of Wilson Creek Canyon.

The map details the intersection of several township and range boundaries, illustrating how the Public Land Survey System organized this remote territory. From the northern reaches of Indian Cr to the southern drainage of Deep Cr, the terrain transitions between flat valley bottoms and the rising slopes of the high desert. This 2014 survey serves as a record of the modern water-use infrastructure in a part of Nevada where such resources have historically dictated the patterns of ranching and settlement.